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The 51% Minority: How Women Still Are Not Equal and What You Can Do About It
 
 
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The 51% Minority: How Women Still Are Not Equal and What You Can Do About It [Hardcover]

Lis Wiehl (Author)
2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)


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Book Description

February 27, 2007
“Lis Wiehl tells us where the law protects us, and where it is letting us down. And as a bonus she gives us the tools to make change happen! If you care about where we are going, you have to read this book.”
–Rita Cosby, Emmy Award-winning TV host

Women make up 51% of the American population, yet still aren’t treated equally to men in areas that matter most. In this provocative new book, Lis Wiehl, one of the country’s top federal prosecutors, reveals the legal and social inequalities women must face in their daily lives–and provides a “Tool Box” for dealing with a variety of issues. From boardroom to courtroom, from pregnancy to contraception, from unequal pay to domestic violence, women are more often than not handed the short end of the stick.

• A woman earns seventy-three cents for every dollar a man makes.
• The law labels pregnancy a “disability.”
• Domestic violence remains the single biggest threat of injury to women in America.
• The federal government continues to increase funding for abstinence-only education, even though it’s proven to put our daughters at greater risk for unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases.
• Health insurance plans are more likely to cover Viagra prescriptions than birth control pills.

What’s worse, we’re also weighed down by a myriad of troubling attitudes: The media bombard us with images of young, perfect-bodied women; acid-tongued commentators label us “feminazi” if we try to claim equal treatment; and the current chief justice of the Supreme Court has a history of opposing legislative and legal attempts to strengthen women’s rights, and questions “whether encouraging homemakers to become lawyers contributes to the common good.”

Why are powerful women viewed with consternation while powerful men instill respect? Why is it that for every ten men in an executive, decision-making role in this country, there is only one woman in that same role? Why do our federal courts continue to be stacked with male judges even though women receive more than half of all law degrees? And why shouldn’t a woman be president?

Enough! Women are not equal in our society or under our laws and the remedy is quite simple: Besides being the majority of the population, we also control the economy, spending 80 percent of every discretionary dollar, and given that 54 percent of voters are female, we can swing an election. With our numbers we can do something about it.

This is a critical moment: We can either take the road toward equality or allow ourselves to be driven further away from fair treatment. The 51% Minority is a clarion call to the silent majority to take a stand . . . before it’s too late.


Editorial Reviews

Review

Advance praise for The 51% Minority

“Frequently we hear that young women don’t realize how many battles have been fought to guarantee them the rights they enjoy today. In The 51% Minority, Lis Wiehl recalls that history and points out what is left to be done for American women to achieve full equality.”
–Geraldine A. Ferraro, former vice presidential candidate

“Yes! Finally! Here is the hidden history of the women’s movement in America. The political and legal drama in these pages is at the heart of any true history of American civil rights.”
–Juan Williams, NPR, senior correspondent

“With wit, eloquence, and insight, Lis Wiehl explores what women need to do–personally and politically–to achieve equal treatment.”
–Deborah L. Rhode, director, Stanford Center on Ethics

“An important discussion of the many ways in which women in the United States remain unequal in the twenty-first century. In clear, understandable language, and with compelling accounts of real women’s stories, this book is a must-read for anyone concerned about women’s full and equal participation in our society.”
–Lenora M. Lapidus, director, Women’s Rights Project, ACLU

“Equal rights for all should be non-negotiable. Lis Wiehl shows why we as women must stop taking no for an answer and exactly how to do just that. The 51% Minority should be in every woman’s house, whether homemaker, CEO, or both.”
–Barbara Corcoran, co-author of Use What You’ve Got

“A serious and timely wake-up call. Wiehl explains how many of our treasured rights are under attack and how we must respond. Every woman in America should read this book.”
–Catherine Crier, anchor, Court TV and bestselling author

About the Author

Lis Wiehl is one of the nation’s most prominent trial lawyers and highly regarded commentators. The author of Winning Every Time, she is also the legal analyst on the Fox News Channel and Bill O’Reilly’s co-host and sparring partner on Radio Factor. A graduate of Harvard Law, Wiehl has never lost a case. She lives with her husband and two children in Westchester County, New York.

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Ballantine Books (February 27, 2007)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0345469216
  • ISBN-13: 978-0345469212
  • Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 1 x 9.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,249,881 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lis Wiehl is a Harvard Law School graduate and former federal prosecutor. A widely popular legal analyst and commentator for the Fox News Channel, Wiehl appears regularly on The O'Reilly Factor and was co-host with Bill O'Reilly on the widely-syndicated radio show, The Radio Factor, for the past seven years. April Henry has written seven mysteries and thrillers. Her books have been short-listed for the Agatha Award, the Anthony Award, and the Oregon Book Award. Two have been chosen for BookSense. April lives in Portland, Oregon, with her husband and daughter.


 

Customer Reviews

8 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
2.6 out of 5 stars (8 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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8 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars A Very Average Effort That Does Not Help Women, April 18, 2008
This review is from: The 51% Minority: How Women Still Are Not Equal and What You Can Do About It (Hardcover)
Lis Wiehl, a former federal prosecutor and current Fox News Channel analyst, has written "The 51% Minority: How Women Still Are Not Equal and What You Can Do About It." In The "51% Minority," Wiehl chronicles the struggle women have experienced in areas of the workplace, including pay disparity and the "glass ceiling." Further, chapters are devoted to sexual harassment; pregnancy, age, and weight discrimination; issues with marriage and children; contraception and abortion; and violence against women. Wiehl concludes the text with a social compact for women and follows that with an appendix of various resources for women to draw upon. The book is indexed and contains a bibliography complete with references to court rulings.

Lis Wiehl's book follows a pattern as a way to educate its reader. The chapter's main issue is explained, then documents the rights women presently have, and then follows with rights that should be enacted. Last are the author's solutions for that problem. For example, in the third chapter which discusses sexual harassment, several examples are listed. One such instance involved Wiehl herself. She was at a dinner party where a male guest pressed himself into her as she waited for a drink at the bar. In her words, "He was excited to be there, if you know what I mean...." She goes on to say that she did not handle the situation as best as she could (41-42). Another example is that of one of her colleagues, Rita Cosby of MSNBC, who experienced sexual harassment from her supervisor early in her career. While Wiehl mishandled her problem, Cosby confronted her employer and put a stop to it (43-44). Wiehl suggests that whistle-blower rights be restored and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) should ignore the pressure to settle cases out of court and prosecute offenders fully (51-54). She also believes that sexual harassment training be made mandatory and that anonymous tip lines be established so that women can be further supported (58-61).

Similar to the chapter on sexual harassment, other subjects that affect women are thoroughly highlighted and discussed. Chapter one shows how women are underrepresented in areas such as business, government, and the legal system. Chapter two, "Equal Pay," describes the disparity of pay between men and women. Chapter four discusses the spectrum of pregnancy from when (or when not) to tell an employer to working while pregnant, including information on the Family and Medical Leave Act. Age and weight discrimination are discussed in chapter five, complete with examples showing how women have lost their jobs due to not only age and weight, but their looks as well. Here, Wiehl implores women to move against "lookism" and fight against the prevailing "youth-oriented culture" (97-102).

Chapter six is devoted to marriage and divorce. Divorce education is a priority for women since, says Wiehl, "...more than 50 percent of marriages..." end that way (103). Violence against women, chapter seven, runs the gamut from spousal abuse and protective orders to rape and stalking. Chapter eight, entitled "My Body," discusses contraception, abortion, sex education, and fetal rights. Chapter nine concludes the main text calling for women to form a social compact, imploring them to join to end the disparities that women face. Wiehl also encourages women to end the promotion of women as objects, suggesting they stop buying popular magazines that stereotype women. The appendix is titled, "Women's Toolbox," and is an extensive list of resources available to women who find themselves facing the issues discussed in the book.

Though "The 51% Minority" contains valuable information about the plight of women in the United States, it fails to provide viable solutions about how to affect a real change. Lis Wiehl ignores the development of the women's movement throughout the country's history. In Colonial times, women were considered the property of their husbands. Slowly, over the course of three hundred years, women got to where they are today. Is it enough? No. As Wiehl correctly points out, men still run the country, and that is why only a fraction of leaders and judges are women. While she laments laws that are already on the books as being not enforced, her primary solution to problems like wage disparity and age discrimination, however, is more legislation. In further contradiction, while imploring women to "make careful, logical steps toward a divorce settlement," she suggests, "try[ing] to sweet-talk him into signing property over to you [when the husband fails to allow the wife to keep the house]" (223). Is this the type of empowerment Wiehl wants for women?

Moreover, in an attempt to paint a gloomy picture of the status of women in 2007 (when the book was published), the author has to reach back to the 1970s for an example of "lookism" (84-87). One must ask if there are not more recent examples of discrimination to examine. If not, maybe the situation for women is improving today and that the system in place is actually showing progress? Wiehl also fails to mention that her employer, Fox News Channel, hires young, attractive women to appear on its broadcasts. Is there discrimination there?

From an academic viewpoint, the reader must be skeptical about the information presented in the book. Though an extensive bibliography is given, details about where to find specific sources is lacking. For example, it is unknown where she obtained the information about Rita Cosby's sexual harassment. Further, some statistical information may be questionable. She used an outdated formula (number of marriages divided by the number of divorces) to arrive at the recent divorce rate when Wiehl stated that "...more than 50 percent of marriages end in divorce" (103). Though mildly informative, "The 51% Minority" should have been less about what is wrong and more about women uniting behind a common cause and exploiting their majority status.
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5.0 out of 5 stars the 51% Minority, December 4, 2011
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This book was written for woman But i found it eye opening. That i was not totaly aware that how wome in the work place were treated so badly. After i read this book I have now been an avocate for woman right
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9 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars Don't call me a victim, November 17, 2007
This review is from: The 51% Minority: How Women Still Are Not Equal and What You Can Do About It (Hardcover)
Harv Ecker says you can be a victim or you can be wealthy... pick one! Women like Lis keep perpetuating the false reality that women are victims. Why? Because it's a money maker. Even though the Violence Against Women Act was made gender neutral and even Joe Biden admitted that men were at least 33% of the victims of domestic violence, Lis shakes her head and calls that claim ridiculous.

What I find ridiculous is anybody that purports to represent ME and my gender, but refuses to study facts and use logic. What really angers me is the number of women writers who have messages of empowerment and yet, publishers sign authors like Lis who can't argue her way out of a paper bag. I challege Lis to go head to head with me on Fox and see who ends up representing American women better.
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