NCJW Honors Lilly Ledbetter
At its gala luncheon on Monday, NCJW proudly presented Lilly Ledbetter with its Woman Who Dared Award in recognition of her tireless efforts on behalf of fair pay for women. The unassuming Ledbetter said the last thing she expected in her life was to become a “poster child” for fair pay — but that’s what happened when she lost her Supreme Court case against Goodyear Tire and Rubber. She decided to become far more than a poster child, and put herself at the service of the fight for fair pay for women — testifying before Congress, buttonholing legislators, and doing endless media interviews to use her experience on behalf of others. After losing her case against Goodyear when the Supreme Court ruled she should have filed her complaint before she could possibly have known of the pay discrimination against her, she stood to gain nothing for herself. But she fought for the rest of us, and finally saw victory with the passage of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act — the first bill signed into law by President Obama after his inauguration. NCJW members gave her the rousing ovation she deserved.
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