by Gillian Thomas, 2016, 295 pages, paperback, e-book, audiobook
An illuminating study of landmark sex-discrimination cases waged in the wake of Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act which added three crucial words, "because of sex," to the employment discrimination section. This landmark piece of legislation for working women came at a time when job opportunities were few, career advancement was unheard of, and pregnancy and even marriage could bring about instantaneous unemployment.
Thomas, an employment discrimination lawyer, presents 10 cases that went all the way to the Supreme Court to illustrate the early efforts by working women to find some equality and justice in the workplace. These efforts included being able to be hired in jobs once the exclusive domain of men, being protected from sexual harassment, and protected from discrimination for pregnancy
In the years since, women have gone on to comprise almost half the country's work force while rising to the highest ranks in every profession. Yet those achievements weren't attained with the mere stroke of a pen. There were real women behind these accomplishments, women who had to sue for the freedoms that Title VII purported to have granted.
The author merges the personal stories with the legal intricacies of the litigation and crafts a moving and informative account of a struggle for equality that remains incomplete.
