#PovertyIsSexist: Celebrities Are Calling Out Gender Inequality In A Letter To World Leaders & It’s So Inspiring

International charity ONE has been publishing open letters to world leaders as part of its #PovertyisSexist campaign for four years and this year, more than 150 influential leaders in entertainment, activism, business, and beyond have banded together to sign the letter in support.

The letter explains that “there is nowhere on earth where women have the same opportunities as men, but the gender gap is wider for women living in poverty. Poverty is sexist. And we won’t stand by while the poorest women are overlooked.”

It goes on to tell world leaders, “You have the power to deliver historic changes for women this year. From the G7 to the G20; from the African Union to your annual budgets; we will push you for commitments and hold you to account for them.”

Stars who have signed include Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Mindy Kaling, Amy Poehler, Rashida Jones, Caitriona Balfe, Connie Britton (who wore the sweatshirt above to the Golden Globes, though not without controversy) and more. Everyone’s favorite couple Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds are on there, at least three actors from the cast of Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman, Letitia Wright, and Danai Gurira) have signed, and some younger stars like Zendaya and Yara Shahidi have also put their names down.

It’s nice to see some men’s names on the letter as well, from Reynolds and Boseman to Star Trek star Zachary Quinto to author John Green to co-writer and star of The Big Sick Kumail Nanjiani. Women should not have to fight alone for equality, and having the allyship of influential male figures is encouraging.

The #PovertyisSexist campaign hopes to create change in economic inequality for women, though it goes beyond just the wage gap. According to ONE’s website, women face statistics such as being “legally prevented from working by their husbands” in 18 economies, and “there are over 130 million girls out of school worldwide.” In other words, the campaign wants to shine a light on the intersectionality between gender and socioeconomic status, and how women in developing countries are more likely to bear the biggest burdens.

Michael Elliott, president and CEO of the ONE campaign, pointed out that the problem of poverty for women is so bad that “some 30 countries couldn’t be included [in the second Poverty is Sexist report] because of incomplete information. We’re facing a sexist data crisis–we must have gender disaggregated data in order to know where and how women and girls are being left behind.”

The World Economic Forum reports that while women are responsible for the majority of the world’s agricultural production, they are far less likely than men to own land. They are also less likely to be able to use the Internet than men, which prevents them from using those tools to gain further knowledge and opportunities. Also, only 19 percent of women in low-income countries have bank accounts, compared to over 25 percent of men, meaning women are less able to escape from poverty. The scope of this problem cannot be understated, which is why the support of so many influential figures is crucial to putting pressure on the leaders that can make change.

If you want to sign the letter yourself and join the movement, you can do so on ONE’s website.

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