Editor’s Note: The views expressed in the following column are those of the writer only and do not necessarily represent the views of the Collegian or its editorial board.
By Emily Faulkner, senior, Biological Sciences
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Just when you thought there couldn’t possibly be another nauseating protest led by misguided liberals, feminists around the USA surprise us all with the “A Day Without A Woman” demonstration. Yes, that is right; feminists are going to take a day off of work to show the world that, without women, this world would come crumbling down. I find it funny though, that every day out of the year, feminists want to be just like men and would lose their minds if they aren’t equal to men in every aspect. Yes, this includes having the option to not shave their armpits without being stigmatized. Yet, these ‘women’ now want a day dedicated to them to show the world just how outstanding they are and how essential they are to the workforce.
This is all based on the myth that women get paid less than men for doing the same job. But according to facts (yes, facts not feelings), the gender wage gap is a load of crap. Let me explain: Feminists make bogus claims that a woman gets paid .77 cents per dollar that a man makes. This number comes from dividing the median earnings of all full-time working women over that of men. What this calculation doesn’t do, however, is include the actual job, position in the job, hours worked every week, or educational background. Once the choices that men and women make are actually accounted for, the “wage gap” drops to 6.6 cents, according to the American Association of University Women (which, shocker, is a feminist organization).
According to a list assembled by Georgetown University, 4 out of 5 of the best paying majors are occupied by mostly men, and 4 of the 5 lowest paying majors are occupied by none other than women. Here are the specifics:
Best-paying majors:
#1- Petroleum Engineering: 87% male
#2- Pharmaceutical Sciences: 48% male
#3- Mathematics and Computer Science: 67% male
#4- Aerospace Engineering: 88% male
#5- Chemical Engineering: 72% male
Worst-paying majors:
#1- Counseling and Psychology: 74% female
#2- Early Childhood Education: 97% female
#3- Theology and Religious Vocations: 66% male
#4- Human Services and Community Organization: 81% female
#5- Social Work: 88% female
In case anyone is unaware of how college works, each individual chooses which major and career path they pursue, fully aware of average incomes of each profession. No one forces a student to study counseling over petroleum engineering. It is pretty obvious that the leftist feminists are really bad at telling the truth concerning women in the work place, and further promoting their man-hating agenda.
Now that we have established that this “A Day Without Women” demonstration is utterly pointless because it is protesting something that does not exist, I want to ask a pressing question. Does this protest allow those who identify as women to take the day off of work and stand in solidarity for a made up problem? If not, then they are being really exclusive.
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Additionally, take a second to think about how privileged women are to even be able to take a day off. When the day without immigrants took place, tons of people were fired. Life for women is so good here, that women across the country can just not do their jobs and get supported for doing it.
Women are marching across the country in order to be respected. However, they are doing something completely disrespectful to the rest of society. How is doing something disrespectful going to earn them respect?
As a final thought, I propose “A Day Without A Man” demonstration so we can even the playing field. Can you imagine how crazy that would make the feminists?
Letters can be sent to letters@collegian.com.
MomZilla • Mar 8, 2017 at 4:37 pm
Meh. Think it’s ridiculous; don’t participate. Nobody is saying you have to.
The David Bowers • Mar 8, 2017 at 1:20 pm
Well-said, Taylor. The ridiculous pretend-women’s protest is really nothing more than a Liberal protest of the Trump administration by a group that happens to be nearly entirely Liberal-minded women who feel that their dislike of anything Trump justifies their disadvantaging the entire country to make their perceived point. They show a complete lack of respect for their country, their employers and all those millions of people whose lives are disrupted by yet another pointless political ‘protest.’
If you feel that women aren’t being treated fairly, work to make the situation BETTER,not worse. Got to your congressional representatives and insist that they listen to you and answer to you. Build alliances to strengthen your position (remember unions?), refuse to take jobs that don’t pay what you think you are worth and get an education commensurate with the level you want to attain. But DON’T make everyone else pay for you to take a day off just to make a political point.
You attempted to show how valuable you are by taking a whole day to prove that the business world would get along without you. BUT, countless others lost money, time (and perhaps their jobs) because of your ignorance.
Joanna • Mar 8, 2017 at 2:08 pm
“You attempted to show how valuable you are by taking a whole day to
prove that the business world would get along without you. BUT,
countless others lost money, time (and perhaps their jobs) because of
your ignorance.” With that, you’ve basically just proven exactly this protest is, actually, effective. Using the economy to show how important women are is exactly the point of the protest, so the fact that their absence directly effects others is a more effective and expedient way of protesting for equitable financial standing than the continuous process of calling our representatives. By mandating how a woman should protest, you’re showing that men are calling the shots, even in protest. This, then, undermines the power of a demonstration that falls within male rules.
The David Bowers • Mar 8, 2017 at 2:44 pm
First, I am not ‘mandating’ how a woman should protest. Rather, I’m stating a simple fact .. a disruptive demonstration benefits no one. And the same applies to virtually all demonstrations. It shows that you feel your point is more important than the lives and well being of others. Furthermore, hurting innocent people to prove your point is counterproductive at best. And, the fact that the protest is effective in injuring innocent people is NOT a a positive way to prove your point. Your point was proved by the fact that your employers were able to continue quite well without your services. What you proved was that you have no consideration for any other than yourself. This undermines your politically-motivated, disruptive and self-serving ‘protest.’
There are already equal rights laws in place. If you can prove a case of discrimination, get an attorney. Otherwise, follow the processes of the society in which you claim to support … Talk with your representatives, talk with corporate and civic leaders, organize and take your feelings to the people who control what you are trying to change. Form a union. Disrupting the lives of people whom you claim to support is self-destructive. Work within the system because, as surely as you undermine the system you will be your own defeat. Work to make your goal better and achievable instead of trying to tear down that which you claim you want to fix.
Joanna • Mar 8, 2017 at 2:53 pm
How exactly have innocent lives been affected? I don’t think anybody has died today because of this protest.
The David Bowers • Mar 8, 2017 at 4:05 pm
Don’t try to be naive,Joanna! The number of people who had to make emergency plans to take care of their children who should have been in school totals easily in the thousands. And many of them lost a days work (and pay) because they had to stay home with their children. And that’s just one instance. I don’t think I ever stated that there was only one way to protest. In fact, I cited several ways to work on the problem IF, in fact, that is what they really want to do. Just because it’s not as fast as you would like it to be. OK, a lesson for our children: If you can’t get what you want fast enough to suit you, march in protest! Yeah, that’ll work. Actually, women have devalued themselves through this politically-based ‘protest.’
Joanna • Mar 8, 2017 at 4:16 pm
Again, I feel like you’re arguing against yourself. Women always have to take care of children when a child is sick or there is a snow emergency. This is generally because women’s work (like teaching) is underpaid and undervalued, and therefore, even in 2-partner homes, it generally falls on the woman to call in sick rather than the male partner. So, today, when this happens on a large scale because of women protesting, this makes the point even more clear, and brings attention to something that happens to lower income women on a daily basis. I doubt you would care if this was just a normal day and a child got sick and a mother had to take a day off. That this is large-scale then illustrates the power of protest.
And, yes, we are teaching children to advocate for themselves. That is certainly an admirable trait – if you’re not being taken care of, you SHOULD stand up and protest. It’s a beautiful display against the futility of a government formed and largely held by old white men.
The David Bowers • Mar 8, 2017 at 4:27 pm
Again, you’re trying to advance your ’cause’ (though in this case it’s more political than anything else) at the expense of others. So let me see, it’s OK to discriminate against people if it advances MY cause! Yeah, that’s really teaching our children!!! Like I said, if you don’t get your way and get it fast enough, throw a tantrum. And how do you show your worth by not showing up?
Read:
http://insider.foxnews.com/2017/03/08/meghan-mccain-day-without-woman-protests-gender-equality-strike
Joanna • Mar 8, 2017 at 4:38 pm
I’m not sure how you think I’m discriminating. I understand that intersectionality is essential in the basis of feminism, but it seems you don’t. By saying that everybody has the opportunity to advance their causes through the legal system is incredibly short-sighted (white, male perspective) and NOT in line with being aware of women of lower socio-economic status and women of color.. I’m not even going to click on a Fox “News” link as that’s laden with bias and lacking in evidence.
Protests are exactly FOR those underrepresented voices who are not heard in our government and structurally in society.
Rob • Mar 8, 2017 at 4:39 pm
Define “discriminate.”
Joanna • Mar 8, 2017 at 5:02 pm
And, to show you how effective strikes ACTUALLY are:
“Inspired by two strikes last October — one successfully quashing a Polish parliament bill banning abortion, the other drawing tens of thousands to protest violence against women and girls in Argentina
— organizers in more than 50 countries have coordinated a day of global
action, including strikes, rallies and other gatherings.”
https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/03/08/opinion/why-women-are-on-strike.html?smid=fb-share&_r=0&referer=https%3A%2F%2Fm.facebook.com%2F
Rob • Mar 8, 2017 at 4:38 pm
“If you can’t get what you want fast enough to suit you, march in protest! Yeah, that’ll work.”
Well..yeah..that’s…pretty much how it’s worked throughout modern history..so…wait, what’s your point again?
Anna • Mar 8, 2017 at 2:58 pm
It’s absurd to claim women haven’t been abundantly active in attempting to work within the system and perhaps more absurd to say disruptive demonstrations don’t benefit anyone. Cory Gardner dismissed our concerns by labelling us “paid protesters.” It’s ahistorical to claim equal rights laws have always been effective at protecting equal rights, and it’s entirely within our rights to demonstrate. If you were worried about “innocent lives,” perhaps you’d see these protests as evidence that people are deeply unhappy with the system as it stands.
Anna • Mar 8, 2017 at 1:13 pm
Statistics showing that the lowest paying majors are female dominated certainly do not aid your argument. Are the careers associated with these majors not valuable? Should there be an imperative for students to only seek majors that are high-paying as opposed to majors they’re interested in? Obviously that would be entirely unsustainable. There are issues you touched on with “Day Without A Woman,” mostly that those able to participate are those for whom the demonstration is least necessary, but it’s entirely false to claim that women are “so privileged they can take a day off work without consequence” since the reason “Day Without A Woman” is ineffective is, again, because the women who serve to benefit the most from having their contributions made visible do NOT have the privilege to take a day off. It’s ridiculous to say that the wage gap is the only motivation behind “Day Without a Woman” considering the overwhelming evidence of a positive relationship between women in the workforce and economic output. “I find it funny though, that every day out of the year, feminists want to be just like men and would lose their minds if they aren’t equal to men in every aspect” isn’t…….saying anything? Are you trying to devalue feminists by saying it’s….. bad to want to be seen as equal to men? Is putting scare quotes around “women” not making womanhood conditional, and is the alternative you’re implicitly proposing that they’re…….men? It’s clear you think feminism is bad, but all you’ve given to qualify that belief is conflicting, half-baked, reactionary rhetoric based on a fundamental misunderstanding of feminism that’s not well-written or organized enough to be effectively condescending.
Joanna • Mar 8, 2017 at 2:13 pm
Well said. The fact that “women’s work” is devalued in economic terms does not mean that it is not necessary. Schools shut down today because teachers have stood in solidarity in a Day Without Women. I wonder if this author means to say that the women who teach the computer programmers are somehow less important than those who grow up to earn more money than them. They would not exist, professionally, without these teachers. I would also add that the references to hairy armpits add only vitriol and illogic to this “argument.” It seemed really out of place and I wonder why this woman is so offended about hairy armpits or what that has to do with her thesis.
Anna • Mar 8, 2017 at 2:38 pm
She seems to assume it’s self-evident that armpit hair on women is ridiculous which it’s……not. Her whole first paragraph is just stating the intention of the protests, but in trying to frame them as absurd, she delegitimizes her argument. Women ARE essential to the workforce. That’s an empirical fact. If all women left the workforce, it’s reasonable to predict the world WOULD crumble. If her goal is to dismiss these claims, she would need to provide evidence that women are not valuable in the workforce, and she would need to explain why low-paying majority-women fields are unnecessary and less deserving of higher pay. Frankly, I don’t think that’s an argument that can be made.
Ohio9 • Mar 9, 2017 at 2:35 pm
“That’s an empirical fact. If all women left the workforce, it’s reasonable to predict the world WOULD crumble.”
What evidence do you have to support this? There was a time when almost all job fields were nearly or completely exclusively male. Obviously we would not want to go back to those days, but the point is it’s unlikely women refusing to work would turn our society into the world you see in the Mad Max movies.
Would women refusing to work severely damage society? Yes it would. But completely destroy it? That seems much less probable.
Ohio9 • Mar 9, 2017 at 2:25 pm
“The fact that “women’s work” is devalued in economic terms does not mean that it is not necessary.”
What evidence do you have that it is “devalued”? Just because a job field that happens to be female majority makes less then some male dominated ones doesn’t mean the pay is unfair.
I don’t make as much money as an NFL player, but it’s not because my work is devalued. It’s because market forces have determined my work is not as valuable in terms of profitability, even if my job is more socially valuable. That’s how things work in a free society.
RocketChimp • Mar 15, 2017 at 9:49 am
Too bad public schools are worthless, essentially glorified daycare centers. Next.
Ohio9 • Mar 9, 2017 at 2:21 pm
“Statistics showing that the lowest paying majors are female dominated certainly do not aid your argument.”
Yes they do. It shows us that one reason women earn less money over a lifetime is because they choose to enter lower paying career fields. It’s not the evil invisible patriarchy forcing them to do anything.
“Are the careers associated with these majors not valuable?”
Yes that’s what the data tells as us in regard to profitability. In terms of dollars, these careers associated with the majors listed are not particularly valuable in comparison to others.
“Should there be an imperative for students to only seek majors that are high-paying as opposed to majors they’re interested in?”
No, if you like the major enough to be willing to take it even if it doesn’t make you as much money as others could, that’s fine. You are free to do that. Just don’t go complaining about being in a lower paying job field later even though you freely chose to enter it.
“women who serve to benefit the most from having their contributions made visible do NOT have the privilege to take a day off.”
That’s the point the author was making: That all this protest did was show off women with privilege who could choose to take the day off whenever it suits them. The vast majority who can’t could not participate. It was just a chance for well-connected women to show off how well they are doing.
RocketChimp • Mar 15, 2017 at 9:48 am
“Statistics showing that the lowest paying majors are female dominated certainly do not aid your argument. ”
This only makes sense if you think those fields are “underpaid” BECAUSE it’s majority female, which is asinine.
Katherine Zaunbrecher • Mar 8, 2017 at 10:25 am
This was absolutely heartbreaking to read. Does this person think that it is opposite day? “But according to facts, the gender wage gap is a load of crap.” Does she mean alternative facts? Because the data show that there is indeed a wage gap. Also, one chooses a major based on many different factors, including the support they receive in grade school while studying different subjects and societal influence. Take off your rose colored glasses, miss, and consider how minorities, underprivileged, and underrepresented people (most of the world) live.
WS • Mar 9, 2017 at 9:38 am
Really? Have you studied the data? Im guessing not.
Ohio9 • Mar 9, 2017 at 2:12 pm
No one is being forced to take a college major they don’t want to take. And as the author said, the wage gap is based on earnings, not difference in pay for the same job among people who work the same hours and have the same experience, education, seniority, etc, etc.
It has been illegal to pay someone less just for being a woman since 1963. The issue has already been resolved. Any company paying a woman less just for being a woman can be sued. If this problem really was so common, every major company in America would be drowning in lawsuits.
RocketChimp • Mar 15, 2017 at 9:45 am
Lol, get a clue.