Rally advocates equal pay for women
Roberto M. Esquivel/HeraldStandard.com
Gina Jones (left) and Denice Robinson, co-chairwomen of the Equal Pay Rally and Block Party, speak during the rally held Thursday in front of the Fayette County Courthouse.
Roberto M. Esquivel/HeraldStandard.comrd.com
Kristan Miller (left), and Marisa Harmon lead a march down Main Street in Uniontown as part of an Equal Pay Day Rally Thursday afternoon. The rally was sponsored by the MyOWN campaign.
Roberto M. Esquivel/HeraldStandard.comrd.com
Annie Ulmer, of Uniontown, marches with others down Main Street in Uniontown towards the State Theatre as part of a peaceful Equal Pay Day protest rally Thursday afternoon. The rally was sponsored by the MyOWN campaign.
On average, women across this nation earn 77 cents for every dollar earned by their male counterparts.
“That’s for the same job,” said Gina Jones. “That’s with the same qualifications.”
Jones and Denice Robinson served as co-chairwomen of the Equal Pay Rally and Block Party held Thursday afternoon in downtown Uniontown. MyOWN campaign sponsored the event, which was funded by a grant from the Women and Girls Foundation of Pittsburgh to the Business and Professional Women of Pennsylvania.
Members of BPW attended the event, which began with the rally on the front steps of the Fayette County Courthouse and was followed by a march down Main Street to the State Theatre Center for the Arts. Participants wore red-and-white MyOWN Equal Pay for Equal Work buttons and carried signs that read “Empower Women Now,” “Will Work for Equality” and “Working for my own Future.”
A party took place at the theater that included a celebration of five women who were introduced at the rally and will appear on local billboards along major highways in the next few months.
An easel at the rally held a sample of the first billboard that will go up April 30 at the corner of Route 40 and Route 21 in Uniontown and feature Devan Grote, president of the Fayette Young Professionals Network and the sustainable communities specialist for Fay-Penn Economic Development Council.
Other honorees include Bobbi Dobler, who is state president of the Business and Professional Women; Patricia Henderson, president of the East End Concerned Citizens Group in Uniontown; Joni Morrison, founder and chief executive officer of Furnace Hill Photography; and Cathy Zimmerman, founder of HEAR Fayette. Their stories are available at www.myownfayette.org.
“Our honorees come from different backgrounds and advocate for change,” said Jones. “They are also our neighbors and friends and sometimes they don’t get recognized. That’s why we wanted to do this billboard campaign.”
Besides Jones and Robinson, rally speakers included Dobler, who said, “This is not just for women but for families and local businesses. If women are earning less, they are spending less.”
State Rep. Deberah Kula, D-North Union Township, noted that while women have climbed mountains in the workplace, they still face challenges.
She said, “I’m here to tell you the mountain is worth it. Keep climbing and saying ‘I will do it. I will lead the way.”’
Fayette County Commissioner Angela Zimmerlink noted the rally included men who were willing to carry signs while fellow Commissioner Al Ambrosini also offered support and said, “We’re all about trying to make life fair and equitable for everyone.”
Brownsville Mayor Lester Ward asked why more people weren’t in attendance, saying, “Next time bring along a neighbor or a friend.
“The crowd should be spilling into the street.”
Robinson directed participants to start the march, noting, “Gina and I wanted to make people aware of the issues and honor these five women.”
Jones urged people to take what they learned and do something about it.
“If not for yourself, do it for the next generation,” she said.
Those attending the rally included 19-year-old Annie Ulmer, of Uniontown, a freshman at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus, who said of pay inequity, “It’s just ridiculous. More people need to know it exists and do something about it.”