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Advancement of Women

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Advancement of Women
Photo by Eric VanZanten

Baha'is view equality between the sexes and the full participation of women in every field of human endeavor as essential prerequisites to peace and human progress.

The Baha'i writings state: "As long as women are prevented from attaining their highest possibilities, so long will men be unable to achieve the greatness which might be theirs."

The following excerpt is from a statement by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United States, published in 1997.

Two Wings of a Bird: The Equality of Women and Men

The emancipation of women, the achievement of full equality between the sexes, is essential to human progress and the transformation of society. Inequality retards not only the advancement of women but the progress of civilization itself. The persistent denial of equality to one-half of the world's population is an affront to human dignity. It promotes destructive attitudes and habits in men and women that pass from the family to the work place, to political life, and, ultimately, to international relations. On no grounds, moral, biological, or traditional, can inequality be justified. The moral and psychological climate necessary to enable our nation to establish social justice and to contribute to global peace will be created only when women attain full partnership with men in all fields of endeavor.

  • Read the full text of Two Wings of a Bird: The Equality of Women and Men.

  • Read more Baha’i articles, compilations and stories on the advancement of women from the Baha'i International Community.

  • Podcast: Listen to Robert C. Henderson, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of the United States, discuss the equality of women and men.


    For more than a century, the Baha'is of the United States have worked to advance the status of women by advocating policies and legislation that promote gender equality, such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). They also collaborate with national coalitions on legislation against domestic violence; education on the health implications of violence against women; promotion of complete gender integration in development planning; and advocacy against international gender-based violence.