ThirstyFish

Photographed during a Brooklyn photowalk.

In 1954, Vera Rubin was the first astronomer to conclude from astronomical data that galaxies clumped together, rather than being randomly distributed through the universe. However, as a woman, she was not allowed to use the instruments at the Palomar Observatory until 1965 with the excuse that "the facility did not have a women's restroom". In 1963, The Equal Pay Act was passed in order to abolish wage disparity based on gender. Until 1975, women could be excluded from serving on a jury. In some ways, women's rights have come a long way, and in other ways, not so much.

At the time the Equal Pay Act was passed in 1963, there was a 41-cent wage gap on the dollar between men and women. 50 years later, the gender pay gap is far from being "abolished". In 2011, the gender pay gap was 33 cents on the dollar. Beside discrimination, women continue to be victims of violence: One in four college women report surviving rape or attempted rape.

Patriarchy and sexism continues to be dominant in American culture. Women are judged mainly by their desirability to men. And sadly, women also buy into this; Many don't mind "just standing there and looking pretty". Or, as NYC street artist James De La Vega put it: "Beauty magazines make my girlfriend feel ugly". As you might have guessed, I'm almost a radical feminist.