Washington State’s governor has signed the final piece of legislation to make the language of all state laws and statutes “gender neutral.” Will a woman (hmmm, how do you take “man” out of “woman”?) feel better, earn more, have more power and access to leadership because they now teach “handwriting” and not “penmanship”? I really doubt it.
The most pressing problems for women and gender bias are equal pay and access to equal power. Anything that detracts from those two major barriers, is a “feel good” way that legislators and others can say, “Hey, look what we did! Isn’t this great?”
While I do agree that words are important, actions trump words every time in my book. And in this case, the amount of time, energy and money spent on re-fashioning the language, could have brought much more value to women. How about creating a regulatory agency that has the power to take action an enforce all these laws? Come on in and take a look at any business in the state and see if they are abiding by equal pay act laws. That would really make a difference.
And I am not being contrary, just to be contrary. I live in a man’s world of surgery. I like being one of the guys (I hope that it is the same gender neutral term which I believed it has morphed into over the years). I don’t care if they call me the “chairman” of a committee, as long as I am in charge.
This week I was able to see and hear my friend Lily Ledbetter, as in the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009. She spoke at a local college. I bring this up because after her fabulous speech, the questions/comments in the audience revealed how little men and women of all ages really know about how little the laws protect women from gender discrimination. The mere fact that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has no regulatory clout or enforcement powers is pathetic, at best.
I would argue, in fact, that the gender neutering language for the state of Washington and the mere existence of the EEOC are worse than window dressing. They are nothing more than smoke screens that deter us from the real issues that need attention and action, not words.
Reminiscent of Eliza Doolittle’s rant in My Fair Lady, “Words, words, words, I’m so sick of words……..Don’t talk of love, show me!” Call me what you wish, but pay me fairly and give me the same chance to make a difference in leadership using my own womanly style, and then we will be equal.
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3 Comments
The EEOC does have enforcement powers. As an agency, it can file a complaint in federal court. Even better, in NYS, we have an administrative agency that can file as well as adjudicate discrimination complaints.
yes, it is true that the EEOC can file a complaint in court. How often do they do it? By their own admission only in a very few, very extraordinary cases. The NYS agency has the same limitations and in my experience is not very helpful.
But for almost all complaints, the EEOC is only a 180 day reprieve and big red flag for the employers who are being complained about, time to retaliate, destroy records, and get to the complainant. No other litigation requires that you get permission to sue. It’s an absurd usurpation of our basic rights. It doesn’t work. Talk to anyone who has been through it, like me and the dozens of others to whom I have spoken. Most don’t go beyond the complaint stage because they get the heat right away.
KILL THOSE COMMUNIST BASTARDS!