"Parades Are Cool. Equal Pay is Cooler."

Members of the USWNT celebrating their 2019 World Cup title.
Credit: USA Today Sports/Richard Martin

Tierna Davidson holding a sign fighting for equal pay

Credit: Media Punch/Alamy Photo

After reading this article by Mahita Gajanan, I decided to write this blog post about the United States Women's National Soccer Team (USWNT) and their fight for equal pay. This fight has been going on since 2016 when five players filed a complaint over equal pay to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Since then, their fight with the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) has escalated to the point where 28 USWNT players filed a class action lawsuit against their employer in March of 2019. 

Their fight is based on the principle that they outperform their male counterparts, which is true. At the time of the lawsuit, the USWNT had won three World Cups and were beginning the preparations in order to defend their championship title from 2015. In July 2019, they won their second consecutive World Cup title, bringing their total to four championships since 1991. While the USWNT has proven to be successful and that they deserve equal pay, the United States Men's National Team have never won a World Cup, and even failed to qualify for the men's World Cup tournament in 2018. 

Their fight for equal pay reminded me of the video that we watched in class that was about women and women of color fighting for equal pay in Hollywood. This video features actresses across all races/ethnicities, including Ellen Pompeo, Gina Rodriguez, Emma Roberts, and Gabrielle Union. Although this video was focused on the struggles of women of color in Hollywood, the actresses featured in the video discuss the importance of equal pay for women in general. Issues like closing the wage gap highlight the importance of gender inequality and how it (unfortunately) still exists today. 

Artifact Type: Article

Concept Reference

The Big Television Debate. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQ0lWxFZHYY