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Jennifer Lawrence Asks: "Why Do I Make Less Than My Male Co‑Stars?"
(Getty)
Recently Lena Dunham and Jenni Konner launched their Lenny newsletter, giving the duo behind Girls an online presence that's very (refreshingly) different from celebrity lifestyle newsletters like Goop. In a recent interview, Konner declared, "Our fantasy is we’re building an army of women." And they're getting big names to join that army—they launched the project with an interview with Hillary Clinton, and the third edition (released this morning) features a piece by Jennifer Lawrence, who takes on the gender pay gap issue.
Lawrence's piece, titled "Why Do I Make Less Than My Male Co‑Stars?", comes after the actress found out how much less she was making than her male co-stars during the Sony hack. You'll have to sign up for Lenny to read the whole piece, but here's an excerpt:
It’s hard for me to speak about my experience as a working woman because I can safely say my problems aren’t exactly relatable. When the Sony hack happened and I found out how much less I was being paid than the lucky people with dicks, I didn’t get mad at Sony. I got mad at myself. I failed as a negotiator because I gave up early. I didn’t want to keep fighting over millions of dollars that, frankly, due to two franchises, I don’t need. (I told you it wasn’t relatable, don’t hate me). But if I’m honest with myself, I would be lying if I didn’t say there was an element of wanting to be liked that influenced my decision to close the deal without a real fight. I didn’t want to seem “difficult” or “spoiled.” ... Could there still be a lingering habit of trying to express our opinions in a certain way that doesn’t “offend” or “scare” men?
A few weeks ago at work, I spoke my mind and gave my opinion in a clear and no-bullshit way; no aggression, just blunt. The man I was working with (actually, he was working for me) said, “Whoa! We’re all on the same team here!” As if I was yelling at him. I was so shocked because nothing that I said was personal, offensive, or, to be honest, wrong. All I hear and see all day are men speaking their opinions, and I give mine in the same exact manner, and you would have thought I had said something offensive.
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