The National Review, May 15, 1995: A critical vignette in the National Review ridicules the debate over the term “gender” in the draft Platform for Action. “The State Department’s marching orders: fight for the change—five genders are better than two.”
Memo on Gender Consultation, June 6, 1995
Gender Talking Points for the U.S. Delegation, April 7, 1995
Draft Chairperson’s Statement on “Gender,” May 31, 1995
The definition of “gender” was a point of contention in 1994, just as it is today. The National Review article set off enough controversy for the State Department to specifically refute it—noting in this draft statement that the word was “a commonly used term in sociological analysis that has been conventionally used in U.N. documents since the 1970’s,” and that no U.N. member was seeking to redefine it. A U.N. group formed to consider the issue affirmed the use of "gender" in conference documents.