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I need a single-sentence admonition about why I decline most unpaid speaking/writing requests.
It's not a matter of greed.
It's not a matter of greed.
For me, it's about my health, my time, and my talent. It's about the politics of the wealth and wage gaps.
"According to the U.S. Census, on average, Black women were paid 63% of what non-Hispanic white men were paid in 2019.
That means it takes the typical Black woman 19 months to be paid what the average white man takes home in 12 months." https://www.aauw.org/resources/article/black-women-and-the-pay-gap/
That means it takes the typical Black woman 19 months to be paid what the average white man takes home in 12 months." https://www.aauw.org/resources/article/black-women-and-the-pay-gap/
In academia, there's a tendency to write off a ton of unpaid labor under the guise of it being "part of our jobs."
Which is one way that, despite us being the highest-educated group in the country, Black women's wage/wealth gap persists.
Which is one way that, despite us being the highest-educated group in the country, Black women's wage/wealth gap persists.
The disparities are source-agnostic. Whether it's because our salaries are lower than those of our counterparts, or we're asked to do without for the sake of being good citizens, either way, we wind up with less.
And it galls me, because it's like a friend said:
When you get invited to give a lecture without an honorarium, keep in mind that everyone* in the room is being paid to be there — except you.
(I do believe it was @AynneKokas who put it this way.)
When you get invited to give a lecture without an honorarium, keep in mind that everyone* in the room is being paid to be there — except you.
(I do believe it was @AynneKokas who put it this way.)
So no, I do not work for free.
And I will continue to say this until Black women's labor is respected enough that folks do not step to us empty-handed.
And I will continue to say this until Black women's labor is respected enough that folks do not step to us empty-handed.
Believe me, I get how tacky, how uncouth this will read to some folks. And that's OK. You know who I am, and where I stand.
There are plenty of causes to which I'll donate my time. But for well-funded institutions? Absolutely not.
There are plenty of causes to which I'll donate my time. But for well-funded institutions? Absolutely not.
I'm reading the replies. Y'all are so kind and thoughtful with your wording.
I am not interested in being respectable about this. I'm speaking for myself, but it's not just about me. It's about the genteel ways that we maintain systems of inequality.
I am not interested in being respectable about this. I'm speaking for myself, but it's not just about me. It's about the genteel ways that we maintain systems of inequality.
I'm speaking out of the reality of my lived existence. I had colleagues over (so to speak) yesterday, and one mentioned how nice my apartment complex is.
I sank inside as I thought about how I wasn't able to afford to live here before my husband moved to town.
I sank inside as I thought about how I wasn't able to afford to live here before my husband moved to town.
And how, as I've said before, we make an excellent living and still can't afford to buy a home here.
The personal is hella political over here.
The personal is hella political over here.
Oh, and since I'm already talking too much:
Chile, one of my prescriptions cost me more than $300 today! I need muhneyyyy to live.
Chile, one of my prescriptions cost me more than $300 today! I need muhneyyyy to live.
