The 70th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70), held from March 9–19 at the United Nations in New York, focused on ensuring access to justice for all women and girls. The session was marked by significant challenges—and a strong response from civil society to defend established rights.

The principal outcome of each CSW is the Agreed Conclusions (ACs). These documents provide a deep analysis of the priority theme and offer concrete recommendations for governments, intergovernmental bodies, and civil society stakeholders to implement at the international, national, and local levels.

I want to highlight the collective advocacy of civil society on the final day of CSW70 to push back against the rollback of critical rights in the Agreed Conclusions and uphold the international consensus on these critical rights.  

Opening Challenges: A Shift in Procedure 

For the first time in 70 years, the session began with a significant procedural shift as the body moved to replace the previous tradition of “consensus” with a recorded vote of members to adopt its ACs at the start of the gathering. The U.S. delegation introduced eight amendments seeking to replace inclusive terminology with a binary definition of gender and to change language related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), reproductive health rights, as well as the effects of climate change on women. However, the Commission rejected these proposals, adopting the initial text by a vote of 37 in favor, 1 against, and 6 abstentions. This opening established a clear mandate to protect inclusive legal standards despite a “well-orchestrated backlash” against equality.

Final Day: Civil Society Pushes Back

The session concluded with the procedural defeat of a final, last-minute U.S. proposal to narrow the definition of “gender” to “men and women.” Introduced without prior negotiation, the draft was blocked by a “no action motion” led by Belgium and the European Union, which passed with 23 votes and drew cheers from the room. It marked a victory for the CSW, showing widespread support for women’s rights by most countries.

On the ground at the UN

Leadership from the U.S. Women’s Caucus (USWC) and the EU/North American Caucus took direct action. I serve as the Feminist Foreign Policy Director for the USWC, and I was happy to hear the first-hand account of the events yesterday and to share this update. Pam Perraud (President, USWC), Mary Rose Kaczorowski (USA Representative, EU/NA Caucus), and others spent the week drafting an open letter to all CSW delegates regarding the integrity of the ACs. Early on the morning of the 19th, Pam Perraud and Mary Rose Kaczorowski distributed approximately 100 copies to delegates entering Conference Room 4, ensuring the voices of major NGOs were visible to the international community.

Damilalo Banjo reported the full account of this historic vote for PassBlue, “Washington Fails Once Again to Redefine ‘Gender’ at UN Gathering.” Banjo served as a panelist at the USWC’s virtual event, “Resisting Regression: Gender Justice in the Changing US and UN,” on March 18.

I have linked the EU & NA Caucus letter distributed to delegates on the 19th, as well as the USWC letter sent to Ambassador Mike Waltz, U.S. Representative to the UN, and Ambassador Dan Negrea, U.S. Representative to ECOSOC. These documents reflect our collective commitment to continuing progress toward universal justice for all women and girls.

Sung Sohn, M.Ed., is Co-Founder & Executive Director of Education for Social Justice Foundation as well as Feminist Foreign Policy Director of US Women’s Caucus.