Working Girl

Working 9 to 5

These 10 U.S. Cities Are the Worst-Paying for Women — It’s Like We’re Still Living in the 1960′s

Nationwide — There is a battle going on and it’s been waging since the 1960′s. It’s the war over equal pay, and women continue to fight this battle to this day. Although progress has been made in some parts of the country, there are other areas that still seem to be stuck in the 1960′s.

 The gender pay gap, as it’s known, is still alive and well in many areas. 24/7 Wall St, an online resource for financial news, reviewed 100 metro areas across America to find the cities with the smallest and widest gender wage gap. Here is what they discovered.

Here are the top 10 cities with the worst pay for women (in percent of wages paid to men):

1. Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Connecticut - 72.6 percent

2. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania - 72.5 percent

3. Ogden-Clearfield, Utah - 71.5 percent

4. St. Louis, Missouri - 71.2 percent

5. Birmingham-Hoover, Alabama - 71.0 percent

6. Augusta, Georgia - 70.7 percent

7. Bakersfield-Delano, California - 70.3 percent

8. Scranton–Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania - 69.9 percent

9. Baton Rouge, Louisiana - 65.7 percent

10. Provo-Orem, Utah - 63.4 percent  

Also ladies, being professional does play the largest part in what you are worth to any company. 

Author Joann Yoon

Little Brown Girls, Dance!

Brown Girls can Shine!

“This is for the little brown girls.”- Misty Copeland, Life In Motion 

From my place in the audience, Misty Copeland is the picture of perfection. As a soloist in the prestigious American Ballet Theatre (ABT), she is a vision en pointe, as she soars to impossible heights. But as with any success story, it takes a journey. In her memoir Life In Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina, the ABT soloist shares her Cinderella story, from a timid young girl who was introduced to ballet in a local Boys & Girls Club in San Pedro, CA, to a stunning dynamo gracing billboards as the face of ABT in her career defining performance as “The Firebird.” As a painfully shy child, she strived for perfection to keep her rocky childhood hidden by being a people pleaser with a  standard of perfection that lead to excruciating migraines. Misty found her stride and her steadiness through her love of dance and New York City, where her mixed identity was welcomed outside of the all-white dance studios. Most importantly, the prodigy dances with the dreams of the African American community on her shoulders, from the dancers whose promising careers were cut short by the threat of the Ku Klux Klan, to the little brown girls who dream of following in her footsteps as they tie up their first pair of pointe shoes.

Life In Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina is a must-read for all women, from dancers to the boardroom. If you have young daughters, stash this must-have on your bookshelf until they’re ready to discover it.

Based on dance’s traditional dance counts, here are some lessons from Misty’s inspirational story that will motivate you from any walk of life. In addition, we salute the African-American ballerinas who paved the way for Misty’s masterful reign.

Your past can make you stronger.

Misty opens up about her unstable childhood, when she spent her earliest years living in a motel in San Pedro with her mother and siblings. The constant shuffling and abrupt moves caused her to have debilitating migraines and stomach pains. A worrier by nature, Misty put her focus in hiding her unstable home life at school, by arriving early to class and keeping up excellent grades. Dance would become her escape, as she’d choreograph performances to Mariah Carey’s earliest hits. While the Copeland kids could have used their background as a crutch, they strived even harder to succeed. Excellence runs in the family, with Misty’s siblings ranging from lawyers to artists.

Embrace the criticism, not just the praise.

Although Misty was a latecomer to ballet, her innate ability to mimic choreography earned her the title of “prodigy” within months. The 13 year old had the athletic ability and the ideal frame that made her a choreographer’s dream. As she progressed, it was clear that instructors would not share the opinions of her earliest teachers. Always the fighter, Misty fought back by pushing herself to her limits. Her tenacity earned her a spot as the second African-American soloist in ABT’s history.

Choose a partner who makes you better.

A late bloomer with a fear of repeating her mother’s history of boyfriends coming in and out of her life, Misty focused on perfecting her craft and navigating her childhood, instead of dating. But when she met her boyfriend Olu, she found an anchor and support system. A lawyer, Olu helped Misty find her voice. Misty settled her nerves by rehearsing meetings she’d have with her artistic directors, when she knew she could handle prominent roles at ABT.

When Prince calls, you answer!

Misty has been a bonafide ballet staple for over a decade, but Prince introduced her to music lovers. In his shy and mysterious way, Prince invited Misty to dance in his “Welcome To America” tour. By trusting her expertise as a ballerina, he allowed Misty to step away from the meticulous critiques of her artistic directors, and into her own artistic prowess. The occasional phone call from the Purple One is something this fan can only dream of, so we’ll have to live vicariously through Misty on this one!

Being different is a gift.

As an African American in a world dominated and almost inherently designated for the affluent, Misty was a brown swan in a sea of white ballerinas. As her body matured, her curves made her stick out even more. Some decided to hide her copper complexion with makeup, and others refused to accept her, Misty began to retreat back into her shyness. The Dance Theatre of Harlem seemed a comforting solace, as she’d be able to dance with a community that embraced her. Instead of letting the negative noise extinguish her spotlight, Misty fought back. She stood tall and remembered the words of Dance Theatre Of Harlem artistic director and dance pioneer Arthur Mitchell: “Walk into a room, knowing you are somebody, somebody special. Don’t ever let them smash that or pull you down.”

Make time for your escapes.

Music and journaling served as anchors throughout Life In Motion, and clearly in Misty’s life. Whether dancing to New Edition and Mariah Carey as a young girl, or blasting Eminem and *NSYNC in her earbuds on the streets of New York City, the soundtrack steadied her on and off the stage. Thousands of miles away from home, Misty documented her accomplishments and setbacks in her journal. While pursuing your dreams, it’s important to unplug from the grind to enjoy the journey.

Do it for the little brown girls.

Throughout the memoir, Misty continually revisits her mantra: “Do it for the little brown girls.” The “little brown girls” are of course our daughters, but as women, we carry our “little brown girl” dreams with us every day. Whether we achieved our dreams or we’re still pursuing, or even if they’re now distant hopes we’ve stowed away with childhood toys, Misty brings us on stage with her. Life In Motion is a lift and reminder for us to tap into your greater purpose, and soar to your own heights. 

 

Girls Have the power to overcome every and any obstacle in life. Being a woman is more than what defines you, it sculpts you. Meaning being a dancer, teacher, listener, etc. can be done under any circumstance. Be a Woman, a real woman, which means projecting your gifts in your life's work. Daughter, Wife, Mother, sister, and friend are ways to be the person that your are created to be.

Author Joann Yoon

Why Women Prefer Black Men?

Men of Color is what women what....

Black skin is thick and lush, sensuous to the touch, like satin and velvet made flesh. There’s only one patch of skin on a white man’s body that remotely compares to nearly every inch of a black man’s skin. The first time I caressed black skin, it felt like a luxury I shouldn’t be able to afford. I craved it more strongly than Carrie Bradshaw craved Manolo Blahnik shoes. That phrase, “Once you go black, you never go back” is all about the feeling of the skin. 

And I had the socially acceptable explanation for my craving. I used that paucity-of-available-white-partners rationale to explain my relationships with black men for several years. A white girl in her twenties is often passed over by her white-male contemporaries. She goes younger or ethnic or foreign-born or down the socioeconomic scale or darker or she spends lonely nights at home with her books. Black men are happy to get true loyalty and love from a woman of any race. The laws of the marketplace do prevail. It’s not me, it’s them being the white guys who weren’t after me for love but only for sex, which I was taught by my father to only give when received a security of companionship. 

Even in a time when nearly 40 percent of single Americans have dated outside their race, that deliberate seeking of the specific other makes some people, especially black women, damned mad.

Black men are two and a half times more likely to marry a woman that has more than he has, than a white man is to marry a women that has more than he has, But in truth, white men would rather marry a sexually free woman with nothing to offer but porn like sex than a hard working woman willing to give loyalty and a quality life. 

The truth is, more than 60% of white men are lame or corn balls. Then their is another 30% that are freaks, sexual weirdos or just plain scary. Of course you have the last 10% that are just sexy, suave and suave but they only date black girls or woman of ethnic background. This is the reason why some white women would rather date black men! Black men are supportive of all woman maximizing their potential, while white men feel threatened. Men of African decent are more fertile than most races. Men of color also are more pleasing to women in bed. Masculinity of their background is always consistent (thug, prep, rich, poor, etc.) with every step in life.  

Black men have something white guys don’t have. Confidence in their masculinity, their sexuality. They clearly know they’re men. White men appear to be waiting for the latest sociological research study to let them know if they are men or not. 

Yet black men are gentlemen, masculine and leaders something else white men aren't. They make you feel like a woman, both respected and desired. I can let go of my inhibitions, my need to control, when I am with them. How many white men can treat a woman like a lady and ravish her too? 

For example walking down the street with a black man is totally different from walking down the street with a white man. A black man doesn't need the latest car to turn you on, but with white guys it's a little different, they feel to need material things to validate their manhood. What's the point of a mansion and you husband can't command enough respect in the world to protect your home?

Analyze the roots of attractions all you want like scientists have done and you won’t come up with a perfect explanation for why women crave what we do. 

Desire rises from our depths and is gloriously oblivious to the good opinion of others. Yet I have excepted that I have pretended that my attraction was an equal-opportunity craving, because that seemed like the right thing to do.

Katie Brach 

@KatieBrach on twitter and instagram