I’m sure by now that everyone has either seen on social media or heard someone talking about Jennifer Lawrence’s Lenny Letter that addresses the wage gap even among celebrities. I hope that by her, along with Emma Watson and other celebrities, that this topic will actually start making a progress for those whose voices are quiet and often ignored. However, the issue of wage differences extends far lower than that of celebrities, and I applaud Lawrence on being completely honest throughout her letter on the fact that her situation is very different from a lot of other people. Although her position is not relatable, there are plenty of women who also don’t fight or negotiate to have a decent wage for the work they do.

And even if her situation is not found in everyday life, the conversation on the wage gap should very much exist in every single economic and professional level. As a woman, I have always found it discouraging that I basically have to expect to only be paid 83 percent of what a man would receive for the same position. I haven’t exactly encountered this in my life yet, as most of my jobs have paid minimum wage or were a work-study position already set by the university. My current position also doesn’t have a male equal to my position, so I can’t draw a direct comparison between the two. However, I can see issues emerging the deeper I go into my career.

I’ve never really been able to wrap my head around how wage is decided. I lived in California during the summer of 2013 and it was a lot different than Michigan simply because of the different taxes and the higher minimum wage. I went throughout most of the summer making $9, only to return back home to a minimum wage of $7.40 again. A month after my return, Michigan’s minimum wage increased to $8.15, still $0.85 less than another state within the nation. For me, this was difficult to try to get back into a rhythm of how many hours I needed to work in order to afford living. And to extend on this conversation, not only do I have to worry about my sex defining my wage, I also feel like I could be overlooked for the job completely because of it. I don’t want to have gone through all my education and gain experience and skills to only be turned down because I was born with the wrong genitalia.If I am capable and skilled enough for a job, it honestly shouldn’t matter. The fact I have to worry about situations like this in the 21st century is honestly a joke.

I wish that our resumes were like the submissions for a writing contest. The judges don’t receive your name or any of your information. They simply read what you had to write. They experience your story, essay, poem, etc. and they decide on a winner based on your talent. We should seriously look into submitting resumes like this. Here is my education, my past jobs, and my skills and experience gained from it. Think I qualify perfectly for the job? Fantastic, I’ll be bringing my female self to work and start busting my butt to get the job done the best way possible, just like any man would.

What am I to do as a woman entering the professional world? I want to enter the job market and have faith that I’m not being taken advantage of or purposefully discriminated against due to my sex. I want to believe that I am good enough at what I do in the real world, but it’s hard to be a real person when all I’m ever classified by is my name, sex, and race. I fall into categories that will be with me the rest of my life. I just hope at one point in the future, people will start seeing me for my talent and not for the legal definition of who I am.