When the Civil Rights Act was adopted in 1964, it prohibited employment discrimination on the basis of sex as well as race, ethnicity, and religion. Even so, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission initially failed to act on sex discrimination complaints.

Nonetheless, when Southern Bell employee Lorena Weeks was told a high-paying switchman's job was reserved for men, it set into motion a major shift in public policy. Together with lawyer Sylvia Roberts, Weeks argued that she needed the money as much as any man and that a Georgia regulation prohibiting women from work involving objects heavier than 30 pounds was arbitrarily discriminatory. 

After years of setbacks and appeals, the federal court rejected "romantic paternalism" in employment law, awarding Weeks both the job and $31,000 in backpay.

Learn more about Lorena Weeks.

— Sponsored by the Chancellor's Commission on Women