Political Quotes

“I am proud to join this fight for paycheck fairness, an effort led by the dean of the women in the Senate, the first Democratic woman ever elected to the Senate in her own right, and the longest serving woman in Congress today--Senator Barbara Mikulski. This is the same fight many of our own mothers and grandmothers fought, equal pay for equal work. The promise made by the Equal Pay Act 50 years ago, literally half a century ago, continues to be broken every single day in this country. When that happens, it doesn't just hold back women individually, it holds back entire families. It holds back the entire American economy. Today women make up more than half of America's population and nearly half the workforce. Women are outearning men in college degrees and advanced degrees and a growing share of primary household earners. But to this day men are still outearning women for the exact same work. On average, women earn 77 cents for every $1 a man earns and even less for women of color. African-American women earn 69 cents on the dollar and Latinas earn just 58 cents on the dollar. In the years leading to the Equal Pay Act, only about 11 percent of families relied on women as the primary wage earner for kids under 18-- just 11 percent. Today 40 percent of primary or sole wage earners are women: 40 percent of families with kids under 18 who rely on women to pay the bills, balance the family finances, make the tough choices around the kitchen table, and provide for their kids.…”