Whether everyone experiences it or not, sexism affects a lot of peoples’ lives every day. Discrimination is nothing new and is used constantly to hold people down. Something as simple as gender can even impact how someone is treated or respected. Many times people have turned a blind eye to things such as the Glass Ceiling and the Pink Tax. 

According to the US Department of Labor Blog, over the duration of 2020, women in total only made 84% of the overall men’s salary in the United States. Many women are not even considered when companies are hiring for high-placement, large-salary jobs. 

According to Amanda Barroso, a writer for Pew Research Center, “Roughly one-in-five mothers said they had been passed over for an important assignment or a promotion at work, while 27% said they had been treated as if they weren’t committed to their work [once they became mothers].”

Some say it is because men do not think women are capable enough, or they feel that women should focus on taking care of and having families. If men can have families and still be promoted to CEO, it makes no sense for people to think that women are unable to do the same.

While women get paid notably less, they also have to deal with ridiculous economic issues such as the Pink Tax. The Pink Tax is the name for the extra charge when companies make two products, one is geared toward women (hence the pink) and the other is geared toward men. The “pink” versions are priced higher. According to The Balance, personal products such as shaving cream, body wash, and razors are on average 50% more expensive when marketed towards women.

Sexism also negatively affects men. Men are told they are supposed to be the main breadwinners of their family and take care of everyone financially. Many companies do not offer or discourage men from taking paternity leave when their children are born. They are constantly reminded of what a “manly” man should do: be outdoorsy, not care much about their appearance, and that they can only like boyish activities. Such things as knitting, baking, and taking care of children are frowned upon and called girly.

Children are raised with these viewpoints ingrained in their minds and feel they cannot break out of the set gender roles of today’s society. While society is certainly more open-minded and growing, many people still believe that women are meant to be limited to staying home and taking care of children while the men have to be manly and are the only ones allowed a successful career.