Professional antifeminist Phyllis Schlafly – perhaps best known for her fervent opposition to the Equal Rights Amendment – seems to have been channeling the manosphere in a column she published yesterday on the issue of “paycheck fairness.” Turns out she thinks such fairness is actually a bad idea, because ladies love marrying rich guys more than they love earning money.
According to Schlafly, equal pay messes with the fundamental female desire for “hypergamy” – that favorite manosphere buzzword – and undermines marriage:
[H]ypergamy … means that women typically choose a mate (husband or boyfriend) who earns more than she does. Men don’t have the same preference for a higher-earning mate.
While women prefer to HAVE a higher-earning partner, men generally prefer to BE the higher-earning partner in a relationship. This simple but profound difference between the sexes has powerful consequences for the so-called pay gap.
Suppose the pay gap between men and women were magically eliminated. If that happened, simple arithmetic suggests that half of women would be unable to find what they regard as a suitable mate.
Indeed, Schlafly argues, women love marrying men who earn more than them so much that when the pay gap is eliminated some of them just won’t marry at all. Which is apparently the end of the world, or something.
The pay gap between men and women is not all bad because it helps to promote and sustain marriages. …
In two segments of our population, the pay gap has virtually ceased to exist. In the African-American community and in the millennial generation (ages 18 to 32), women earn about the same as men, if not more.
It just so happens that those are the two segments of our population in which the rate of marriage has fallen the most. Fifty years ago, about 80 percent of Americans were married by age 30; today, less than 50 percent are.
So it’s not enough that most people end up getting married; civilization will crumble if more than half of them don’t marry before the age of 30!
And so, she suggests, if American women knew what was good for them they would be begging for employers pay them even less, relative to men.
The best way to improve economic prospects for women is to improve job prospects for the men in their lives, even if that means increasing the so-called pay gap.
Hmm. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m pretty sure that Schlafly – a best-selling author and popular speaker on the right – didn’t send back any of her royalties or speaking fees so that she would feel more like a woman and her late husband would feel like more of a man, and I doubt she’s doing so now, as a widow. She’s also been unmarried for more than twenty years. Coincidence?
NOTE TO MEN’S RIGHTS ACTIVISTS: When you find yourself agreeing with Phyllis Schlafly on pretty much anything (beyond, say, the existence of gravity, the need for human beings to breathe air, and other widely accepted beliefs of this sort), this is an indication that perhaps your movement isn’t the progressive, egalitarian movement that you like to pretend that it is, and that in fact it is sort of the opposite.
That said, I should also note that Schlafly’s notion of “hypergamy,” while sexist and silly, is decidedly less obnoxious than the version peddled by PUAs and websites like A Voice for Men — congrats, Men’s Human Rights Activists, you’re actually worse than Phyllis Schlafly!
She just uses the term to indicate a desire to marry up. For many manospherians, by contrast, “hypergamy” doesn’t just mean marrying up; it means that women are fickle, unfaithful monsters who love nothing better than cuckolding beta males in order to jump into bed with whatever alpha male wanders into their field of vision. (I’m guessing Schlafly hasn’t actually been going through the archives at AVFM or Chateau Heartiste looking for column ideas.) While many MRAs love to complain about hypergamy, many of them also seem to think that it’s unfair that “beta” males with good jobs aren’t automatically entitled to hot wives.
In case anyone is wondering, the actual definition of the word “hypergamy” involves none of that. According to Random House Kernerman Webster’s College Dictionary, the word means “marriage to a person of a social status higher than one’s own; orig., esp. in India, the custom of allowing a woman to marry only into her own or a higher social group.”
That’s it. It refers to the fact of marrying up, not to the desire to marry up, much less to the alleged desire of all twentysomething women to ride the Alpha Asshole Cock Carousel. The manosphere’s new and not-so-improved definition came from a white nationalist named F. Roger Devlin.
ANOTHER NOTE: Big thanks to the people who emailed me about this story. If you ever see something you think would make for a good Man Boobz post, send me an email at futrelle [at] manboobz.com. I get a lot of ideas from tips!
Addendum, since I know there’s teenagers at Manboobz and probably lurkers too (and I was teenager extremely recently) – him just being 15 isn’t what I take offense with, and it’s no offense either.
But being 15 and willfully ignorant, and then using it as a defense of that ignorance? That’s wrong.
Hmph, Pinky’s not responding. What should I make him look like?
Pinky,
You already got called out on your tendency to go off on another tangent once your arguments (and I’m using that word very generously) have been refuted. Yet, you do it again with the feminists are racist claim.
I don’t think you’ve read anything a womanist has written. Yes, feminism has often focused too much on white, straight, cis, middle to upper class women and their problems. That’s why some WOC, queer and trans women prefer to identify as womanists. If you think that means womanists agree with anything the MRAs say, you’re an idiot.
Also, do you think MRAs give two shits about poor men, queer men, trans men or MOC? No. They long to go back to the pre-feminist and pre-integration days. They hate any man who doesn’t conform to their archaic version of what a man should be. They tend to oppose anti-poverty programs. They pay lip service to the overly high number of men in prison in the US. Yet, they ignore the racist and classist aspects of our criminal justice system and act as though the deck has stacked against men. In fact, a middle or upper class man is not likely to be imprisoned, particularly if he’s white. Also, MRAs love capitalism and the proliferation of private for profit prisons is a huge factor in our high incarceration rate.
At least feminism is for the most part trying to be more intersectional. The MRM scoffs at the notion.
Have you got any other new tangents now that you’ve failed in your attempt at a “gotcha!” yet again?
Black women do not all collectively share the exact same opinions, dude.
It’s BUFFoonery, and you’re soaking in it.
And on that note:
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA…
>big breath<
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Wrongo, Pinky-pie. You are trolling, which is a very juvenile, immature 15-year-oldish thing to do. And your bullshit is being called out as the childish crap it is. And you are being mocked for it, which you thoroughly deserve. Go up to the top of the page and read what the banner says.
Nobody here is interested in a “discussion” based on tired old anti-woman fallacies. Capisce?
Changing the subject again, Pinky?
Can’t come up with anything to support your first bullshit claims, so to just move on to something else unrelated?
Why don’t you address everyone’s points about Schlafly’s view of marital rape? She is, essentially, condoning it, saying its okay; contrary to what you’re claiming. And what about VAWA and Adele Mercier? Forget about them, or don’t you have a leg to stand on here?
You came on here proclaiming that both Schlafly and feminist want “special protections” for women. You’ve yet to prove that feminists want “special protections” for women.
So what’s with all the ducking and dodging? Don’t have any rebuttals and too much of a coward to admit when you’re wrong?
Apparently, counting coup wasn’t as much fun as Pink expected. We actually counter his claims (no matter how quickly he changes them).
You guys are so mean. All he wanted was to be able to show off about how he stood up to the evil feminazis to the other boys, and you just had to crush his dream, didn’t you?
Heartless Bitches R Us.
Don’t cry, Pinky. I’ve immortalized you.
I… You… I… You…
Those are my words!
In a comic!
By someone who isn’t me!
This is the single most awesome thing.
Most awesome thing.
And it’s Pierre!
Oh my god that’s just… Wow. Uhm. Wow.
I will write all the russian battle poetry you could ever desire from here on till eternity, Katz. All of it.
Hail Stalin wait no no, no I swear, that came out wrong.
You two make a great team!
I guess that is the first Fibinachi script I’ve done, isn’t it? I was being a lazy slacker for most of the past few months when you were being so funny.
Seconding WWTH here!
Fibinachi has never been Pierre’d before? That’s astounding.
(Almost as astounding as Chrome’s autocorrect not objecting to “Pierre’d”)
Yoohoo, a new Pierre! And thirding WWTH.
Can’t believe I missed all the trolls on this thread.
Does this mean Pierre’s working for Google now … or that he’s infiltrated them? 0_0
Pinky: According to black women, feminists are pretty racist.
Half marks for being sort of right.
Full marks deducted for failure to cite, and abandonment of previous topics.
Which means you have, when all is said and done, earned negative marks.
LOL. Been doing the holiday thing with friends and family. I check back and these lame adults are still talking about me. #getalife.
Going to sort this experience with other interactions on the net with feminists to include on research paper on how irrational modern feminists are. Thanks for help!
Aww! Are you a class of sociology students?
I made you a gingery skater kid; I hope that’s OK. But I can change how you look if you like.
Seriously, this makes me so delighted. Will you share your paper with us? Please please please? Or an excerpt? Or at least tell us who you’re going to quote? I know I haven’t said much in this thread but you’re welcome to quote me talking about vagina toasters.
The unintentional irony is hilarious. A hashtag. Really?
But anyway, Pinky, you have my permission to quote anything I’ve said here, too. Good luck, kid; you’re gonna need it.
I feel so sorry for Pinky’s teacher.
Last word of advice, kid: Don’t use hashtags in your paper. It’s not something that those who wish to have their work taken seriously use.
Awww, Pinky took time out of his busy busy life to check up on us. Isn’t that sweet?
I kind of like the way Katz begs.