The gender pay gap stubbornly persists. What needs to be done to turn it off?
It is no secret that the gender pay gap is a legacy of structures and systems that have historically discredited and devalued the work done by women. So it stands to reason that it has to be systems and structures like the media, government and corporations – not individuals – that drive change.
But if the rate of violence against women hasn’t improved, if the stigma of women in the media remains the same, if our most storied institutions remain under the control of white men, how can we claim that women have equal dignity? , stand with possibility. And safety with men?
This is clearly untrue.
You can try to solve an obstinate social problem where it appears. It seems logical and efficient. But time and again we find that kind of solution to be unreliable, often ostentatious, and usually short-lived. It requires an upward journey where the problems begin to understand the history, dynamics and inequalities that have brought men and women to this point.
Of all the forces against women’s dignity, the media – and by that, I mean Hollywood, journalism, the gaming industry and so forth – are the most impediments to women’s advancement. Words matter; Images matter, and the more they are designed to be engaging and memorable, the more often they are repeated, the greater their impact on our spiritual, moral, intellectual and political formation.
Given the environment in which even the best of us are made, how can we expect anything better than our pay gap?
Please, by all means, we have to pass laws, enforce them, and force companies to be accountable. But while we’re at it, we must take the time to step up and connect problems to their source. That’s where the real change lies.
Abigail Disney is a documentary filmmaker, co-founder of Fork Films, and podcast host of “All Years”.
Photo: Michelangelo