Among Friends

[Meowingkitty]

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@Carmie wrote:

I had no problem getting credit in the 70's in my name, but when I was done having children and wanted a lubal, the doctor insisted my husband needed to sign off.

I was pretty PO'd.  

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I had no problem getting credit cards in the late 70's. As for when I had my tubes tied in 1992 I was 35 no kids and my doctor did it with hesitation. Husband didn't have to sign anything. My choice. He would have signed it anyway if need be but it wasn't an issue. 

[PhilaLady1]

There are many replies that I can think of to this subject because in my opinion, there are many aspects to this.  So I will pick one and comment on something that was being discussed by young women that I overheard at my office about 5 or so years ago.  Somehow the term Feminism, of which we from a certain generation, fought so hard for, was looked down upon by these professional women.  I am not sure but it seemed that the meaning of feminism changed and a feminist was viewed with disdain. I think they thought that the belief is that if you are a feminist, you want to take over men, a kind of man-hater.  The traditional meaning of equality got lost.  Today is not perfect, but it's a lot better than back in the day.   Maybe this is taken for granted by people born after the ground work was done and doors beginning to open in the 70's.

[Goldengate8361]

Make no mistake about it: Women took a GIANT step backwards from a recent Supreme Court ruling. I'm honestly truly glad that I came of age during a different era where I had the most basic rights over my own body. I mean that.

[Desertdi]

Nothing will change...until women stop criticizing OTHER WOMEN

[grandma r]

Some things have changed since the '40s and '50s, yet, other things have gone backwards.  Women are seen as individuals today in some circumstances; in other circumstances,  we aren't allowed to make our own decisions. There are still workplaces that pay men far more than women doing the same jobs.  Unions have helped with that, but, there are still places who forbid unionizing.

Our clothing has drastically changed over the years.  Back in the '50s and even early '60s a woman was always dressed to go out, even grocery shopping.  Hats and gloves were the norm.

Imo women will never be seen as truly equal to men as long as the rules are made by older men.  And, a lot has to do with where these men live.  Some areas of our country still view women as property.  Sadly, these are facts and not political. 

[ThinkingOutLoud]

Just fyi - 

A victim mentality is always a weak position.

[skatting44]

 Agree that there have been many positive  gains for women in the workplace .

What I see are steps backwards is the crazy " birthing people " attitude and   total disrespect of women   .  Nasty song lyrics   of raping women  and using them . Women performers   acting like dogs in heat .

Also  to what's happening  now a days to  destroy women's sports .

 Back in  day  50+ yrs ago it was not easy for teens and women to  get birthcontrol pills  or other forms of birth control . Now  it is very easy to get birth control  pills.

[chrystaltree]

Part of the discrepancy in pay between men and women is that women usually take a chunk of time off to raise children. If (like me) you stay home with the kids for 8 years and then return to work; you have to start your career over again and you never catch up to your male peers. It's not that they get bigger raises. And some women take on jobs that are less demanding and therefore pay less when their kids are young. They never catch up. As long as women get pregnant and are the princess caregivers, I don't think things will change. Many women are opting to remain childless so perhaps the salary discrepancy will shrink over time. As for aging. Yes indeed, there's a difference. A woman with gray hair is old while a man with gray hair is distinguished. I retired last year and I'm free to let my hair go gray. I would NEVER have done that while I was working because I didn't want to be seen as old by my superiors who were 40ish vs my 60ish. I opted for an "ageless" look and was careful not to date myself. A friend who did the same thing phrased it as "no one wants their mother on their team". Men can get gray, bald, wrinkly and they don't lose relevance in the workplace.  I think you can only focus on YOURSELF and the things you can control and the skills and talent you bring to the table.  

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[hckynutjohn]

I am 83 years old. My mother was an immigrant from Italy, who spoke english. I have told my story so many times I will pass, on most of it this time.

My mother raised us 4 kids by herself. She worked 6 days, 2 of which were and extra 3.5 hours, in a department store that was open late on Monday and Thursday. 

If she made more than $23 per week? We would have booted out of our Public Housing Projects Home.

I had 3 older sisters. One married at 17 and was married for 62 years before her husband died. She worked for our Public School System and her income was more than mine working at a manufacturing plant.

Both of my other sisters went to college, 1 got her degree in Business and was in real estate for over 40 years. She has lived on a 10 acre ranch with her horses for decades.

Were their "times" the same as my mother's? Have I seen a change in times over my long lived years? Read the above and that should answer your question. You see a world that has stood still, I have lived in, and seen a much different one than you.

The rest of your post borders on the Political in nature, so I will leave that alone, for now.

By the by! When my wife retired after working 11 years for her company! Her income was over double what I was making from my company after 33 years. 

hckynut(john)🥅🏒 🇺🇸