Celebrating women

by Dustin Woods
Visionary Column

March is Women’s History Month, and March 8 is International Women’s Day. I love that March is about women because my birthday is in March, and if it weren’t for a woman, I wouldn’t be the person I am today.

You guessed it. I’m a gay who is a momma’s boy! I haven’t yet begun to gush over how great my mother is, so you’ve dodged that bullet.

This month, please think about how you can help transform the role women have in society. It’s a tall order indeed, but we are the first American’s to see a woman be Vice President of the United States, so I know we’ve got the potential to see even more remarkable achievements for the ladies.

Kamala Harris is only a heartbeat away from being President. However, we still have a long road to travel regarding women’s equality and representation in power positions. According to the US Census Bureau, on average female earners make 0.82 cents on the dollar that a male earner makes. This inequality can’t continue to exist in a society that purports to value equality. 

The pandemic has hit women particularly hard, with many lost jobs being ones that women predominately held. Fortune magazine reported in December, 155,000 jobs were lost by women, but men gained 16,000 jobs. An economy that can lopsidedly impact one group over another is a veritable Jenga tower just waiting to be toppled.   

I grew up seeing women as strong, powerful, dominant people who brought a fierce devotion to provide for their families while also fostering a loving and caring home environment. On my mother’s side, I have three aunts, and I am so thankful for their influence in my being the man I am today. Some people’s mentality that discounts women, handicaps a gender by calling them the “fairer” sex is an entirely ridiculous notion to me, for they indeed haven’t met the Green girls. Women may have a different physiology than men and certain limitations resulting from that, but in no way should they ever be seen as less than a man. 

We need to promote women, support women, and lift women up, in every aspect of society, particularly those that yield the most power, those of business, nonprofit, and political leadership. 

Slightly over half the population is female. I think our most essential affairs management should look more like the community’s influential organizations serve instead of the narrow group the powerful only seem to want to benefit. 

As for political office, 2020 brought a historic number of women to Congress, which is terrific. However, all politics are local, and there are still races that go uncontested. I know women save the day so often and have so many other burdens to carry, but the world would be a far better place if more of them held power up and down the government line from local to county to state then federal. Any brave women who step forward to take on the mantle of power will need proud volunteers to support them in their endeavors. 

If you love women, volunteer for one to have more power in this world in any way you can.

Copyright The Gayly. 3/8/2020 @ 2:25 p.m. CST.