To truly honor women, let’s work together to realize equality
From the ACSA President, Parvin Ahmadi
March 18, 2024
We celebrate Women’s History Month highlighting the contribution of women and recognizing women leaders in history and in the present. We are reminded of how far we have come and how much further we have yet to go. We have more women in leadership positions, in STEM fields and in higher education, while we witness a deliberate chipping away of women’s rights by the courts and through legislation in states across the country. To celebrate women, it is important to keep a keen eye on day-to-day struggles ordinary women face nationally and globally, and to understand structural and systemic barriers women face.
In the recent Bureau of Labor Statistics’ report on U.S. income by gender, the median male salary in 2022 was $52,612. The median female salary was $39,688 — 75 percent of what men earned for full-time workers. Digging deeper we also find racial disparities with Asian and White women making more than Latino and Black women. The racial gap continues as women get older. Older women of color are more likely to live in poverty than their White counterparts. Exacerbated by the pandemic, these outcomes are even more dire.
From domestic chores to caring for family and loved ones, people worldwide spend about 16 billion hours on unpaid care work every day, as reported by the United Nations. This most often invisible and unrecognized work is mostly done by women who spend three times as much time on unpaid work as men worldwide. This leaves them less time to pursue paid work or professional and personal development opportunities.
When it comes to women in education, for example, the percentage of superintendents has gone from 10 percent nationally to 25 percent, and about 30 percent of large districts have women superintendents. This certainly is a reason for celebration. And yet, as noted in EdSource in 2023, the Council of the Great City Schools reports that the average female superintendent earns roughly $20,000 to $30,000 less than her male counterparts. When comparing salaries of all state superintendents, both elected and appointed, women make 12 percent less than men. Though 73 percent of elected superintendents are women, they make 26 percent less than their male counterparts.
There is certainly a plethora of data, statistics and anecdotal evidence highlighting gaps in opportunity, pay and much more. Yet, here and around the world, women are creating, discovering, developing, leading, healing, teaching and nurturing future generations. As we celebrate Women’s History Month, and in the spirit of solidarity, let’s remember and pay homage to ordinary women around the world who exemplify strengths and perseverance, and are steadfast in fighting for justice and humanity.
To celebrate women, it is important to keep a keen eye on day-to-day struggles ordinary women face nationally and globally, and to understand structural and systemic barriers women face.
Let’s also for a moment turn our attention to a few areas that if implemented earnestly will benefit not only women, but in the end, everyone.
1) Transparency and accountability in wage parity and hiring practices: Disaggregated by gender, race, education level and other categories, this will paint a clear picture of where we are, why and how we can move toward a more just world.
2) More paid time off for child rearing and caring for elders: The decision to have children or the desire and need to care for elders must be a priority and not a difficult choice. With increasing cost of living, the dream of having sufficient income with one person in a household working has evaporated, making paid time off for child rearing and caring for elders even more necessary.
3) Free or affordable childcare: Having dependable and affordable childcare enables more women to pursue their education, follow their passion and/or enter the workforce.
4) Free health care and college tuition: Recognizing that the majority of single caretaker households are led by women, compounded by the disparities in income and opportunity, lack of access to universal health care creates a tremendous burden for women and their children. The same is true for college tuition; not only does the cost of a college education prevent many single parents/caretakers from attending college themselves, the burden of paying for their children’s college education becomes a huge barrier and untenable.
In the powerful words of Rosa Parks, “Stand for something or you will fall for anything. Today’s mighty oak is yesterday’s nut that held its ground.” Let’s stand together, resist and advocate for a more just world in honor of women whose shoulders we stand on.