Say Something Real
Women Still Face Workplace Uphill Battles
By Michelle Bryant
Michelle Bryant
In 1983, Odetta Johnson had no idea she would become the inspiration for the “Queen of Disco”, Donna Summer’s huge hit “She Works Hard for the Money. The pop star recounted on the You Write The Songs television show, that she encountered Johnson in a restaurant bathroom in 1986. “We peeked around the corner, and there was a little lady sitting there with her head tilted to the side, and she was just gone – she was asleep […] I looked at her, and my heart just filled up with compassion for this lady, and I thought to myself, ‘God, she works hard for the money, cooped up in this stinky little room all night.’”
Summer saw in Ms. Odetta, what I see in women everyday…. exhaustion, persistence, and purpose, when it comes to work. That position solidified after the recent Milwaukee April 2nd general election. A seismic shift, in representation and potentially power, undergirded the Milwaukee Common Council election results. While some cheered, others were steeled in their response. Political insiders and observers were already calculating what the outcome could mean for local leadership. Let me make it plain.
With Sharlen Moore’s successful bid to secure the 10th Aldermanic seat, the Common Council now has eight African-American members, six women, and four African-American women. There are fifteen council members in total. In terms of numbers, you can’t ignore the obvious question. Could we be looking at our first woman and first Black woman to serve as Common Council President.
In Milwaukee’s 178-year history as a city, we have never had a woman serve as Common Council President. Disappointingly, while we have had more than 1000 men serve as alderpersons, there have only been 20 women elected to the council prior to the Spring election. Moore became number twenty-one. We’ve got some equity work to do, considering that Milwaukee’s population consists of nearly 300,000 females. There are just a little over 278,000 males in the city. The fact that women have held a mere 2% of these elected Common Council positions is mind-blowing.
Alderwoman Milele Coggs, a 16 year-incumbent, has announced her intention to run for the coveted President’s position. As the sole woman on the Common Council, for 8 years, Attorney Coggs certainly has the experience, institutional knowledge, and skills to serve as Milwaukee Common Council President. Though when it comes to these leadership roles, women have been asked or forced to take a backseat. While pay is regulated by statue, equity in leadership has been fleeting, when it comes to this role. The question is why? The answer is known.
Women continue to face disparate treatment, excessive scrutiny, and challenges to their capabilities. We can be overly qualified, visionaries, and experts in our fields. However, we continue to face the Glass Ceiling, Pink-Collar Prejudice, and the Old Boys Network. While exhausted from fighting age old sexist tropes and behaviors, we persist. We push in doors and bandage open wounds received from falling glass. We work hard, carry our weight, and often over-perform. It is time that our professional purpose be matched by opportunities and rewards, that are not limited or marginalized by gender.