Vintage Batgirl PSA: “It’s no joke, it’s the federal equal pay law!’

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48 years ago tomorrow, the Equal Pay Act was signed into law by President John F. Kennedy to “prohibit discrimination on account of sex in the payment of wages by employers”. To celebrate, check out this PSA from the 60′s starring Batman (Adam Westunidentified actor), Robin (Burt Ward), and Batgirl (Yvonne Craig). Holy discontent Batman!

The ad is unfortunately still relevant. As President Obama pointed out in his press release from last year, at the time the Act was signed, women were paid 59 cents for every dollar earned by men. But today, 48 years later, pay parity remains far from reality, as women in the United States still only earn 77 cents for every dollar earned by men. For women of color, this gap is even wider.

The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act was a good start, but as we all know, there’s much more to be done. You may remember that the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would have expanded the scope of the original 1963 law, failed to pass the Senate back in November. According to the Nation, by some estimates women could lose between $500,000 and $1 million over a forty-year career.

Click here to sign a petition for pay equity.

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