Woman Between Islam and Western Society
4. The Problems Facing Modern Civilization
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interview, which is reproduced here: “I come with
very bad news,” says Rhoda Lerman. Speaking on
the changing role of women in society, she revealed
that 77 percent of the poor in America are women
and children. The reason she offers is the high wage
differential between the earnings of men and
women. Women earn 62 percent of what men earn,
merely because of the “pink-collared” jobs offered
to them. “Equal opportunities and equal pay for
equal work are just a myth,” she declares. Women
have been able to infiltrate only the lower and
middle management and are offered innumerable
jobs in food chains and the secretarial cadres.
This discrimination, she believes, is due to the male
bias which works against women, branding them as
‘undependable, since they go in for maternity leave
and have children.’ Although 96 percent of the
working women have children, only 67 percent of
them can enjoy maternity leave, without fear of
jeopardising their jobs. However, seniority almost
always suffers, says Ms. Lerman. “Maternity and child
care are the cause of high wage differentials,” she
adds, “economic reality having nothing to do with
spiritual equality.” Activists had clamored for sexual
