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Emma Gray

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Batgirl PSA: Vintage Ad Shows the Superhero Defending the Equal Pay Act

Posted: 06/12/2012 3:27 pm

As a child I obsessively watched re-runs of the 1960s live-action "Batman" television series and sang along with the theme song. I also idolized the show's female characters -- Batgirl and Catwoman. So imagine my surprise and delight when this PSA, first posted on Sociological Images, began making the Internet rounds, and I learned that Batgirl not only has an awesome purple uniform, but is totally in favor of equal pay for women.

The PSA cropped up again over this past weekend in honor of the 49th anniversary of the Equal Pay Act, passed in 1963. The legislation was intended to end gender-based wage discrimination, and this PSA was spreading the equal pay for equal work mantra. In the words of Robin, "Holy act of Congress!"

The ad depicts Batman and Robin getting themselves into a bit of a pickle -- just the usual tied-up-as-a-bomb-is-about-to-go-off sort of scenario. Batgirl rushes in to save them, but first she spouts some knowledge about the gender wage gap: "I've worked for you a long time, and I'm paid less than Robin! Same job, same employer means equal pay for men and women!"

You tell 'em, Batgirl.

WATCH: Batgirl Stands Up For Equal Pay

 

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As a child I obsessively watched re-runs of the 1960s live-action "Batman" television series and sang along with the theme song. I also idolized the show's female characters -- Batgirl and Catwoman. S...
As a child I obsessively watched re-runs of the 1960s live-action "Batman" television series and sang along with the theme song. I also idolized the show's female characters -- Batgirl and Catwoman. S...
 
 
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Cranmer1549
Always bet on black.
02:25 PM on 07/25/2012
Robin is Batman's side-ride (at least according to Adam West). That's why he gets paid more than Batgirl.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
BigWillyG
06:23 PM on 06/13/2012
I feel like that commercial needed Joel, Tom Servo and Crow.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
florenzfan
Illegitimate Father of our Nation.
12:58 PM on 06/13/2012
For a fair and honest job review, refer to the 10 best and 10 worst Bat-girl moments.
Achilles Blue
Buy a gun now!
08:50 AM on 06/13/2012
Bat-girl doesn't fight crime as much,she's less productive,she hasn't invested in the bat-cave,bat-mobile,or many need utility belt gadgets,Bat-girl is even less productive then Robin and tends to always needs to be saved by Bat-man.Yet Bat-girl deserves the same pay as Batman?..lol Maybe if Bat-girl really did all of what Bat-man does she could get what Bat-man has earned and deserves.
01:38 PM on 06/13/2012
She wasn't asking for the same pay as Batman, she was asking for the same pay as Robin. The PSA identifies Batman as the 'employer'. Just to clarify........
Achilles Blue
Buy a gun now!
02:11 PM on 06/13/2012
OH ! ,I didn't watch just read.But wait Robin was working by Bat-man's side daily and for longer. Bat-girl just came to work when she pleased it seems,lol,she didn't even do half of what Robin did let alone Bat-man.How many shows even had Bat-man and Robin saving Bat-girl?lol So she comes to work and the guys have to fix her mistakes lol.Equal pay?,Bat-girl should of been fired.....wow.
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HUFFPOST COMMUNITY MODERATOR
Callyson
Trying to come up with a new creative microbio
02:34 AM on 06/13/2012
Love it!
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
ladybost
a woman who loves her country
02:28 AM on 06/13/2012
women, still fighting for basic rights years later
sully1yanks
New York Yankees Fan
12:13 AM on 06/13/2012
Batgirl still looks hot in that tight outfit, I'd give her a well deserved raise.
12:51 PM on 06/13/2012
What, exactly, do her looks and "tight outfit" have to do with her deserving better pay? Or is this just more snarky sexism, focusing solely on a woman's attractiveness and how she can provide pleasure to you (visually or otherwise), rather than her actual capabilities/intelligence/etc?
07:07 PM on 06/13/2012
Sully lives to take women down a peg...which explains the rest of his nickname. ;)
06:57 PM on 06/13/2012
Exhibit A.
10:41 PM on 06/12/2012
Just curious.....

Are the women that complain about lower pay in Right To Work states?
02:55 PM on 06/13/2012
No, they're all over the world-- except, apparently, some parts of SouthEast Asia and a few African nations, where men are paid as badly as women ;-)

In the "developed" world, however, the US is particularly bad.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
nycagnes
09:51 PM on 06/12/2012
Forty years later and we are still not getting equal pay!
HUFFPOST SUPER USER
sdx203
09:18 PM on 06/12/2012
CATWOMAN was a criminal. And BATGIRL (why was she a girl and not a woman?) had to be poured into her uniform. But it was a great PSA!
08:11 PM on 06/13/2012
The "girl" part came from her age and made her less intimidating to male readers/audiences. In the 1950s, there was a Batwoman, but she was made in order to refute the rumors that Batman and Robin were lovers - she fought to get Batman's attentions and marry him (as all women did, apparently). Batgirl was also 14 or 15 when she started fighting crime.
HUFFPOST SUPER USER
sdx203
08:40 PM on 06/13/2012
Nice to see somebody else besides myself (and Sheldon and the Big Bang bunch) still enjoys the comics!