There Are Millions Of Jill Abramsons

Statement

Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) released the following statement today. DeLauro is author of the Paycheck Fairness Act, legislation which would help close the wage gap between women and men working the same jobs. She has introduced the bill every congress since 1997.

"I applaud all of the great reporting about Jill Abramson's quest for pay equity, a very real problem that hurts women and their families. Too often, the public engages in victim-blaming when a woman is paid less for doing the same job as a man. They say it is because of personal choices. No one chooses to be paid less. To say otherwise is out of touch, mean-spirited and just wrong.

"Those who dismiss the wage gap as an issue that was created for electoral purposes should ask Jill Abramson if she chose to be paid less. They should ask Ann Marie Duchon, who bravely shared her story with members of Congress. And they should ask Terri Kelly, who found out she was being paid less than a male colleague, despite better performance reviews. She only found out because that colleague was her husband.

"I hope the drumbeat on pay inequity continues loud and strong, and does not fade from the headlines once our attention span starts to wane. I also hope that the House of Representatives will once again passes the Paycheck Fairness Act on a bipartisan basis like it did in 2008 and 2009. Millions of American women, and their families, cannot wait any longer for the paycheck they rightfully earned."

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