Dear future President,

I am a student at West Albany High School in Albany, Oregon, and the wage gap between women and men in our country is very concerning to me. As a future businesswoman of America, I believe it is your duty to hear me out. In writing this letter, I hope to open your eyes to the unfairness of basic wages women get compared to men, in the same jobs. Many of the worst cases in America come from single-income families with a woman as the sole provider. Another cause for this problem comes from employers themselves; the New York Times says, “mothers in America are almost 40% less likely to be hired by the average employer than men and single women are,” even if it is the same at hand. In my opinion, mothers, who are in charge of raising this nation’s next generation, need jobs more than others so their children can be raised in a healthy environment. Tell me, would you not agree? With everything going on regarding minimum wage, how have equal employment opportunities been looked over?

If you weren’t already aware, according to Institute for Women’s Policy Research, “the average working woman will earn 77% of what the average working man earns.” The percentage gets even lower when women of color are brought into the scheme. The unfairness of this situation is completely unacceptable and can no longer be overlooked. There is absolutely no reason for men to be paid more than women, unless they are working completely separate jobs. There is no reason for white women, who are already prejudiced against, to earn more than women of a different color. What kind of nation are we if we can’t even provide our citizens with fair wages?

My family is just like 4 out of 10 families in your nation. My family has one person working for our income, and she is a single mother. We have ridden the poverty line, and have definitely seen some struggles, but we are fine at the moment. This is all because of my mother’s hard work and her perseverance through the hard times without work. She currently works a SDA position of a local business, and our family is thriving. Without her hard work, we could be homeless (for the fourth time), or even barely surviving. I will not stand for the country I love to continue ignoring hard working, respectable people like my mother.

There is a simple solution to this problem, and it is right under this nation’s nose. In order for equality and peace to once again be strong in this country, changes in women’s pay must occur. I’m not saying women need to be paid more than men, because that would reverse the current problem. Truly, all that needs to happen is an equilibrium between the wages of both sexes. Before raising minimum wage, I suggest this nation raises the wages of working women.

In closing, there is no reason that any gender should be prioritized over another, especially when it comes to money used to support oneself and one’s family. There need to be changes and you need to be the first to start the change. Thank you for your time, future president. I hope my words have reached you.

Sincerely,

Shai Grover