I absolutely believe women are still undervalued in many ways in this country. I’ll stick to this country in terms of my statements as we all know that throughout the world women are suffering immensely. This is without a doubt one of the best countries in the world to be a woman today. However… the income disparity is still there. work twice as hard for half as much. No matter how many laws we pass or how much outrage we have over sexual assault, sexual harassment and the like.. there are still mind sets in very high places that women ask for that kind of treatment. And don’t even get me STARTED on what the MTV culture and internet porn has done to the way women/girls are thought of in this country. For every woman you can point to that is powerful and respected in this country (Oprah, Hillary, Pelosi, Mary Wells!) you can find a million examples of women being exploited and devalued in music and and culture. More so I believe than at any time in moder history. We might be able to vote or run for office or have office but in music and modern culture we are being raped and demeaned at eveyr opportuntiy. I call it the “bitch ho” culture. Oops..got me started. better quit.

Maybe I see things upside down but I have always felt that while we may be getting some equal rights - to vote, to hold certain jobs, to go where we want - it was the unequal wrongs that were brought against women that were the problem. I know it is the same thing but to me being underpaid, not given an equal voice, having to fight for pro-choice, female genital mutilation, etc. are not lack of rights - they are WRONGS.

We still haven’t passed the ERA. And not a peep out of any politician’s mouth (including Hillary’s) about it. http://www.equalrightsamendment.org/

As I reviewed the a list of the top local executives in Portland, I saw 10 of the 79 names were women. Ranked by salary, the first woman was number 23. Yet, more than half of the local work force is women. In a capitalist society, the conclusion one can draw from this data is either that women are less qualified, or that the glass ceiling to which Senator Clinton applied 18 million cracks still remains intact.

We have come a long way ! It is troubling to me that the ” MTV generation ” doesn’t seem to understand anything about equality. There are groups of young women that think being an exotic dancer is glamourous, posing nude is an “honor”. They don’t understand explotation. Young girls and women need real role models, not Paris and Brittany. Very young girls are being targeted by clothing manufactures to dress in sexy and provocative fashions. Malls are giving make overs to little girls with their mom’s permission. We need to educate our young girls about equality and self respect.

I personally feel far more liberated, if you will, than my counterparts of years past. And have much gratitude to them for such. however, we have a very long way to go and yes the pay disparity to me is one of the biggest. I cannot for the life of me, ever wrap my rational thought process around this. I mean for the love of God, How can two people of the opposite sex, doing the same labor have such a distinct dispairty on the payscale? But more than this, I believe women are looked upon as the weaker sex, both physcially and emotionally and therefore in the eyes of most men, don’t feel we are fully equipped to run the show. Just looking at our current political process unfolding…..Is a perfect example. Therefore, men folk can continue standing on the uppermost rung of the ladder with one step heading to the top and the other….Well….Stepping on the top of a woman’s head.

There is something to be said in favor of “My Two Cents” point of view. The public image of women in this country that is promoted on a lot of TV and in magazines and MTV is as simple minded sex objects whose function is to be exploited for sex and money. So long as this attitude prevails, the glass ceiling will remain in place. I hope we don’t, as women, support this exploitation of young women by men who couldn’t care less about our liberation. I see young girls, in their early teens, dressed very sexy and seemingly with approval of their mothers, on the way to school!!!!! What were they thinking???? The entertainment industry has promoted a very exploitable image of women and devalued their worth in our culture. Why, of course, is because it sells and they make money from it. It has nothing to do with being liberated, art or freedom despite what they say. There is still a mountain of work to be done before the glass ceiling is no longer in place. God help us all if the Muslims have their way about what women can and cannot do.

Obviously, women have come a long way, but it’s so evident that we have a long way to go. I kindly direct your attention to today’s foremost image and story on this website: The Wowowow Best Dressed List. This is the first image and story we are met with today, the 88th anniversary of the day women finally gained the right to vote in this country. On this of all sites, wouldn’t you expect this story to be the most prominent? But alas, a best dressed list takes precedence…

We have absolutely come a long way, but there are so many examples everywhere I look of how much further we have to go. It’s frustrating to me to see women of my generation (Gen X) become relaxed in the movement towards equality.