When I first heard that line, my initial reaction was literally What. The. Hell.
I recently came across a ridiculous YouTube video in which a guy promotes his business called the “Business Bulge” where he really confidently shares his project with the pitch, "A bulge in your pants means a bulge in your wallet.” You can watch the video below to learn more about his "product."
With the ridiculousness of the video came out the truth. The product being a marketing ploy to raise awareness about the pay gap and from the feedback, it is receiving it has definitely done that. The campaign has prompted people to think about sexism in the business world.
The website for the product says, "A Ridiculous Solution For A Ridiculous Problem - You’re either here to buy something ridiculous or to complain about something ridiculous. Either way, it’s a good thing that you’re here. The Business Bulge is a fictional product. What’s not fictional is the fact that in 2016, women still earn less because of their gender. That’s not just wrong. It’s embarrassing. Politicians aren’t addressing the problem, and CEOs need a reason to act."
GetABulge.com and the product are the satirical work of Clark Hoffman, meant to start a conversation about gender income inequality. The gap between the salaries of men and women remains a troubling issue for women across the United States.
Today, an American woman earns on average 78 cents for every dollar of an American man earns. Although for some people those 22 cents may not seem like much, it's important to realize that those 22 cents not being paid to women means that women worked for free for part of their job.
With March being Women's month where people from around the globe celebrate women, this video serves a perfect gateway to bring about the issue of the gender wage gap and gender inequality.
Jone Johnson Lewis perfectly defines the month as a mean to "increase consciousness and knowledge of women's history: to take one month of the year to remember the contributions of notable and ordinary women, in hopes that the day will soon come when it's impossible to teach or learn history without remembering these contributions."
Collectively, one day, we won't need a Women's History month. I hope to see the day when the achievements of women are a strong part of history that isn't revealed after the contributions of men, rather alongside them.
However, to get there is going to be quite the journey. It already has been a long journey. Like most national problems, it's going to take a while to fix the issue. Sam Smethers, Chief Executive of the Gender Equality Charity at the Fawcett Society, said at the current rate of progress it would take 50 years to close the gender pay gap. She added, “Women should not have to wait that long."
And she is right!
However, we can all be part of a faster change by being in it together. Be it raising the issue enough to actually make CEOs stop this disparity or raising your children and siblings with ideals that see women as equal counterparts to men.
You can join several organizations such as UN Women, HeForShe, GirlUp, ManUp, Young Minds for Gender Equality and many more which have dedicated themselves to bring gender equality in the world.
In her issue for Esquire, Emma Watson shares that, "You [guys] don't have to give up your job, surrender your liberty, empty your bank account or never look at a pretty woman again. We're not asking you never to hold the door open [or] never to pay for dinner. . .We're asking you to think not what gender equality can do for you, but what you can do for gender equality."
Although women will continue fighting for their rights, be it in promoting gender equality, reducing the wage gap, or encouraging feminism, we can't do much without most people if not everyone is part of the solution.
Watson shares that guys should make themselves aware of the issue on the most basic level. Talk to women about their experiences of discrimination and once you recognize the problem, adjust your own behavior, if necessary, in order to lessen it, then encourage others.
You can participate in this campaign by raising awareness on the issue by using the hashtag #StopDickingAround, which directs people to the website Young Minds 4 Gender Equality.