
Most Americans have no idea that there is an issue with gender price discrimination in America. As Americans, we never think about how much we are paying for products pin pointed to our gender compared to how much our opposite sex is spending for very similar products. Whether a man is comparing prices to female specific merchandise or woman is comparing prices to male specific merchandise. Through numerous social and economic studies, it has been proven that in America it in fact costs more to be a woman (Sayers). By comparing many products and services, from clothing to hair care, 42% of the time women are paying more for the same or similar items, compared to the price men are being charged. Although gender price gaps may not seem like a big deal for men or seem to affect men--it does, any type of discrimination or inequality affects everyone in America.  Women are often discriminated against solely because they are female, they are seen as the weaker sex, emotional, and incapable of fending for themselves. When in fact, women are the primary caregivers for their families and are expected to keep the family in order and get the job done. By the 21st century, one would expect to see equality of the sexes but that is not the case. Gender price discrimination is one of many disadvantages for women in America. A disadvantage that holds women back financially and stops them from being able to reach their full potential. Financial burdens keep women wondering whether or not they will have enough money to pay for the things they need in order to live a normal life in America. On average, women are paid less than men for holding the same jobs and positions, some people may believe that gender price gaps is a small and irrelevant matter, it is quite the opposite. The fight to end gender price discrimination is a piece to completing the puzzle for gender equality, and you can't complete a puzzle if you do not have all the pieces. So how can America ever expect to reach equality of the sexes if we can't see all of the issues that contribute to the overall problem? Lowering the prices for female gender specific goods and services would allow women to save thousands of dollars in their lifetime. 

Putting a stop to gender price discrimination should be important to all Americans because it would help to reach a long sought out journey for equality of the sexes, and allow women to advance financially. 

Many Americans may not enjoy the privilege of shopping, but when we do shop, I believe we can all appreciate a sale. From 5% to 50% off, a sale is a sale. No one wants to pay more than they have to for items they want, need, or desire. Sadly, in America women pay an average of 7% more for the same products and services than men do. Although 7% may not seem like a significant percentage of money being spent by women, over the course of a year women are spending over $1,350 more than men when it comes to purchasing similar goods and services (Jacobs). Gender price gaps have been an issue in the United States since the mid-1900s. Since then, prices for goods and services have only increased and will continue to increase. Leaving women to spend thousands of dollars more than men over the course of their lifetime due to overpriced gender specific products. Gender should not affect the method of which retailers price their goods and services. In a time where women are earning 79 cents for every 1 dollar men earn, it seems somewhat insulting to suggest to women that they should buy the male version of products in order to save money (Roth). In no way do I believe that men should have to pay more for their products in order to settle the dispute, but rather, there should be a middle ground to reach equality. 

A study was done by the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) comparing more than 800 gender specific products to see if women do in fact pay more for products than men. The study showed that 42% of the time women are spending more money for relatively the same products than men are. They compared items like dry cleaning services, children's toys, and personal grooming products and came to the conclusion that women are paying on average, 7% more than men for similar products (Jacobs). An example of the major differences is the comparison of a red and pink scooter. The red "boy" scooter was priced at $24.99 while the pink "girl" scooter was priced at $49.99 (Paquette). This gender price gap was found on Target.com and when asked the reason for the incongruity, a Target spokesperson blamed the issue on a system error and had no further comments. The price of the pink scooter was brought down to $24.99 within the following 24 hours. In another case study, which comes from a video produced by television personality and American journalist, Anderson Cooper on his show Anderson Live. This video experiment contained no bias, it was a straight forward experiment completed by Anderson Coopers staff to test the hypothesis of whether or not women really do get charged more for certain goods and services. The video featured a married couple shopping at a local store and buying a variety of similar men's and women's products. As the couple shopped, they compared the prices of their items and then proceeded to checkout. After checking out, the husband and wife compared their receipts and the wife had spent over $32 more on the female version of products than her husband did on the male version (Do Women Pay More). The couple also went to a local dry cleaner and hair salon and requested the same services, the cleaning of white button down shirt at the dry cleaners, and a one inch hair cut at the salon. The wife ended up being charged more for her services each time. This experiment was a real life example of what women go through during an average shopping trip. Imagine being a woman and having to spend an extra $32 on your products compared to what a man would pay every time you needed to buy shampoo or go to the dry cleaner. 

Even though there are several supporting evidence and statistics to show that gender price gaps are a real issue for American women and men, there are still some people who are blind to the significance of the problem. In an article written by a journalist from the Washington Post, the author discusses the gender price gap between similar men and women products and why women should always buy men products. The article compares the prices of several different retail items that are aimed to be gender specific. Items like deodorant, razors, and clothing, the author goes on to tell women that they should stop complaining about high priced female products and result to purchasing the male equivalent of the product that is cheaper. In another article written by Liam Fay, an Irish journalist he expresses his opinion on gender based pricing. Saying that people who think that gender price gaps are a real problem must be a feminist and that has to be the only reason they even care about the issue. He compares gender based pricing to the civil rights movement, accusing feminists of making a big deal out of an irreverent situation by choosing to use words like "discrimination" (Pink Tax'). Fay then goes on to suggest that the blame should be placed on women. That women desire to have to specific brands and services that are more expensive in the female version than the male version. He ends by saying if women don't want to pay more for their products that they should get over themselves and buy the cheaper male version. Having a mindset like this will never solve any problems in America, it is not a solution but rather a quick and temporary fix. Telling women to buy the male version of a product as a way to save money is unbecoming. Women are not the problem here, women do not choose to buy the more expensive version of gender specific products because they want to, women purchase these items because it is what retailers provide for them. As Americans, we need to stop telling and expecting women to comply with the unofficial rules made up by society. As an alternative, we need to work towards changing the rules, realize that women and men are equals, and stop expecting women to compromise when it comes to them requesting change. 

Women have always been seen as less than men and seem to always be fighting for the things that men are simply given. Women face a lot of disadvantages solely based on the fact that they were born female. In America, the average woman is paid less than men for having the same professional jobs, and face many gender roles labeled for women. America has a bias towards women whenever it comes to completing certain tasks or working certain jobs that society have deemed as a man's job. Female employees are typically paid less than male employees who hold the same job titles but there is no valid reason or explanation for why men are paid more. In most cases, neither the man or woman works harder or performs better than the other but the man still maintains the higher salary. Before pay even comes into question, women must go through an interviewing process I can image is very different from a male's interview. Women are discriminated against when applying for certain positions because employers believe that they will waste their time training a woman for a position due to the possibility of her becoming a mother and eventually leaving her job. They will question whether it will be worth their time to hire and train a woman for a position because of the possibility of her being pregnant or becoming pregnant (Women, Pregnancy and Work). I have a hard time believing that employers ever ask their potential male employees if they plan to become fathers. Society treats women as if they can only choose one path, to have a career or to have a family. Assuming that the woman in take the role as the caregiver to the children and stay at home while the man works and provides for the family. Situations like these are why women have a hard time progressing, from discrimination in the workplace to discrimination of gender based pricing, women are constantly at a disadvantage. Setbacks like these make it difficult for women to be independent and create a life for themselves. Women already have a hard time finding jobs, once they finally get a job they are underpaid, and then have to spend their money on overpriced merchandise.  

The problem with gender price discrimination is the obvious-- that women are having to spend an average of $1,350 more a year than men for the same products and services. If gender price gaps were to be terminated, women could use the extra money for more important things, like saving for a car, investing, or saving for college tuition. The bigger concern about gender price discrimination is that it allows inequality of the sexes to take place in such a casual way that no one realizes that it is happening. It is just another dispute where women are being discriminated against, setback, and come second to men. Gender price gaps isn't a so called feminist problem, but an American problem. Inequality affects everyone no matter if it's directly or indirectly. Putting a stop to retailers overpricing female merchandise now will be one less obstacle women of the future will have to work through. By fighting for fair and equal pricing for gender specific goods and services, we are fighting for equality. If the men and women of America can come together we can work towards ending gender price gaps, and become one step closer to reaching equality of the sexes.

