I have a splendid poster on my desk. It’s bright pink with white lettering: “All men are created equal…poor.”
I have believed for years that women should not aspire to equality with men, nor should any minority aspire to equality with the “norm.” Women are better than that. That’s how blacks are. That’s how Hispanics are. So are all other minorities.
Every time I forget this little life lesson, something seems to pop up to remind me. More recently, I read an interview BusinessWeekOnline conducted with Marianne Sensale-Guerin, the Small Business Administration’s Small Businesswoman of the Year. In response to a question about why she thought the SBA chose her, Ms. Sensale-Guerin said, “…I think they have watched closely how I treat my employees. I pride myself on taking care of my employees, they have to have insurance, flexible hours, vacation time. We live in a world where both parents work and as an employer I am very sensitive to those issues.”
And the objective of Mrs. Sensale-Guerin? In order to be successful enough to be able to sell her business to her employees, they would then be able to reap the benefits of her hard work while she retires.
How many employers have you ever worked for that were so sensitive to the present AND future needs of employees? How many employers care?
No, I am very glad that women are not equal to men. Women bring a whole new perspective to the business world. And it was time.
I am also very glad that we have made it through the early years of “women’s lib.” At that time I was one of the first members of the Silicon Valley Association of Women Entrepreneurs. I’m sad to report that we once spent an entire meeting discussing what kind of scarf/tie to wear with our business suits: should it be soft and flexible, or short and stiff? Worse, the consensus was that it should look as much like a man’s tie as possible, so we could “fit in.”
We’ve come a long way, honey. And it was time.
My grandmother was an entrepreneur before the word was invented, just like yours. Many women were left alone to fend for themselves and raise their families. My grandmother ran a gas station and ran a small farm, with two window stickers she was immensely proud of: one from the Army and one from the Navy, each showing that she had a son in her service. That was during World War II. She herself had raised those two children on her gas station and her small farm, and she continued to raise both until her death a decade later.
I dare say Grandma didn’t care for loose scarves. She had more important things on her mind. And we should too.
We have families that need our guidance and love. We have communities that need our leadership and sensitivity. We have a world that can benefit immensely from the gifts that we as businesswomen can provide. And we have businesses that need… yes, a woman’s touch.
My other grandmother also raised her family alone: 5 children and a disabled husband. She was a nurse, her heart ached. It is for her, and for legions like her, that the modern women’s liberation movement is meant to help more than anything.
It is thanks to the women’s armies of the mid-20th century who fought for equal pay, better working conditions, child care, health insurance, Medicaid programs, and job sharing that our part of the world has become a better place.
We certainly haven’t won all our battles. There is still a long way to go. But, my God, can you imagine what our world would be like if we had been like men? If we had just put on suits and said, “Yes, sir.”
No, we choose to be different. We choose to represent the underrepresented, the poor, the underserved. And more power to us for trying. I will go the way of the turtle, slow and steady, so that as we win our wars, everyone benefits.
There was recently a History Channel show showing the Nazis proclaiming that American women could never help the war effort because we couldn’t do anything harsher than wipe a table. They didn’t know Rosie the Riveter, or you or me.
I celebrate our difference.
I will fight tooth and nail so that women and minorities do not have to be equal to men.
Will you join me? Is the time.
