Best organizations for promoting women's rights via US law?

[MH1]

Just wondering who you all think are the best organizations - best as in most strategic and effective - in organizing women and protecting women's rights, particularly those rights which enable a woman to determine her own life course. Obviously reproductive rights would be huge, but it would also include access to employment, education, health care and other services.

I am interested in what organizations focus on these issues. I think I'm most interested in those that work politically to defeat the most heinous candidates and elect the most decent. But it would be interesting if there were also something like SPLC for women, that focuses primarily on pursuing legal action in women's rights' cases. (For anyone who doesn't know, SPLC - Southern Poverty Law Center - prosecutes a lot of hate crime cases, in addition to doing a lot of other work to fight bias discrimination.)

I'm guessing NOW would be near the top of the list. How effective do you think NOW is? (how is it that bills are getting passes to drag us back to the dark ages?) Are there other organizations?

[justiceischeap]

1. I'd guess ACLU would be like SPLC

http://www.aclu.org/womens-rights

Since 1972 the ACLU has been working to secure gender equality and ensure that all women and girls are able to lead lives of dignity, free from violence and discrimination, including discrimination based on gender stereotypes. This means an America where all women and girls have equal access to quality education, employment, housing, and health, irrespective of race, class, income, immigration status or involvement with the criminal justice system.

[MH1]

3. True - thanks for pointing that out

For legal actions that's good. For the legislative aspect I'm hoping to learn of groups that are focused on women's rights specifically,

[no_hypocrisy]

2. The Freedom From Religion Foundation in Madison, WI.

http://www.ffrf.org

FFRF regularly files legal actions around the country to maintain a strong stand in protecting religious neutrality by the government and to prevent infringement of civil rights by religious organizations through public institutions, e.g., public schools, legislatures, tax benefits for religious institutes, etc.

FFRF has protected women's rights from its inception. Read founder Anne Gaylor's essay "Tell Jake to sleep on the roof".

http://ffrf.org/legacy/fttoday/1996/august96/gaylor.html

[MH1]

4. Probably a great organization, but do all women's rights issues ensue from religion?

Actually that would make an interesting topic of discussion itself, I suppose!

I would really like to find organizations that focus specifically on women's rights. Religion's impact on rights goes far beyond just women's issues.

[kestrel91316]

5. NARAL