Have American Women Abandoned the Battle for Equal Pay? There are about as many women as men in the workforce but that is one of the few ways they are equals.
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When United States was founded, its female residents did not share all of the same rights as men. In fact, women did not have the right to vote until August 1920 when the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution granted American women that right. However, just gaining the right to vote did not mean that American women had achieved equality with American men.
Nearly 100 years later, they still don't have it. According to The Institute for Women's Policy Research: "Women are almost half of the workforce. They are the equal, if not main, breadwinner in four out of 10 families. They receive more college and graduate degrees than men. Yet, on average, women continue to earn considerably less than men. In 2015, female full-time workers made only 80 cents for every dollar earned by men, a gender wage gap of 20 percent."
We may like to think of the United States as the most sophisticated and progressive nation on earth, but the facts tend to disagree, particularly in the context of diversification, women's rights, and equality.
Related: 4 Words That Reinforce the Gender Gap at Work
Consider this:
- Fifty years ago in 1967, Indira Nehru Gandhi was elected prime minister of India and became the first woman ever to lead a democracy.
- Golda Meir was elected Prime Minister of Israel on March 1969.
- Margaret Thatcher was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and was the longest serving prime minister during the 20th century.
- In 1988, Benazir Bhutto became the prime minister of Pakistan not once but for two terms
- Angela Merkel has been the Chancellor of Germany since 2005 and was ranked as the world's second most powerful person by Forbes magazine in 2012.
- Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is the 24th and current president of Liberia.
Why is it that the United States, which sees itself as a progressive country, is so far behind when it comes to embracing the equality of women when the evidence shows that women add so much value to a society.
Now more than ever the United States needs women leaders in local government, in Congress, in the Senate, in communities and in the boardroom.
Fortune 500 companies with the highest representation of women board directors attained significantly higher financial performance, on average, than those with the lowest representation of women board directors, according to Catalyst's most recent report, The Bottom Line: Corporate Performance and Women's Representation on Boards. In addition, the report points out, on average, notably stronger-than-average performance at companies with three or more women board directors.
A study commissioned by American Express OPEN, shows that growth in women-owned businesses with more than $10 million in revenue is 47 percent higher than among all companies with revenue of $10 million and up Companies without strong female leadership had a 24 percent increase in internal governance controversies such as bribery, fraud, and corruption.
Related: 5 Ways Both Sexes Can Help Solve the Gender Gap in Silicon Valley
Companies that had strong female leadership generated a return on equity of 10.1 percent per year vs. 7.4 percent for those without.
During the 2016 campaign President-elect Donald Trump said the system was fixed. Whether you voted for him or not, a man who consistently made derogatory comments about women's looks, bodies and intelligence was just voted in as the U.S. President-elect.
Whether it's true or not that the electoral system is rigged is something we can debate at another time. However, what is clear is it is there is truth in that the system is fixed in that women support a system that so often keeps them down.
What do I mean? My original question is: "Have American Women Abandoned Equality?" In the 2016 presidential election 42 percent of all women voters voted for Trump. I am not suggesting that women "should" have voted for Hillary Clinton because of her gender, but it does mean that they voted for a man whose leadership qualities made it clear that he will be removing even more of the limited rights women already have.
Many people who voted for Donald Trump and many who did not have one thing in common -- they recognize that the large majority wants change. However, if you are worried about U.S. culture you may want to realize that culture comes from permission, and permission comes from whatever the leadership models. All that not withstanding, for women to bring the massive value they offer to the world in the form of higher performance, less corruption, and more profit will require not just men letting go of a male-dominated system, but also for women to start having each others' backs.
It's time for women to stop accepting (even passively) the false "truths" that have been promoted by a gender for whom it's impossible to ever know what it's like to be a woman, the most significant of which is that men have rule over women's bodies.
If women are going to have each others' backs, they must stand together arm-in-arm, heart-to-heart and search out women who have done, or are doing what they want to do and instead of competing begin collaborating. Women can also have each others' backs by recognizing that there are men, good men, strong men who are not intimidated by a powerful woman and that we are doing our part to collapse a dysfunctional system.
Related: The Role Of Gender Equality In Ensuring Economic Growth
More than anything, however, understand this: those in power are rarely willing to hand over power. It must be claimed. So, when you see a woman taking a stand, consider standing with her, because we can define leadership not just as leading others, but also being a person who joins with others in the face of repression.
Now is the time for all of us to stop making excuses. Now is the time for all to truly embrace equality, not just in words, but also in deeds. I believe that the world will be changed for the better as we -- men and women alike -- help create true equality between the sexes. That's why I created the hash-tag #He4She. Won't you please join me in helping #He4She usher in much-needed change?
