Even though they make up half the population, women and girls have endured discrimination in most societies for thousands of years. In the past, women were treated as property of their husbands or fathers - they couldn't own land, they couldn't vote or go to school, and were subject to beatings and abuse and could do nothing about it. Over the last hundred years, much progress has been made to gain equal rights for women around the world, but many still live without the rights to which all people are entitled.

The United Nations Charter was a major milestone for women's rights because it was the first international agreement to affirm the equality between men and women. Since then, the UN has been an important advocate for the rights of women. The UN adopted an international bill of rights for women in 1979 and sponsored four global women's conferences. The Millennium Development Goals, which all nations agreed to at the UN in 2000, sets tangible goals for nations to achieve by 2015, several of which deal directly with empowering women.

International Women's Day on March 8 and Women's Equality Day, on August 26 (commemorating the certification of the 19th Amendment which granted women the right to vote), are important annual rallying points to help eliminate discrimination and build support for the rights of women everywhere.