Equality must start at home for all of society to benefit

How can we stop gender equality going backwards?

A recent 3500 word article by Everyday Sexism's founder, Laura Bates, is a bleak read. She provides multiple examples of how women worldwide have taken on increased burdens of domestic responsibility throughout the COVID pandemic. She explores the long-term implications of how the pandemic has turned the clock back decades, drawing on bodies of empirical evidence including from the UN, a Pregnant then Screwed survey and recent University of Sussex research.

As Bates says,

'the greater the equality inflicted on women, the greater the price paid by all society'.

Why should Equality Start at Home?

It's 22nd December. Yesterday was the shortest day of the year. Which means we've passed a 2002 trough. The only way is up now, right? Longer days, more sunlight, better prospects.

Equality Starts at Home believes there is still a long way to go until we get a more equal distribution of domestic labour. We were founded in 2020 after a group of four females (Clare Twelvetrees, Venise Vinegar, Lesley MacNiven and yours truly) joined together, determined to raise awareness of the disproportionate burden that falls on women in the home, and committed to changing behaviours to address this. We've added to our numbers with three strategic advisors (Helen Unwin, Satvinder Misra and Niamh McGarry) and set up a Facebook group (with help from Alle Bloom). We're finishing the year determined to scale up massively in 2021. If you want to get involved, please get in touch.

We've already published our Top Ten tips on how to make your home more equal. Our website is in the process of being further developed.

My year has been a personally very challenging one. I spent six months of it in rented accommodation following a house flood in 2019. My son was diagnosed with an incurable brain tumour. I suffered from a rare facial palsy and have been left with nerve damage and resultant imbalance and deafness. Oh yes, and then COVID and lockdown in amongst this. However, in spite of these challenges I have achieved some major successes too. My National Teaching Fellowship nomination was successful. I was conferred as a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences. And I completed my book which is due for publication in 2021.

I would not have been able to do any of this without support at home.

My family - and especially my partner - have enabled me to reach my potential. My friends have spurred me on. My female networks have kept me going. Having equality at home has been fundamental. I'm one of the lucky ones (although I'm a late bloomer) and I want to help make a difference in other women's lives. Being a co-founder of Equality Starts at Home is my way of contributing to other women's future, to make them better by being more equal.

In December I presented at Dr Sam Collins Aspire un-conference. The conference theme was ReSolve. If we think about this as re-solve - solving problems we have solved before - how can we use this idea to ensure that we continue to make progress with gender equality. We simply cannot afford to slide backwards. It's not just women and girls who benefit from gender equality, everyone does. My conference talk 'The Success of Every Woman is the Inspiration for Another' - adapted from a Serena Williams quote - is how I am trying to live my life. Women need real models - women who can show them how they became successful (however they define that), through facing challenges head on, dealing with adversity and being the voice in the room that speaks up.

Equality or equity?

Be the voice in the room you want to hear.

But we cannot achieve equality alone. We need men to be our allies. We need men and women to challenge inequalities. We need to start having conversations not just about equality, but about equity. If you have privilege of any form, use your platforms to enable those who don't have it to have a more equal chance.

And in the home - look around. If we all start divvying up the dishes, sharing the care and tracking the to-do lists, we all benefit. It's OK to ask for help - it's even better if you notice an over-worked woman needs it and offer to take something off her plate. But not her dinner - she's earned that!