Recession Politics and Women
Three out of four Americans, including large numbers of Republicans, blame President Bush's economic policies for making the country worse off during the last eight years, according to a Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg poll released Wednesday, reflecting a sharp increase in public pessimism during the last year.
Of course most of us already know who comes out on bottom when the economy is in trouble. That would be the people already sitting at the bottom. I immediately thought back to an article Senator Kennedy wrote back in April, Recession Takes a Toll on America's Women. It is a beautiful article in which he rallied for Equal Pay for women in America by pointing out some of the sad facts of reality for women.
Like all workers, women are suffering from falling wages, rising prices, job fears, and housing troubles. But the effects of the recession on women have been more severe. The unemployment rate among women is rising faster than among men. Women's wages fell six times the rate of men's wages last year.
The housing crisis has also had a disproportionate effect on women. Despite their better overall credit scores, women are over 30 percent more likely to have expensive subprime loans, and are therefore much more likely to face foreclosure. Not surprisingly, many women are falling into bankruptcy at alarming rates. Single women, including those with children, account for 40 percent of all bankruptcies.
The housing crisis has also had a disproportionate effect on women. Despite their better overall credit scores, women are over 30 percent more likely to have expensive subprime loans, and are therefore much more likely to face foreclosure. Not surprisingly, many women are falling into bankruptcy at alarming rates. Single women, including those with children, account for 40 percent of all bankruptcies.
Whomever takes office next year is going to need to be someone who will pull us out this and will be willing to work with women to recover from this. Obama has at least made an effort to show his willingness to work for women. Unlike McCain who thinks women simple aren't smart enough or working hard enough.
Mike Pouraryan
