We’ve Got The ’70s-Style Rage. Now We Need The ’70s-Style Feminist Social Analysis
Other social factors that went hand in hand with harassment in the ’70s persist, or in some cases, are even worse now than they were then. Are women of color still disrespected and even more underpaid than white women? Yep. Do workers of all kinds still labor without much protection? Even more do now than in the ’70s, and those in more precarious jobs feel the threat of harassment more acutely. Are men still taught to dominate, and to respect those who perform dominance? You betcha. And the behavior continues to function as a check on women’s ambitions. Sociologist Heather McLaughlin tallies up the financial effects of sexual harassment, finding that a large percentage of harassed women quit their jobs; many of them start over in different careers, or take jobs they wouldn’t necessarily have wanted, because they perceive the industry as less harassment-friendly.
Slate, November 20, 2017