Why We Must Celebrate

Because we are unable to witness a traditional inauguration, shouldn’t preempt people from celebrating, however that might look. There are some who believe we cannot. However, there are many reasons to be jubilant: an historic turnout of more than 159 million Americans voted, we are inaugurating a brilliant woman of color as Vice President, and the most diverse Administration ever assembled looks more closely like the nation it will serve, to name a few.

Yes, our nasty underbelly has been on display for quite some time. It was made even more evident by the bloody, violent, and deadly attempted coup on January 6 fomented by a delusional, narcissistic leader. The actions by the mostly white and male insurrectionists demonstrated the foregone conclusion that American society still struggles with equality, fairness, and “justice for all.” Indeed, it is still a dream.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. addressed the question of “why equality is so assiduously avoided by white Americans” in his book “Where Do We Go from Here.” He asked the question “why does white America delude itself, and how does it rationalize the evil it retains?” And he characterized this delusion as an overwhelming “struggle with irresolution and comfortable vanity…reaffirming bonds to the status quo…[and] fears that the winds of change are blowing it out to sea.”

What we have endured and witnessed in recent decades and most certainly during the past four years “is an absence of a guiding philosophy” what SGI International President Daisaku Ikeda called in his seminal work “The Wisdom of the Lotus Sutra” a ‘Great Interregnum of Philosophy.’ This void of faith in a country’s governing institutions has led to the “worship of money, shallow materialism, and mindless pleasure-seeking across the globe.” It has fueled a retreat into identity politics and extreme nationalism. It is symptomatic of a “vacuum of ideas, a philosophical and ideological void.” In simple words it means to be fundamentally unhappy and lacking in hope.

Why we must celebrate. Millions of volunteers mobilized for the election of our lifetime in GOTV efforts. Working tirelessly, purposefully, and joyfully persuading voters to get to the polls (or return mail-in ballots). And, on November 4, 2020, more than 81 million people made their voices heard electing the incoming 46th Administration.

“Hope puts us in a good working mood. Happiness belongs to those who never despair, no matter what happens.”

Why we must celebrate. We should not allow evil to rob us of the joy and celebration of this historic moment in time. So, on January 20, Americans will show to the world neither failed opposition nor insurrection will stop us from acknowledging and honoring a representative democratic republic that still works. Wearing my pearls and toasting possibilities!

Janet Denise Watkins, President
AAUW Detroit Branch Inc.

The following recent blog posts share why AAUW Detroit members joined the organization and what keeps them involved in the work to support women and girls achievement.

“As the mother of a seventeen year old daughter, I believe it is essential to share with young girls and women the importance of equality in the workforce, equal pay, and give them access to a support network of educated women with whom they can share their experiences with.  I live in metro Detroit so that is why I am very excited to be a part of this branch…To be able to promote and advocate for young women, especially the young women from my own community, is very important to me. I am looking forward in participating not only in the local branch, but at the state and national levels as well.”  – Melissa Vela , AAUW Detroit Member

“I joined AAUW for several reason:

1. My friend invited me to join, and I enjoy volunteering;
2. It is an organization that advocates social justice for women, girls, and their families;
3. And lastly, I was interested in helping to provide yearlyprogramming to families in the Detroit community.”  – Cynthia McClure, Co-President, AAUW Detroit 

Persistent in the minds of many is the notion that career choice and career path primarily determines women’s wages. While it is a factor, it does not fully explain the gender wage gap. “Graduating to a Pay Gap,” AAUW‘s latest research, examines the issue for female and male college graduates one year out of school. “Controlling for hours, occupation, college major, employment sector, and other factors associated with pay, the pay gaps shrinks but does not disappear. Indeed, a third of the gap cannot be explained by any factors commonly understood to affect earnings, indicating that other factors that are more difficult to identify — and likely more difficult to measure — contribute to the pay gap.”

And, for African American women (64%) and Latinas (55%) in the United States the pay disparity is even harder felt. Michigan African American women earn 69 cents to every dollar a Non-Hispanic white male earns.

In occupations where women dominate — i.e., elementary and middle school teachers, secretaries and administrative assistants, registered nurses, customer service representatives — men’s median weekly earnings are higher than women’s, according to the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) and the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) 2010 data. For example, male registered nurses median weekly earnings were $1,201; women registered nurses earned $1,039, a 13.5% gap in a field in which the share of female workers is 90.5%.

In the occupational area of secretaries and administrative assistants, where women represent a 95.7% share, men in those same positions are earning almost five percent more than women ($547 vs. $529).  The data shows that in 107 out of the 111 most popular occupations, women have lower median earnings than men, regardless of levels of education, including in the 10 most common occupations for women.

State median annual earnings and earnings ratio for full-time year-round workers, ages 16 and older rank Michigan 45 with men’s earnings at $50,053; and women’s earnings at $36,931.

So what does that look  like in more practical marketplace terms? What could Michigan women do with the extra $13,122?  If the gender gap did not exist, the additional dollars could pay for (2010 average annual costs): housing ($11,223), food ($3,450), education ($6,458), utilities ($2,331), childcare ($10,114), transportation and fuel costs ($4,011), healthcare ($2,027), pension and social security contributions ($2,427), savings and wealth building ($5,002).

Pay equity is not simply a women’s issue – it’s a family issue.  Families increasingly rely on women’s wages to make ends meet. Women’s incomes in married households contributed 36 percent of total family income in 2008, up from 29 percent in 1983. This increased income contributes to the overall economic vitality of the nation.  All of which means that our collective thinking about pay equality must transform in fundamental ways as it is an economic security issue that impacts everyone.

Janet Watkins

President – AAUW of Michigan