Mount st. Mary’s college in California has released the results of a first of its kind study on women and their status in modern society. It’s a comprehensive report on poverty, mental and physical health, incarceration, employment, the media, and other key factors effecting women and girls in california today.
Speaking to a population of almost 19 million women and girls who live in the state, the report reveals a great need to advocate for women’s issues. Women are still hugely underrepresented in some of the most prominent fields the business and legislative world has to offer.
Geena Davis, Academy Award® winner and founder of the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media addressed a crowd amassed at Doheny Campus of Mount St. Mary’s College in Los Angeles:
“This report is long overdue in California and underscores the urgent need to advocate for women’s issues,”
“I am committed to working for change for all women and girls in California. It’s not just an issue of gender equality; it’s also an economic issue. Addressing inequalities is good not only for women, but also for California as a whole.”
Here are some key findings from the report:
* Women constitute just 16 percent of engineers and architects, and only 24 percent of mathematical or computer occupations.
* Poverty rates for female-headed households are alarmingly high, with 17 percent of all California females living in poverty.
* Women and girls continue to be underrepresented in family films, both in front of and behind the camera.
* Only 3 percent of CEOs are women in California’s Fortune 400 companies.
* California women rate their self-confidence and emotional health lower than men.
* Just 28 percent of state legislators and 9 percent of California city mayors are women.
Mount President Ann McElaney-Johnson comments on the findings from the new study:
“As a women’s college with a mission to serve and to lead, MSMC has an inherent interest in the forces that shape women’s lives, and in discovering ways to remove barriers to progress,”
“This report confirms that entrenched gender stereotypes are standing in the way of real progress for women.”