U.S. Rep. Martha Griffiths (D-Michigan) was a central architect of women's rights as we know them today.

Griffiths navigated a gauntlet of schemes and intrigue to insert "sex" into the employment nondiscrimination provision of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. She also spearheaded congressional passage of an Equal Rights Amendment, although the measure yet remains tangled in legal wrangling over the state ratification process.

An ardent and effective supporter of women's equality throughout her life, Griffiths was also the first woman to serve on Congress's powerful Ways and Means Committee. From this post, Griffiths initiated changes to the tax code that still benefit low-income families, single parents and married couples.

Learn more about Rep. Martha Griffiths.