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It shocks me that some people (including the many who had her name trending on Twitter on Thursday) are still astounded by anything Stacey Dash says. It is mind-boggling that the Clueless actress manages to make headlines for statements we all should have seen coming. It is Stacey Dash we’re talking about here.
The Fox News contributor sat down with Meredith Vieira recently to discuss an issue many women are reminded about each pay period: the gender wage gap.
During their interesting exchange where Meredith provided facts and Stacey provided, well, Stacey, the actress found a way to ignore the facts and statistics about the distinct differences between the way men and women are compensated in this country. Instead, she encouraged women everywhere to take control of their own destiny and work so hard that their employers will have no choice but to pay them the same salary as their male counterparts.
“I guess I won’t put my fate into anything other than my own action, and taking my destiny in my hands. I will not be a victim.”
Women who work the same jobs as men – and perhaps, even hold higher positions in their respective companies or organizations – earn 78 cents for every dollar a man makes. As Dash sees it, these women are victims to a fate they have bestowed upon themselves. We’re not utilizing our resources, strapping on our big girl panties, and seizing all available opportunities. But if I could, allow me to quote Meredith here:
“I’m not saying I’m a victim. I’m pissed off.”
By definition, the gender wage gap or gender pay gap refers to the income difference between men and women in earnings. This is not a myth. The American Association of University Women’s (AAUW) “The Simple Truth about the Gender Pay Gap” report explored it, finding that not in any of the 50 states did women make the same or more than men working similar positions. Our nation’s capital is closest to closing the gap, with women earning 91% of the wages men do.
We’re not playing victim as the former Single Ladies star sees it. We are systematically being victimized by an unfair system unwilling to acknowledge the amount of work we contribute to keep this country running. Without women, who would provide the able bodies needed to come into work? It is nine months and hours of labor that is affording the machine the opportunity to keep moving.
Our choice to have kids, for instance, also brought up in the AAUW report, does not have much to do with the seven percent of the gender wage gap that is unexplained after accounting for “college major, occupation, economic sector, hours worked, months unemployed since graduation, GPA, type of undergraduate institution, institution selectivity, age, geographical region, and marital status.”
Not to mention, another 12% is floating around unaccounted for when taking into account a disparity in wages for those who have graduated from college 10 years ago.
So Dash’s comments missed both common sense and facts to back up whatever it was she thought she was communicating. You simply cannot call an institutionalized problem “an excuse.”
So to Dash I say, ma’am, you are paid to mouth off, and you do so wonderfully. Again, I do not expect much more from you than what you provided on The Meredith Vieira Show. But I do so kindly ask that you hop off your pedestal and stop pretending to be a conservative champion for women because you consistently make us look bad. Fox News may think you’re the best thing since sliced bread, but the rest of us think you’re clueless.
Pun intended.
