I must respectfully disagree with Blake Hasenmiller’s article about the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. Ledbetter was only satisfied with her pay for nineteen years because she was unaware that by the end of that time, she was making less than the lowest paid of fifteen men.

Companies purposefully hide salary information from workers in order to keep women from finding out that they are making less than men who are providing the same services. Allowing companies to distribute salaries ‘as they see fit’ is just another way of approving the systematic disadvantages people who are not male, white or upper-middle class experience.

Females shouldn’t have to ‘specify’ that they want to be paid as much as their male counterparts, it should be a given. Ledbetter was suing not only for the money that she was denied because of her gender, but also for equality.

If a man was doing the same job as a woman but receiving less pay simply because of his sex, wouldn’t that upset and frustrate him? According to Hasenmiller’s argument, the man would not have a right to have a problem with that, and the government wouldn’t have the right to help him. Should we pay President Obama less than former President George W. Bush because he is African American? I hardly think so, but according to Hasemiller, Obama would have to make sure to ‘specify’ that he wanted equal pay in his contract.

This issue isn’t about being ‘cautious’ about the government telling us where to spend our money. It is about equality. And we cannot afford to be cautious about that.

Kelsey Jacobs

Junior

Women’s studies