March 25 – On what was dubbed ‘Equal Pay Day’, members of the US national women’s team met president Joe Biden Wednesday and expressed their ongoing concern over their wage discrimination battle with the US Soccer Federation that has plagued both parties.
In her introductory remarks at the White House, US star Megan Rapinoe, the public face of the festering row, did not mention the USSF by name but did not mince her words saying she felt “devalued, disrespected and dismissed” and that far more work needed to be done to ease the financial gap between men and women.
“I am a member of the LBGTQ+ community, with pink hair, and where I come from, I could have only dreamed I would be standing in the White House,” Rapinoe said. “I am also a professional athlete. I’ve helped, along with all of my teammates here, to win four World Cup championships on behalf of my country, and four Olympic gold medals.
“Despite those wins, I have been devalued, disrespected, and dismissed because I am a woman. I have been told I don’t deserve any more than less, because I am a woman. You see, despite all of these wins, I still am paid less than men who do the same thing I do – for each trophy, each win, each tie, each time I play.”
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