Violence against women costs the United States about $4.9 billion per year.  The indirect costs are, of course, exponentially higher. When appeals to fairness and humanity fall on deaf ears, an economic case can be persuasive. A new report released by the McKinsey Global Institute explains that reducing gender inequality in America would net trillions […]

Most often I’d tuck it up the sleeve of my cardigan, turning my wrist in so it wouldn’t slip out.  If I needed free hands, I’d hide it in my waistband.  Dresses posed more of a problem. With no pockets and no long sleeves, I’d have to get creative.  Worst case, it meant taking my whole, […]

At dinner with friends last night I asked, over the bread basket, what my fellow diners thought of President Obama’s speech on gun control this week. (Don’t worry, we moved on to lighter fare.  At least in terms of conversation.) Although generally well informed, three out of four said they hadn’t watched it. “I saw […]

The most remarkable thing about the make-up of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s cabinet is the attention its gender equity has garnered. Trudeau’s appointment of women to 15 of 30 seats is blowing up my social media. His response as to why he did it has practically positioned him the new Feminist Ryan Gosling. But—as […]

We have written, on this blog, about the persistent gap in pay between men and women in America today.  We have written about the injustice of men being paid more for doing the same work, about implicit gender-based bias, about unjustifiable double standards—it is by no means easy (or fair) to have to navigate the […]

The summer after my senior year of high school, I volunteered for my local NPR station—my assignment was to do a piece on the water quality of Lake Erie (it’s absolutely fine… maybe stick to the pool).  I traveled around town collecting sound, conducting interviews; I was thrilled to use the editing equipment to put […]

Most women—no, all women—have had the experience of receiving unsolicited feedback on their physical appearance. Such commentary comes in many forms, from lewd remarks or demands for a “smile” on the street, to irksome discussions with well-meaning relatives about how much “prettier” one might look with a different hairstyle.  Women have long fought against these […]

Last week, with the help of Sarah Silverman’s unique brand of irreverent humor, we were introduced to the Equal Payback Project.  The goal of the project is, through a crowdfunding campaign, to raise awareness that more than 50 years since the passing of the Equal Pay Act the average American woman is still making only […]

Many of my clients are highly educated, experienced professionals at the top of their industries who have prioritized and sacrificed for their careers—they’re hard workers and they’re really good at what they do.  Still, when gender discrimination in the workplace forces them out of the positions they’ve worked so hard to attain, one of the […]

Last month, President Obama signed an Executive Order barring federal contractors from discriminating against employees on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. The Order simply adds sexual orientation and gender identity to a list of characteristics—race, color, religion, sex, and national origin—already protected under an Executive Order signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson, […]