Dear Future President,  

Our next president needs to have safer and more inclusive ways of planning to change America that will not only benefit all of our citizens, but will make us stronger as a country. Their goals need to take into consideration the impact they will have on the people of America, its leaders, and its global relations with the outside world. This includes focusing on issues that the public cares about. I, as a citizen of America feel that one of the topics focused on should be gender equality. Currently there is an imbalance between the way that men and women are treated, the respect that they are given, and the rights that they are provided with that needs to be addressed. I, along with many other American's feel that women and girls should be given the same privileges as men. This includes having an equal pay system, reproduction rights for women as well as giving them the respect that they deserve. 

I would like to start off by addressing the issue of equal pay. Currently, men and women are being  paid different amounts for doing the same jobs, and I, for one, wish for this to change when the next President is voted into office. When the gender wage gap was measured in 2015, it showed a twenty percent difference in the amount of money men are being paid in comparison with women. To put this into perspective, for every one dollar a male worker makes, a female worker only receives eighty cents. This needs to change. Our next president’s goal as leader of America should be to fix this problem so that men and women are paid the same amount for doing the same jobs. Why should women be paid less than men? They make up fifty-one percent of the population and are just as capable as men are. There is no reason for women to be paid less than men.

The next issue that I would like to talk about is women's personal reproduction rights. The current laws regarding abortion state that "abortion is legal but may be restricted by the states to varying degrees." (Wikipedia) In my opinion, abortion should always be made an option to women in situations where it may be needed. You should be able to control and make decisions based on your own health and body, and nobody else should have any business interfering with them. After all, why should anyone but you get to decide the outcome of your personal situation? It doesn't seem fair and I would like the next President of the United States to recognize this and change it.

The final point that I would like to discuss in this letter is the way women are being treated and respected in America today. Women are being downgraded and belittled and made to feel like they can't. This includes a negative portrayal in the media as well as being used as a negative and less powerful example to the public. Women are being used as a sort of weaker symbol to the world around them. This needs to stop. We are are making women and girls feel self conscious about themselves and their capabilities. We are lowering their confidence and self-esteem, when really we should be doing the opposite, raising their confidence so that they are able to believe in themselves. 

These issues that I have outlined in my letter not only mean a lot to me, but other citizens of America too. There are thousands of topics that I could have chosen to talk about in my letter to the future President of the United States but I choose gender equality because it means a lot to me. I am a girl and I am ready to fight for the rights I deserve and I am not willing to stand by when my future will be affected by the decisions of others. I think the next President should take this into consideration when making future decisions. Children and teenagers like me have opinions and ideas as well, and by listening to them, you are giving them a chance to show the world where they stand and what they believe in. I, along with other citizens want our next president to have the qualities of a true leader, someone who displays responsibility, trust and a genuine desire to make America the best it can be. 

Sincerely, 

Hannah Viney