8 November 2016

Dear President of the United States of America,

America claims to be “one nation under God, with liberty and justice for all,” claims to be united, claims to be fair and just, but unfortunately, this is not the case. The lack of respect and equality for women has been an issue dating back to the early settlement of this country. The American citizens preach that “all lives matter,” but is that truly what they believe? My heart is heavy when I see and hear news about women being abused, being underpaid, being looked down upon, and it has to end. With your influence as President of the United States, this trend that has been going on for ages could be stopped. With equal pay and equal opportunities for women, America could be just one step closer to being a nation with liberty and justice for all.

Some people argue that feminists want equal pay for unequal work; however, this is not the truth in all cases. In attempt to support this idea, people say that women tend to choose less profitable studies than men. They may be correct, but this is a perfect example of inequality. Women generally tend to work towards less lucrative studies than men because of the limited amount of opportunity they are faced with. There are people who still believe that women should only be housewives; cooking, cleaning, and mothering. This idea of a woman not being able to do a “man’s job” has caused women to feel as if they are incapable of even striving for higher paying jobs. There is no job that a man can do that a woman cannot do just as well. According to the Pew Research Center, full-time working women earn only 77% of what their male equals do. I want to live in a nation whose women are not only paid fairly, but are also given the same opportunities as men.

The previous problems that I have stated stem from the lack of respect for women. In schools, girls are taught to dress in a way that will not distract the boys from their schoolwork. Why are the boys not taught to not sexualize a woman’s body? Why do women still have to dress for the convenience of men? It has gotten to the point where women can barely express themselves in school or in the workplace because of their “inconvenience” to men. Women are taught to not get raped or harassed, instead of men being taught to respect a woman’s decision. Recently, a young man named Brock Turner was arrested for sexually assaulting a girl while she was unconscious. He faced very minor charges, only three months in jail, from doing such a major injustice. It makes me sick to my stomach to see that this man can be faced with so little time in prison for such a horrible crime. Instead of making Turner face the full consequences of his actions, the university he attended sent out a letter that notified all students that hard liquor would be banned from all parties. Instead of blaming Brock Turner, the victim was blamed for drinking. Instead of teaching men to respect women, women were taught once again to not put themselves in a party environment. This shows even deeper that women’s lives are not respected like they should be. What makes a woman any less human than a man? There must be a solution to this continuous problem.

Liberty and justice are not things that women should have to work for. However, this mentality that men are greater that women will be hard to break. Being the President of the United States, you could be the one that breaks this unjust disposition. I hope to live in a nation where I can express myself freely, where I can provide for myself and my future family, and where I can live without fear of being a victim. It is time to make America a place that is safe and fair for everyone, and I strongly believe that it can start now with your leadership as President.

Sincerely,

Payton Pippin

Bibliography

Grinberg, Emanuella. "Brock Turner to Leave Jail after Serving 3 Months for Sexual Assault." CNN, Turner Broadcasting System, 1 Sept. 2016, www.cnn.com/2016/09/01/us/brock-turner-release/. Accessed 11 Nov. 2016.

Patten, Eileen. "On Equal Pay Day, Key Facts about the Gender Pay Gap." Pew Research Center, 14 Apr. 2015, www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/04/14/on-equal-pay-day-everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-gender-pay-gap/. Accessed 11 Nov. 2016.

"Women’s Rights." Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection, Gale, 2015. Opposing Viewpoints in Context, ic.galegroup.com/ic/ovic/ReferenceDetailsPage/ReferenceDetailsWindow?disableHighlighting=true&displayGroupName=Reference&currPage=&scanId=&query=&search_within_results=&p=OVIC&mode=view&catId=GALE%7C00000000LVZP&limiter=&displayquery=&displayGroups=&contentModules=&action=e&sortBy=&documentId=GALE%7CPC3010999331&windowstate=normal&activityType=&failOverType=&commentary=&source=Bookmark&u=lafa43079&jsid=e8d1781bb726aca855d1f2a90a5a0d03. Accessed 16 Nov. 2016.