Perhaps I am a hardcore feminist. I have been suspect for such ideology in the past. But I, like many others, have been forced to participate in the fundamentals of our capitalistic society in order to establish myself as a force to be reckoned with – both career and otherwise.

So I listen to Ani Difranco on my iPod for inspiration. I write letters demanding equality with Microsoft Word. Google Desktop pulls up for me the newest designs of pro-choice tee-shirts and bumper stickers so I can convince others to rock the boat and rock the vote. I actively take part in the life of an American living in incredible privilege.

And then I found out…

Kind of the way you find out that your favorite shampoo is tested in the eyes of unsuspecting bunnies or that they allow a certain percentage of insect and vermin feces into most foods and candy…

I found out that generous chunks of my super-cool social service salary was rewarding the hippest and most high tech companies for living in the 1950’s. True, their marketing is beyond savvy. Their popularity is overwhelming. Yet as the front-runners of today’s entrepreneurial success, with gadgets that have no doubt lead to our own professional successes, Apple and Microsoft maintain ONE female board member and Google maintains two. This is the breakdown out of eight to ten possible spots on these Boards of Directors.

So naturally I’m disturbed.

The Glass Ceiling is a phenomenon unfamiliar to very few Americans, particularly in a time when a real-life woman campaigned for the Democratic Nomination for Presidency, but aside from nut-crackers designed to look like Hillary’s legs and protesters that shouted “IRON MY SHIRT!” at rallies, weren’t we fooled into believing that the Women’s Liberation Movement had already been won when everyone was bra-less and therefore the battle was over? Remember the Equal Pay Act, passed by Congress in 1963 which required that companies give men and women equal pay for equal work? According to the U.S. Labor Department in 2006, nearly 40 years after the Equal Pay Act, the average 25-year-old woman still earns 78 cents for every dollar earned by her male counterparts.

Nice. Men make almost 25 cents more than women. That adds up – especially if you have to go to the Laundromat.

There has been research that suggests women disproportionately do not ask for higher salary packages or wage increases based on social conditioning, primarily because it’s not the “nice” thing to do, because we feel undeserving, because we cannot wield the same power as our male counterparts and because frankly, having feminine qualities is a weakness rather than a tool for leadership. In a 1943 issue of Transportation Magazine advising male supervisors how to make female laborers more efficient, it was recommended to “Give every girl an adequate number of rest periods during the day. You have to make some allowances for feminine psychology. A girl has more confidence and is more efficient if she can keep her hair tidied, apply fresh lipstick and wash her hands several times a day.”

So if I spend less time reapplying my makeup, will you give me my damn quarter?

Your much-needed dose of Riot Grrl, FM Popp(News) Agent Fatima Pervaiz