walmart v. dukes rally @ supreme court

Just wanted to share a few photos I took from the rally last week at the Supreme Court in support of the women employees of Wal-Mart who experienced systematic discrimination at the workplace. They suffered both pay inequalities and lack of opportunity for promotion as compared to their male counterparts.

Unfair pay has serious consequences for women throughout their lifetimes, and I’m pleased to be learning a lot about these and other economic justice issues at IWPR. Not only do women make 77 cents on a man’s dollar on average in the U.S., causing them more economic hardship in the short term, fewer wages mean less Social Security funding upon retirement. Thus, more older women are poor than older men.

The women in the Dukes case attempted a class-action suit to hold Wal-Mart accountable for its illegal management decisions but were denied class-action status by the Supreme Court in a 5-4 vote.

The rally was empowering and achieved a lot of visibility. Plenty of press attended to cover the event, and plenty of passersby were supportive. It’s so amazing to be able to leave my internship for just an hour during the day to participate in an event like this. So much activism is constantly happening here in DC, and it’s usually only minutes away.

I’ve also enjoyed running into some of the same people at multiple events I’ve attended. I haven’t been in this city for very long, but I’m already starting to identify the community that I’ll become a part of someday if my life leads me here.

Two fellow IWPR interns and I were featured in an Associated Press photo taken at the event – see if you can spot me in AOL’s collection of AP photos of proud angry feminists here 😉

Also, here’s a video some awesome fellow New Faces, More Voices interns edited from their footage of the protest.

I'm in this one, looking kinda awkward. Leah and candid don't go too well together (but there's no room for vanity in activism!) Photo courtesy of Carley Shinault

Rally participants (most from feminist orgs around DC, but some from labor unions) and their signs. IWPR interns are toward the far right on the front row.

Close-up of IWPR interns at the rally June 21.