Dear future President of the United States,

Imagine a world where women are paid the same as men for equal work. Imagine a world where everyone gets the same opportunities. Imagine a place where people get paid back for what should have been theirs in the first place. During your reign as President, I would like to see the following issues addressed for women: back pay for lost wages, equal opportunities, and equal pay for equal work.

Many women on the US national team have to juggle up to two or three other temporary jobs just to take care of themselves and their family. If women got reimbursed for the difference in salary (compared to men) then they wouldn't be struggling as much. It is not just the women’s national team, but also many other women. Betty Dukes quoted “When you subtract my living expenses, I'm not living — I'm existing, I have an 88-year-old mother. Economically, there's nothing I can do for my mom to make her life more golden in her golden years, because I have no resources to do that.” (calkins) More women could get their life started once again, provide for the people they care about and themselves if they were reimbursed.

Women have so many opportunities that are taken away from them. For example, women are forced to play on turf fields which can cause serious injury. “Playing conditions on faux grass can cause bad rug burns when pellets lodge in players’ legs, deter players of diving or sliding for fear of burns, or tripping on uneven surfaces.” (dockterman) Alex morgan, one of the highest paid women’s soccer players, risked losing millions of endorsement deals if she got hurt again (due to the turfs conditions) . Considering they are already struggling with money, this a big deal, because if any of the players get hurt real bad they could lose thousands and or millions of dollars. “While women are often asked to play on turf, including in this summer’s World Cup where the champion U.S. women’s team played eight of their 10 games on turf, men’s teams rarely are told to do the same. And when the men’s national team does schedule a game at a stadium that has turf, the maintenance crew lays down sod before the game, regardless of the cost.” (Dockterman)

Equal pay for women became an issue that started way back when women only got paid seventy eight cents for every dollar a man made. “In their filing, the women say that despite their success, male players are still get paid significantly more just for showing up.” (White) For example, the US women’s national soccer team only makes $1,300 for every match they win while the men’s soccer team makes $17,000 for winning and $5,000 just for losing! “The U.S. men collected $9 million for making the second stage of the 2014 World Cup. The U.S. women collected $2 million for winning the 2015 World Cup.” (futterman) The pay gap is so ridiculously huge, you would think maybe it would be a difference of a thousand to two thousand dollars but no, millions of dollars!

Let’s turn our imagination into reality by concentrating on the issues that are important to women. It does not matter if we are a man or a woman. We all have to live and work in this world together. As our leader, help men and women come together and make a difference in this world as equals.

Work cited

White, Gillian B. "In Soccer, Pay Defines Preformance." The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 15 June 2016. Web. 04 Nov. 2016.

Futterman, Matthew. "U.S. Soccer Files Defense Against Equal-Pay Complaint." WSJ. Wsj.com, 31 May 2016. Web. 04 Nov. 2016.

Calkins, Isabel. "28 Quotes on Equal Pay From Inspiring Women." Cosmopolitan. N.p., 10 Oct. 2016. Web. 04 Nov. 2016.

Dockterman, Eliana. "U.S. Women's Soccer Team Refuses to Play on Turf." Time. Time, 8 Dec. 2015. Web. 04 Nov. 2016.