The opening session for this conference was fantastic. It was called "Telling Our Stories" and featured Lilly Ledbetter and Rev. Lois Dejean. Both talked about the ways rolling back civil rights changed their lives. Ledbetter started out reading the testimony she gave during a Title VII hearing in Congress. If you're not familiar with the history of her case, definitely go read it. Basically, wen she was a manager at Goodyear, even though her performance was excellent, she consistently got smaller raises than her male peers. But, she only found out about it years later, because the company kept all increases confidential. Once and anonymous person left her a note telling her of the discrepancy, she did the right thing and filed a claim with the EEOC. Only then did she get official confirmation of her unfair pay.
In court the company claimed that she was paid less because she wasn't as good an employee. Except they also had given her a top performance award. Hmm. And other female managers testified that they received the same treatment. Pretty easy case, right?
Well, no. Blah blah, legal wrangling, and she ends up at the Supreme Court. They say she should have filed a complaint every time she got a discriminatory increase. You know, the ones she couldn't know about. Right. Swell. She concludes her statement with this:
My case is over and it is too bad that the Supreme Court decided the way that it did. I hope, though, that Congress won’t let this happen to anyone else. I would feel that this long fight was worthwhile if, at least at the end of it, I knew that I played a part in getting the law fixed so that it can provide real protection to real people in the real world.
Ledbetter also talked about the aftermath of the case. She told a funny (by which I mean irritating) story about all of the interviews she did. The NBC folks wanted her to bake a cake during the interview, to show... something. She wouldn't, so they asked her to make coffee. Though her husband is apparently the coffee-brewer in the family, she agreed. Then CNN came to town. They said she'd already made coffee for NBC, so "how about a cake this time." Charming. Let's gender stereotype the woman you're interviewing because she was discriminated against because of her gender. Nice work.
Reverend Lois Dejean, a New Orleans native, shared her stories from the aftermath of Katrina. She addressed the UN in Geneva about what happened. She told us that before that speech it didn't occur to her that the human rights of people on the Gulf Coast had been violated, only civil rights. She also touched upon the environmental impact of Katrina, and efforts to get the EPA to actually do something about it.
It's not really a huge surprise that Dejean didn't think about human rights. It's not something we talk about a lot in this country. partially because our country doesn't recognize that we have them. It's something I've heard Loretta Ross talk about. I mean, unless you're versed in international issues, it's rare you'll even know what's included in the Universal Declaration of human rights. It's a good list.
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. . . they asked her to bake a cake? TWICE?
I'm speechless.
And some people think there is no glass ceiling anymore?
Wow, Goodyear is NEVER getting my business again.
It must have been powerful to hear Reverend Lois Dejean speak. Wish I could have been there.
It's amazing the trouble a company will go through to deny a female her right to equal pay. How is an individual supposed to challenge an injustice they are legally not aware of? If payment raises in the company are kept a secret a person, man or woman, wouldn't know how much another is making without a certain level of personal disclosure!
I can't believe they asker her to bake a cake, just because she is a woman doesn't make her Betty Crocker.