Classified Disparity

 

I'm once again joining Neet, who can be found at Hickydorums.  By now you may know she is our host this month at Art Journal Journey. She has chosen Type as her theme.

Today I'm taking a somber look at Type.  No puns, no clever sayings, no quirky newspaper stories.  I have named this Classified Disparity.

Some of you may have seen the reverse of this leaflet, which has the menu for Merle's where my foodie friend Sally and I went earlier this year.  It appears to have been a real page from The Wichita Eagle's classified section from May 20, 1935.  Although I cannot  guarantee its accuracy, I'm taking it at face value.

Let's look at some of the disparate ads I noticed as I was perusing them.  To get a job, if you were a female, you had to be young, or work sales (and receive a small commission), or be what we now call a nanny, where you make $2.00/week in addition to room and board.

Now let's look at male ads.  Two neat young men can earn $20.00 a week (as opposed to women who can make $3.00-$4.00 commission).

Everywhere I looked I saw disparity.

Then there is the couple sitting on the homes for rent.  They look so happy, but do you actually believe any landlord is going to rent any of these homes to them? 

After all, this is 1935, and they are not even allowed to drink at the same water fountain or sit at a lunch counter in Wichita at that time. 

That's why I found so much disparity in these ads.

For this page, I began by scanning, then cropping the classified ads, as well as the front page of The Eagle.  I tried to size both accordingly, which took forever.  Next, I glued the two images in place, then highlighted some of the ads using a yellow highlighter.  It's a play on Yellow Journalism, a style of newspaper reporting that emphasized sensationalism over facts.   I wrote the word Disparity on a piece of left over cardstock using a Sharpie, which I then colored yellow with the highlighter.  It took me awhile to decide where to place the TH paper dolls, a gift from my friend Sharon.  

Thank you beyond belief for joining Bleubeard and me today to see how times have only marginally changed since 1935.  Women are still paid less than men in most situations.  Women typically take lesser/lower paying jobs because they are either less educated, or because they have low-self esteem.  People of color, including African Americans (blacks), Asian Americans, Latinos, and Native Americans/American Indians are often offered lower paying jobs, even though they are usually harder working individuals than white workers.  There is still much disparity in my country.

Bleubeard and I are delighted you joined us and hope to see you this month at Art Journal Journey with your own take on Type.