Womenstake, NWLC's Blog

On Wednesday night, the President’s new Early Learning Initiative got a moment in the spotlight on the Daily Show. Host Jon Stewart, in that way only he knows how, highlighted the importance of investing in children’s early years. My trying to recap the clip will certainly erase all the humor, so I’ll let you watch it for yourself.

Think of life like a marathon (just go with me on this metaphor). Many of America’s most vulnerable children are starting five miles behind everyone else - yet we expect them to finish on par with their peers. Expanding the access these children have to high quality early learning opportunities will be revolutionary.

Before the “snowquester” blew into town, I had the pleasure of attending a press conference on the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2013, which Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Representative George Miller (D-CA) introduced on Tuesday. The Fair Minimum Wage Act would gradually raise the minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 per hour, increase the minimum cash wage for tipped workers from $2.13 per hour to 70 percent of the regular minimum wage, and index these wages to keep up with inflation. 

I was excited to be present for the introduction because I believe this bill is hugely important, especially for women. If you ask me why, I might be inclined to rattle off a few numbers: women are 2/3 of minimum wage workers in the U.S., women are the majority of the workforce in the 10 occupations paying less than $10.10/hour, women working full time, year round are paid only 77 cents for every dollar paid to their male counterparts…the list goes on. But listening to the speakers at yesterday’s event brought home what those numbers mean for real people, whose stories are more powerful than any statistics.

One of those stories was Amie’s. Amie Crawford might not strike you as the typical minimum wage worker: she has a college degree and worked as an interior designer for decades before the recession hit. Amie herself “used to think that minimum wage jobs were for other people…They weren’t me. They had less education, fewer skills. They didn’t work as hard or try as hard.” Then Amie’s life changed—and she acknowledged, “I couldn’t have been more wrong.”

My favorite part of last weekend’s Oscar ceremonies – aside from the self-confidence exuded by Quvanzhané Wallis – was Anne Hathaway’s short commentary at the end of her speech. She noted, “Here’s hoping that someday in the not-too-distant future, the misfortunes of Fantine [her character] will only be found in stories and nevermore in real life.” She was referring to Fantine’s life in poverty, where she is forced to sell her hair, and then her body, to support herself and her daughter. Fantine learns that while society values her beauty, it will also exploit her for it.

While I share Anne’s hope that cultural change is not too far off, documentaries like PBS’s Girl Model highlight how much work lies ahead. The film follows Nadya, a 13-year-old Russian modeling hopeful, and Ashley, a recruiter and former model, as Nadya is brought from her small town in Russia to Tokyo with promises of money and modeling opportunities. Nadya faces pressures to be thin and to lie about her age; although she is valued for her youthful looks, she is told to say she is 15 rather than 13. She eventually leaves Tokyo, in debt, her hopes of building a better life for herself and her family shattered. Read more... Add new comment