Here, Ladies, Don’t Spend It All on Shoes

I came across this super cute ad from Australia’s ANZ Bank where little girls detail a world that seems weighted on their failure.  The depressing facts are spoken in sweetly by girls in some fantasy room, drenched with sunbeams and piled with books.  To top it off, there’s one tough little grasshopper who wants youth know how strong these girls can be.

Nice, right?  The ad is a part of a campaign by ANZ Bank to address the gender wage gap.  In addition to the ad, their announced they will be adding and extra $500 to the annuity funds of each of their 12,700 Australian female employees. That’s 6.3 million dollars  for the ladies: bonus!

Now I love free money as much as the next, and the bank is clearly articulating that they know the wage gap exists-soooo with you! As a woman that earns a wage, I’d rather be paid fairly–every year–than receive a lady-boys to make up for it.  That seems like a booby prize to me.  I wager I’m not the only woman who wants  wage equity, not a handout.

Author: Susan X Jane

Susan X Jane is a diversity educator, speaker, and trainer and coach. A former professor and media literacy activist, she now consults with organizations looking to make sense of our current cultural shift. She thinks a lot about media and race…a lot...and writes and speaks about media…and race... and encourages everyone she meets to think about the way our identity shapes our experiences, ideas, and beliefs about the world. If you're reading this, she wants you to think about it too. Want to talk about it? Let's go. View all posts by Susan X Jane