Over the last one hundred years, women have been fighting for the opportunity of independence, along with being able to support themselves. Although women have made leaps and bounds for our rights, we have failed to receive the respect deserved in the workplace and in our day to day lives.

While we have fought hard to be able to earn an income, the work place is anything but equal. In the American work place which is nearly half women, women earn an average pay of twenty-two percent less than a man in the same position, with the same experience, in nearly every occupation in America! According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics; today, seventy-four percent of women age 25-54 partake in the workforce. Yet, eighty-five percent of women are still in charge of the household chores. This includes food preparation and cleaning the house. On average, a working mother will also spend 2 hours more each day caring for their children than a working father. In today’s society a man is only expected to go to work and earn an income; while a woman is expected to cook, clean, and take care of the kids, while working a full time job where she will get paid less than her male coworkers.

Although women have the ‘rights’ a man does, we are not treated with the same respect. In the 1700’s women were seen as too being weak and emotional to handle the responsibilities of a man. Three hundred years later, we are still viewed the same way as though very little has changed. Women are not given nearly the same respect as a man is.

The disrespect for women spans much further than just in the workplace and in gender roles. The disrespect goes so much further, and is most clear when looking at some of the shocking truths. One in five women in America will be raped at least once in their lifetime; twenty-five percent of all American women will be beaten by an intimate partner, and one in six women will be stocked. In total one-third of all American women will experience one of these tragedies.  All too often, these realities are overlooked and ignored. Linda C. Degutis, director of the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which conducted this survey says “That almost one in five women have been raped in their lifetime is very striking and, I think, will be surprising to a lot of people.”

No woman in America is immune to the abuse previously mentioned. Women fall victim to these tragedies everyday regardless of lifestyle, financial standings, or ethnicity. The reality of the daily threats facing women is unsettling and heart wrenching.

Although the abuse and domestic violence against women is common, many feel alone and helpless. This is the reason why for many, the abuse is never reported. Even more tragic, many women will never find the strength to leave an abusive intimate partner. Women are not valued as the exceptional people we are. I feel that the disrespect for women is most clear in the way the justice system reacts when a violent crime is committed against a woman such as the ones previously mentioned.  According to RAINN or the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network; only two percent of rapists will ever spend a day in prison. The other ninety-eight percent will simply walk free. Women deserve better than that!

The inequalities women face today is unsettling. There is however, as there is always, hope in our future. While the current realities may seem rather hopeless there is a way to change it. I feel that the solution for making a better culture for our daughters and grand-daughters can be addressed in three simple steps.

The first step towards changing the inequalities women face in the workplace and in our day to day lives is informing the general public of injustices being faced by women every day in the workplace and at home. Many people are unaware of the modern day problems women face and just how common they are. The more light that is shown on discriminations faced by women, the more people will demand change.

The next step is educating our children, teens and adultescence. We must teach our sons to respect women, and their boundaries. As for our daughters, we must teach them they are worthy of being heard and respected. Our daughters must be taught to have high standards for the way they are treated, and our sons must be taught to meet those high standards. The future generations are the future of America, and it will be up to them to change inequalities.

The third step to creating a better future is something that every person plays an important role in, by standing. One in every three woman you know has been victimized in some way. Many of you will at some point in time have a woman confide in you on how she has been assaulted. It is your duty to take what she says seriously. Do not just blow her off thinking that it was probably her fault, or she is just being dramatic. Also if you know or suspect someone is the victim of domestic violence, you have the responsibility to report it to the authorities.

Although the daily struggles faced by women may seem discouraging, there is something we can do to change it. By getting the truth about these injustices to the public, and standing up for our women in the workplace in our personal lives changes in how the women in America are treated will be made. As Americans, as humans, we have the duty to respect our women.

I conclude by saying that although the reality for all too many may seem disheartening, there is hope in our future. By changing the way women are thought of, our children and our grandchildren will have the opportunity for equality. Together we can and will change gender inequality throughout America.

Thank you.