Review (PDF) Grace And Grit: My Fight For Equal Pay And Fairness At Goodyear And Beyond
The inspiring story of the woman at the center of the historic discrimination case that inspired the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act--her fight for equal rights in the workplace, and how her determination became a victory for the nationLilly Ledbetter always knew that she was destined for something more than what she was born into--a house with no running water or electricity in the small town of Possum Trot, Alabama. In 1979, when Lilly applied for her dream job at the Goodyear tire factory, she got the job--one of the first women hired at the management level. Nineteen years after her first day at Goodyear, Lilly received an anonymous note revealing that she was making thousands less per year than the men in her position. When she filed a sex-discrimination case against Goodyear, Lilly won--and then heartbreakingly lost on appeal. Over the next eight years, her case made it all the way to the Supreme Court, where she lost again. But Lilly continued to fight, and became the namesake of Barack Obama's first official piece of legislation as president. A winning memoir and a powerful call to arms, Grace and Grit is the story of a true American icon.
Paperback: 288 pages
Publisher: Three Rivers Press; 1/27/13 edition (February 26, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0307887944
ISBN-13: 978-0307887948
Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.6 x 8 inches
Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (62 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #533,582 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #140 in Books > Law > Specialties > Labor Law #1963 in Books > History > Americas > United States > African Americans > Discrimination & Racism #2128 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Sociology > Race Relations
This book recounts the odyssey of Lilly Ledbetter, a lady from Alabama who picked cotton in the rural South as a little girl and then grew up to become the spokesperson for Equal Pay for Equal Work. As it turns out, after working for Goodyear for nearly twenty years she discovered that her pay was significantly lower than that of her male counterparts. Many of whom had treated her horrendously throughout her tenure at the Gadsden Goodyear plant. She took her case to court and discovered how mighty the powers of corporate America can be. I'm still reeling from the shock of learning that my law school days trial skills professor, Judge John Ott, initially granted Goodyear's request for a summary judgement in her case. It seems so contrary to his demeanor and decency. And I find that her description of Jay St. Clair, the Goodyear defense attorney, to be very accurate. As he's quite gregarious and friendly, but nonetheless a very economically minded supply side corporate defense attorney. Anyway, her story is a true example of how perseverance for justice can triumph in our country, even when the Supreme Court comes down with such a ridiculous verdict as it did in her case. Since thankfully, President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Act into law ensuring that future generations won't fall victim to the same type of twisted rulings as Lilly Ledbetter faced on appeal. (Sorry, but in this case one cannot remain unbiased as her story is one of the most solid cases of pay discrimination I've ever heard of.) The book isn't the most fluid read, but it is nonetheless a very informative and a very inspiring read. I found my eyes welling up with tears throughout the book. There are elements of Southern Culture in the book, such as the tense relationship between Lilly and her Mother.
This is a well-written, gripping memoir (until you get to the yawn-inducing legal stuff at the end ;-}) of an earnest American woman's life & times: from her childhood to her yearned-for high school sweetheart marriage & adjustments + kids + that crazy isolated too young & not enough money motherhood, on into the '70s when she tries her hand at tax preparation & with her affinity for numbers rapidly rises to office manager & then area manager.Still, the Goodyear plant in Gadsden, Alabama was THE place most everyone in that area wanted to work at cuz it meant a better, steadier way of life (a myth cuz layoff rumors were frequent & used to keep workers 'in line') even if the process of making tires was a major hazard to workers' health no matter their gender which was, of course, 100% male. However, those males' attitude toward this uppity blonde (who was no ditz... she'd just had no brothers to contend with!) for taking one of their jobs & then expecting to supervise 'em... well... that just wasn't right, so... almost to a man they turned that plant into a gender hostile workplace.I lost count of all the ways those workers, especially her immediate superiors, made her their hazing, sexual prey upon whom they acted out (with impunity, mind you!) their own perceived fears & frustrations with management, women/wives in general, & orders from higher up.It took all of Lilly Ledbetter's career there, much of her marriage & most of her health to survive the obstacle course they put her through, even as other supervisors were handing her awards. It all culminated when a worker ahead of her let a piece of machinery close behind him, trapping her beneath it, unable to release herself until he chose.
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