The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1934-01-04
WOnenLOSe
in Measure
of Equality
Situation Described as
Becoming Worse in
Workers Field.
BY GRETTA PALMER
Times Special Writer

NEW YORK. Jan. 4-There is
a Nineteenth amendment too
.-.A1 + this country goes the way
Of much Of the rest Of the world it,
e. may be repealed. Then, mes
danes. you will be right back where
your grandmother was.
In Germany today a woman can
not acquire property upon the death
of her husband. A wOman's wages
for skilled labor are lower than
those Of a common labOrer who hap
pens to be a man. A woman who
is a recognized feminist Is deported
or thrown into Jail IN Italy much
the same situation prevails. Women
there are encouraged to bear chill
dren and TO keep out Of the busl-
ness and professional worlds. What
about America?
Well, the American woman can
still sign checks in her own name.
She can still work without being
branded as unpatriotic-if she can
find work. But the fight for equal
rights is a losing one; We have to
suffer from a far greater discrim-
ination on grounds Of sex than we
did five years ago And the situa-
tion-about which nobody says very
much-is steadily getting worse.
Sixtv-Two Codes Held Unfair
Our government has approved
eivtv-+wo codes which promise
women lower wages than men Tor
the same work. Our government
has passed a ruling which discrlm-
mates against married women III
the civil service if their husbands
are similarly employed. And the
private corporations which have
handy dismissed their married
women employees are legion.
Women never have been taken
quite seriously in the world OF DuSl-
ness. and it is becoming increas-
inglv apparent now. A mans rlgnI
to a lob is not contended-the TACT
that he Is thrown into the breao-
line when he is eager to work, IS
dpplored by every one. But
woman's right to work is something
else again. She is told that perhaps
for a while, until conditions PICK up
il might be better if she would 1or-
oet this new-fangled nonsense ana
90 back to somebody's kitchen.
Well. whose kitchen?
The women of the present young
or generation have not been brought
IN to a life Of either idlenesS OF
domesticity. They have developed
certain skills in the expectation that
the world would have use 1or
them.
If times are bad and the scarcity
If Jobs throws them out OF work,
they are willing to accept their hard
luck with the men who are also I'M
EMPLOYED. They will be philosophlc
about it-so long as men and women
share alike
Just Marginal Workers"
They are not sharing alike today.
The women are being given very
definitely to understand that they
are the marginal workers the
employees who are grateIuIy aC-
cepted during times of plenty but
dropped from the pay roll When bad
times are at hand.
They are beginning to realize the
insincerity of the welcome extended
to them by the business world dur
ing the war, when there were not
enough men to go around. They
have found that they were accepted
on sufferance only and that the
equality they seemed to enjoy was
only an emergency measure, to be
recalled at any time.
The cause of feminism is not
being advanced in America today
it is suffering a sad reverse, Show
ing a faint reflection of the terrible
setback that women are enduring
in some of the other countries OF
the world.
Will the old time suffrage leaders
please step forth? 1t looks as If we
were going to need them once again.