Autoresponse: Striking: A Day Without a Woman

In front of the Federal Building, Pittsburgh.

Dear Message Sender,

  I am not responding to email on March 8, 2017 because I am observing A Day Without a Woman. In the afternoon, I will be joining students at CMU in a silent protest and attending a rally at the City-County building in downtown Pittsburgh.

  Despite the efforts and progress made towards gender equality, women do not have an equal voice, and we are not appreciated equally in society. For example:

• The gender wage gap persists, and two-thirds of minimum wage earners are women.
• The House and Senate are currently 19% women. This means an 81% male group is making decisions that affect women's health and lives.
• The United States still has not had a female president, even though many countries we'd like to think we are more progressive than have a woman currently in power. 
• Only 24 of the Fortune 500 CEOs are women. Money is power, and women have less of it.

Some may say that women are simply less ambitious, or don't want to be in positions of power and influence as much as men do. Study after study--and I'm happy to talk in more detail--have shown that women who do have the ambition face far more obstacles than men do. Also, my statistics above focus on what people like to call "privileged" women, but the undervaluing of female labor (including domestic and emotional labor) make life even harder for those in less fortunate circumstances.

  There are many ways you can show support. The first is to attend local rallies, especially if you have an employment situation where you will have few consequences. Even if you are not a woman and/or not striking today, here are some things you can do:

• Listen to women, and call people out when women's voices are not heard.
• Question your own biases. (You can have biases even if you are a woman!)
• Vote for women. Champion women. Mentor women. (In that order.)
• Support people who are striking, and who are more actively fighting for women's rights and the appreciation of women's labor, both financially and by amplifying their voices.

Yours in solidarity,
Jean