Beyonce penned her thoughts on gender equality in a short yet compelling essay titled “Gender Equality Is a Myth” for The Shriver Report, a non profit media initiative led by journalist Maria Shriver. If the diva’s last album made many people wonder whether Beyonce is a true feminist or not, the star’s new initiative is a definite statement on where she stands on the matter in her new piece, which is a part of the 2020 special report, “A Woman’s Nation Pushes Back From The Brink”.
To support her claim that gender equality isn’t a reality yet, the singer cites salary statistics which illustrate the gap between the average salaries of the two genders :“Today, women make up half of the U.S. workforce, but the average working woman earns only 77 percent of what the average working man makes. But unless women and men both say this is unacceptable, things will not change. Men have to demand that their wives, daughters, mothers, and sisters earn more—commensurate with their qualifications and not their gender. Equality will be achieved when men and women are granted equal pay and equal respect.”
She also states that in order to make gender equality a reality, it’s imperative to instill these values in children from an early age, so that it becomes natural to strive for these values, regardless of gender: “We have to teach our boys the rules of equality and respect, so that as they grow up, gender equality becomes a natural way of life. And we have to teach our girls that they can reach as high as humanly possible.”
Aside from Beyonce’s short essay, the Shriver Report, done in partnership with the Center for American Progress, also includes essays from Eva Longoria, Jennifer Garner or Hilary Clinton. The best part? Until tomorrow, January 15, the report can be downloaded for free, so if you’re interested in learning more about the subject and the additional problems women face today, you’ll find plenty of interesting perspectives, free of charge.
What’s your view on the issue of gender equality?
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