Nobel Prize-winning economist Claudia Goldin explains in Barcelona why "women won."

Barcelona"We think things are bad now, but I'm a historian, so believe me: things were worse before." Claudia Goldin, winner of the 2023 Nobel Prize in Economics and professor at Harvard University, gave the inaugural lecture of the Pompeu Fabra University Faculty of Economics and Business on Thursday with a powerful title: Why women won (Why women won, in English).

Goldin reviewed the evolution of women's role in the economy in her native United States and the causes that have led to the evolution of what were initially minority demands into legally recognized rights widely accepted by society. Curiously, Goldin's broad exploration, despite having a historical perspective, has a clear economic element and utilizes the tools used by economists, especially in data analysis. That's why the Nobel Prize winner's lecture in Barcelona surprised some attendees, as it was much more historical than economic. What the master class did have, however, was an optimistic tone, as the title indicated, despite mentioning certain recent setbacks in women's civil liberties, especially the 2022 decision by the US Supreme Court to once again limit the right to abortion.

In this regard, Goldin explained that she got the idea to investigate this topic after a conversation with a senior executive of a South Korean multinational, who explained that the social situation of women in her country was worsening. When the Harvard professor told her that things weren't going so well in the US either, the Asian executive contradicted her: "You've won!" she exclaimed.

Goldin's lesson placed the origins of American women's demands in the civil rights movement that shook the US in the 1960s, led primarily by the African-American community, which called for greater equality of opportunity and the abolition of racial blackness. "The 1960s were of great significance," the American economist indicated, because the feminist movement embraced the idea that they also lived in a situation of "oppression" comparable to racial minorities.

Although there was a gap of more than a decade with respect to the laws that ended –on paper, at least– a good part of the racial discrimination in the US, in the 70s the US Congress ended up approving the legislation that equalized the rights of women and men to work, to daily life (to travel, with), abortion.

During those years, public opinion in the U.S. shifted toward increasingly embracing the idea that men and women should have equal rights. A notable fact is that, according to Goldin, changes in perception of women's role in society occurred hand in hand among men and women, with minimal differences over time.

The "happy face"

During question time, Goldin said, as a scholar of economic history, "I only predict the past." But she pointed to the screen where the lecture title was, on which the writing either of won (cattle) was a smiley face emoji. "People often ask me if I'm pessimistic about the future of women, which is why I put that happy face on," she concluded.