In 1988, former AAUW president Sarah Harder gave the Republican and Democratic presidential candidates some good advice: Stop dismissing crucial topics like child care, fair pay and affordable housing as “women’s issues.” Instead, she framed them as the “kitchen-table issues” that are discussed daily in the homes of families everywhere.

More than three decades later, as our nation grapples with a pandemic, an overdue reckoning with racism, and a dismal economy, the wisdom of Harder’s words has never been more apparent. For far too long, our country has ignored the problems that matter most to millions, resulting in deep inequalities that hurt us all.

Now is the time to finally achieve the equity that AAUW has fought for since our inception 139 years ago.