Historian Stephanie Coontz published an important op-ed yesterday in the New York Times on “Why Gender Equality Stalled.”

This op-ed is one of a series of new pieces celebrating or reassessing the 50th anniversary of Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique, a foundational work of the feminist movement that has significantly influenced the development of women and gender history.

One of the factors that Coontz considers is paid maternity and paternity leave, arguing that the United States is far behind the curve on establishing leave policies.

Northern Illinois University students will be interested in this op-ed, since Stephanie Coontz will soon be visiting NIU’s campus as a speaker for the Women’s Studies Program.