We have a really fun opportunity for kiddos of all ages in your family and community! 

To mark Equal Pay Day (March 15th) this year, we invite kids and teens to create art that tells us how they feel about the wage gap, which directly undercuts and undervalues the critical work and brilliance of women of color, mothers, and the LGBTQ+ community most acutely. 

Our youngest leaders know what’s right and wrong and what’s fair versus unfair. We want to lift up their voices for Congress and the White House to hear loud and clear, so we will be delivering each piece of artwork directly to our leaders in DC!

>>> Since our movement is stronger when we all win, everyone who submits artwork will receive this FREE equal pay sticker sheet from us! 

Screen Shot 2022-02-24 at 11.06.03 AM.png

ART CONTEST details & guidelines:

• The (extended) deadline to submit artwork is now Thursday, March 10th, 2022 at midnight EST. All artwork should be uploaded HERE. Please upload a high resolution photo of your entry that is well-lit and in focus. We recommend not zooming in as you take the photo, as this reduces the quality and resolution.
   
• We welcome drawings, paintings, collages, photography, digital art, and even 3-D sculptures and dioramas! We suggest that 2-D artwork is at least 8.5 x 11 inches (standard printer paper). Please see the prompts below to help get you started!
   
• Each entrant will receive a pay equity-themed sticker sheet as a token of our appreciation! Your sticker sheet will arrive by early April.
   
• One (1) pay equity champion from each age group will be selected to receive special recognition and fun age-appropriate activist gear – a book for learning and growing, picked by MomsRising staff, and a notebook for dreaming up big plans to spark change. Each pay equity champions' parents/guardians will be contacted on March 15th and these prizes will arrive by early April, along with the sticker sheet.
   
• The age groupings are: 0-3, 4-7, 8-11, 12-15, and 16-18 years old.
   
• To mark Equal Pay Day on March 15th and celebrate the next generation of change makers for pay equity, we will showcase youth artwork on our blog and social media channels throughout the day.
   

COLORING SHEET FOR KIDS AGED 0-3 (optional):

• If it's helpful for your littlest artists (ages 0-3), please download this coloring sheet for their entry!

  Screen Shot 2022-02-20 at 4.53.10 PM.png

  

   

PAY EQUITY FACTS:

• As a whole, women of all races in the United States are paid 17% less than men, making 83 cents for every dollar paid to men. The wage gap cannot be explained by anything other than gender and race-based discrimination, along with a heavy dose of bias against caregivers.
   
• Equal Pay Day is on March 15th because in order to make what men earned in 2021 alone, women have to work all of 2021 and until March 15th in 2022.
   
• For every dollar paid to white fathers, moms are paid the following due to structural racism and sexism:
  • Latina moms: 46 cents
  • Native American moms: 50 cents
  • Black moms: 53 cents
  • White moms: 71 cents
  • Asian American & Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander moms: 90 cents
     
• LGBTQ+ people also face hiring and pay discrimination, particularly transgender women of color. Cisgender people are typically paid 32% more. All of these statistics are not okay and certainly not equitable, but in order to fight for pay equity, we have to know the facts.
   
• To reach pay equity, we need Congress to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act because pay and salary transparency, along with discontinuing the use of salary history in the hiring process, will go a long way in closing the wage gap! Studies also show that raising the minimum wage to $15/hr and instituting a national paid family and medical leave policy would help close the wage gap.
   

CREATIVE PROMPTS:

To get your creative juices flowing, consider these prompts and questions...

• How does the wage gap and unequal pay make you feel? 
• What do you want to tell Congress and President Biden about (un)equal pay?
• If all people were paid equally, how would that help kids and families?
• Why is equal pay important to you?
• What do we need to do to reach pay equity?
• If you were designing a protest sign for equal pay, what would it look like?

>>> DON'T FORGET to upload your artwork HERE by Thursday, March 10th at midnight EST!