Hillary Clinton Women's Rights

Firmly delivering her speech “Women’s Rights are Human Rights” September 5, 1995 while speaking at the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, China Hillary Rodham Clinton had the intent to educate and spread awareness in regards to the rights and treatment of women around the world, while encouraging women to take initiative and highlight the potential women have given the opportunity. The underlying message Clinton delivers in her speech stresses that the goal of equal treatment and women’s rights “cannot be fully achieved unless all governments...accept their responsibility to protect and promote internationally recognized human rights” and that it is not possible unless “women must...participate fully in the social

Women can achieve milestones “If women are healthy and educated...If women are free from violence...If women have a chance to work…”, but to do so the opportunity has to be made possible and in reach of those suffering from the lack of rights due to being a woman (Clinton). According to Clinton, the success of women’s rights will only happen if women take initiative and possess authoritative positions- such as government offices. Clinton points out that “Our goals for this conference, to strengthen families and societies by empowering women to take greater control over their own destinies, cannot be fully achieved unless all governments...accept their responsibility to protect and promote internationally recognized human rights” and in order to do so “Women must...participate fully in the social and political lives of their countries...” (Clinton). Above all, Clinton shares that “We must recognize that women will never gain full dignity until their human rights are respected and protected” (Clinton). Though the task seems daunting and near impossible to achieve by women alone, Clinton assures the possibility of it happening because “we have also been reminded...of the good that comes when men and women join together to combat the forces of tyranny and to build a better world” (Clinton). Women cannot achieve this task alone, but in order to be

Clinton’s speech led to “Beijing [legitimizing women’s rights] and galvanized media attention to the issue” which “energized the feminist movement and connected it more to the global human rights movement as well as the United Nations and governments” (Worden 35-36). In Clinton’s speech, she did not speak striving to make women feel sorry for themselves, but to show women can overcome the hardships they face and that change is possible if initiative is taken. Though progress has taken place, the steps ahead to take are far from being just a few. A survey taken from Penn. Schoen and Berland Associates from November 2008, majority of people in the United States believe the treatment of women at home appears equal, but does not appear equal in the press, workplace, politics, or the armed forces (Scherer 26). Steadily, progress in achieving women’s rights has happened, but when it comes to when change should happen, “The time is now”