A Historical Analysis of International Documents Relating to the Status of Women and Their Relationship to the Future Foreign Policy of the United States

It was predicted that the U.N. World Conference of the International Women's Year would significantly further international human rights for women, but in retrospect the conference fell far short of accomplishing any such goal. In part, the political overtones that permeated the conference caused this failure. Lack of a cohesive strategy on the part of the major countries, especially the United States, allowed the conference to focus on political issues other than women's rights. The United States delegation also evidenced symptoms of being unprepared and unwilling to assume a leadership role.

Until the advent of the Carter administration, these symptoms appeared to pervade United States foreign policy in the area of women's rights. Consequently, this article's purpose is to make suggestions regarding the incorporation of women's rights into the international policy of the United States-particularly in light of President Carter's emphasis on human rights issues.