Who Will Fight for the Worth of Women's Work?

Former Congresswoman Geraldine Ferraro spoke on women and political leadership at the Fayetteville Town Center last night as part of the University of Arkansas's Distinguished Lecture Series. It was a risky invitation, and the UA Administration must have been holding their collective breath and their fat wallets. If he even attended the event that was not connected with fund-raising or Wal-Mart, John White was probably relieved when Ferraro talked about the need for more women in public office and political leadership.

In a speech 25 years ago, Geraldine Ferraro spoke as a bold advocate of equal pay for women and the patriarchal attitudes that held down their salaries and their employment opportunities. "As a bureau chief in the DA's office," she said, "I learned that I was being paid less than men with similar responsibilities. When I asked why, I was told “you don't really need the money, Gerry, you've got a husband.”

"As women, we still have to be better than men at most of the things we do, we have to work harder and we have to prove our worth over and over and over again. It is not just those of us who have reached the top who are fighting this daily battle. It is a fight in which all of us—rich and poor, career and home-oriented, young and old—participate, simply because we are women. Sixty percent of all women between the ages of 18 and 64 are workers, with 80% of all women who work concentrated in so-called “pink collar” jobs—jobs dominated by females and dominated by low salaries.

"It is too easy to divide the world into us and them. And it is far too easy for us—secure, successful, well-off—to become them. A simple thing—an illness, a divorce, widowhood, alcoholism, economic depression—could turn any of our hard-won gains into a struggle for mere existence.

"Who will fight for the worth of women's work?

"The fight for equity in the workforce is in full swing. It is happening in the statehouses, the union offices, and the courts. More than twenty-five states and local governments have launched studies of the comparative value of the work their male and female employees do. Spurred on by public employee unions, they are beginning to question the assumption that a tree trimmer should be paid more than an intensive care nurse.

"A majority may have the luxury of being a 'silent majority.' A minority in defense of its rights must speak up.

"Our responsibilities are heavy but they are not oppressive. We have an opportunity as well as an obligation—an opportunity to help create a better society for all Americans, men and women."

So do John White and the University of Arkansas.