A Woman's Place · Episode 12 of 12 · 21 min
Four Generations: The Verdict, Measured by One Family
The finale renders a verdict on every lens the series tested: sexism as the constant; religion, class, and immigration as the architecture; institutional design as the sleeper. It concludes that the United States was never the most enlightened place to be a woman but one architecture among several, and measures the century against four generations of one family.
Who's who
- Claudia Sheinbaum+3 more episodesfirst woman president of Mexico, in office since October 2024
- Javier Milei+2 more episodesArgentine president whose government defunded the Madres
- Taty Almeidasurviving Madres de Plaza de Mayo founder who still keeps the vigil
- Elizabeth Packard+1 more episodeasylum reformer from Episode 2
- Matilde Hidalgo+1 more episodeEcuadorian physician; first woman to vote in a national election in Latin America
- Ida B. Wells-Barnett+2 more episodesjournalist who rejoined the Illinois delegation mid-route
- Marian Anderson+1 more episodebarred from Constitution Hall in 1939
- Eva Peron+1 more episodechampion of Argentina's 1947 suffrage law
Where it happens
- Plaza de Mayo, Buenos Aires+1 more episodewhere the Madres still keep their vigil
- Washington, D.C.+31 more episodessite of the 1913 suffrage procession
- Mexico+10 more episodesparity constitution and first woman president
Timeline
- 1913Woman Suffrage Procession in Washington
- 1947Argentina's Law 13,010 grants women's suffrage
- 1972ERA passes Congress and stalls; Title IX passes
- 1991Argentina enacts the first legislated candidate quota
- 2022Dobbs ends the federal abortion right
- June 30, 2026Supreme Court decides West Virginia v. B.P.J.
Still debated
Figures for the pay gap diverge by method, at 83 percent in Census data versus 85 percent in Pew data, and neither is the number. The share of women in medical school in 1970 is cited between 8 and 11 percent depending on how it is counted.
Connected episodes in other series
Mexico: Ejidos and the Justice PlansThe Land Returns · Episode 4Also features Claudia Sheinbaum
The Sacred Grain: Corn, Sovereignty, and the BorderThe Politics of Produce · Episode 2Also features Claudia Sheinbaum
Standard Oil's Secret Cartel With Nazi GermanyBackyard Empire: The U.S. in Latin America · Episode 3
The Latin American Paradox: Why Costa Rica Beats the NordicsHappiness in the World · Episode 5