Okay, so Gillibrand didn't actually say, "More fashion for all!" But New York's most fiery senator did chat it up at the Women's Wear Daily Apparel & Retail CEO Summit and make some pretty heavy demands — like upping the percentage of women in the senate to more than half. "We wouldn’t be spending time debating contraception and all the craziness of the last Congress," she said. "We’d be focusing on the economy and job creation, and all the priorities that people really need Congress to focus on." Amen, sister.
Aside from ushering ladies into Washington, Gillibrand has a couple of other notions concerning the economy and employment — and it has to do with fashion. Because the fashion industry is such a huge force in creating jobs for New York State, Gillibrand understands that recognizing the people in fashion, not to mention the $1.6 billion in tax revenue they bring, is an important part of her role as senator. She spoke about how she aims to foster emerging brands, as well as help make the import process for smaller labels less painful.
Another point the senator made: Even in 2013, there still exists a major gap between wages for men and women. She cited the age-old women-receive-77-cents-to-every-$1-a-man-gets fact, but then broke it down even further. A Latino only gets 63 cents and an African-American gets 71 cents. Shameful. But she has a solution: Hire more women. "When women are on corporate boards, those companies actually perform better — there are higher returns on investment," she said.
So, wait, this is Gillibrand's solution to our economic woes? Support fashion, pay women equally and place them in higher-powered positions, and turn the Senate mostly female? Hrm. Sounds like she's been reading R29's 2013 to-do list. (WWD)