Campaign aims to add “woman-made” to the dictionary
GEORGETOWN TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) — When employees with Wolverine Boots asked people in Brooklyn, New York, in a new campaign video to describe the structure that connects their borough to Manhattan, they all used the word “man-made,” and were surprised to hear that a woman actually led the construction of the bridge.
Emily Warren Roebling ended up guiding construction when the chief engineer, her husband, got sick.
Olivia Mashak, the senior brand marketing specialist for Wolverine Boots, only recently learned about Roebling’s contributions and joined the effort her company started to give everyone the right words to describe structures like the Brooklyn Bridge; “woman-made.”
Mashak led a conversation in a Jenison High School business class this week, explaining the woman-made campaign to students, which is all about instilling confidence in girls and women during Women’s History Month.
“We spent about two years coming up with this campaign.. It all started with this insight that women have significantly less confidence than men until their mid-40s. We’re highlighting the contributions of amazing women so we can inspire the next generation of women,” she said.
Learn about Grand Rapids’ women legends through walking tour
For those who think the word man-made is sufficient, Mashak said had this to say:
“There’s definitely the ‘Why do we need the ‘woman-made?’ question. We’re totally aware that it’s one step at a time, so this is our way of saying women can do anything they want, whether that’s in the skilled trades, which is obviously Wolverine’s passion point, but any career,” she said. “They’re just as capable as men and it starts here… I think if we eventually said ‘human-made,’ that would be great, but like I said, one step at a time, let’s talk about it and start the conversation.”
Studies show the U.S. is going to have a 6.5 million skilled trades jobs deficit in the next decade, and only 10% of the skilled trades workforce is women. Mashak and her team believe their campaign can help.
“Words matter, right? There’s a reason why, when you picture a CEO, what do you picture? They’re probably gonna say ‘a white man.’ What do you picture for a nurse? They’re probably gonna say ‘a female.’ Those stereotypes exist for a reason. It came from somewhere. So trying to level that and say, gender aside, you can do any job you want,” she explained.
The petition to add “woman-made” to the dictionary can be found online here.
Wolverine created a coloring book, featuring images of women who have contributed to various inventions and projects throughout history, like the fire escape, and will distribute it to schools in the Greater Grand Rapids area.
In her grandfather’s footsteps: Printer continues family legacy
Wolverine will also donate 25% of proceeds from any women’s purchase on wolverine.com to Girls Garage. Girls Garage is a nonprofit design and construction school for girls ages 9 to 18 with classes in carpentry, welding, architecture and activist art.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com.
