American culture relies on a myth of prosperity that justifies income inequality — we assume anyone can get ahead equally, which is not true if you look at cost of living and pay gaps.
Nina Rothchild, feminist who worked for pay equity starting in the 1970s, died October 12 in St. Paul at age 91. Here is the full essay she wrote recently for our “35 Years of Minnesota Women” book.
We conclude our two-month Ecolution exploration of the ways that Minnesotans are collaborating, instead of competing, in order to create healthier community ecosystems with this bit of history and contemporary thought about monopolies.
The American mythology of “pulling oneself up by one’s bootstraps” glosses over the hurdles and inequities of work and human value in our society. Labor and service work is undervalued and underpaid.
Many report that their cultural communities value familial interdependence, such as caregiving, establishing lending circles, and sharing housing. Some indicated the difficulty of adapting to the U.S. system of economic individualism.
