Around Des Moines

Blondes, brunettes, redheads, and even a few with hair dyed purple, they are single women. They will cook your dinner, wash your linens, and care for you when you’re sick. They can file your papers, file your nails, and file your phone numbers in their massive databases. They will ask you about your life, escort you on a trip, and follow through with a cocktail.

This multitude of single women can be found everywhere. She is the 18-year-old freshman at Iowa State who works in a restaurant. She is the 30-year-old recent divorce and mother who answers consumer inquiries in Council Bluffs. She is the 50-year-old widow who finds herself taking a job cleaning bed pans in an Iowa City hospital. She is the 85-year-old retiree living in a house south of Dubuque. Nationally, 47% of women are single, separated, divorced, or widowed, up from 35% in 1950. Moreover, there are 25% more of these women than there are unmarried men. These are some of the numbers from the Current Population Survey, December 2006, that caught the attention of Women’s Voices. Women Vote (WVWV).

In Iowa, according to the State Data Center, 52.9% percent of unmarried Iowans were women in 2006. This number includes widowed, divorced, or never married individuals. Women, married or not, are older than men in Iowa. In the age bracket of 55-59 years women begin to outnumber men. As for mothers who are single heads of household with children under age 18 years, they have a median income of $22,100. This compares to married heads of household with their own children under age 18 who have a median income of $68,232.

According to the Current Population Survey, 2006, as reported by WVWV and Lake Research Partners, “44% of unmarried women earn less than $30,000 per year.” This gives unmarried women 56 cents to the dollar earned by married men. (In Iowa, the overall gender gap in income is 76 cents to the dollar.) When comparing unmarried women’s mean annual income to that of men, the difference is over $5,500. The report also includes data from a December 2007 GW-Battleground Poll. The report notes, “[w]hereas most voters (58%) describe their current economic situation as either excellent or good…60% of unmarried women describe their economic situation as just fair or poor.”

WVWV is an organization working to promote the political voices of and the economic power held by women collectively, particularly single women. The non-partisan group focuses on research and education. It currently is promoting women’s voices as expressed in blogs. People are encouraged to nominate their favorite female political bloggers. The ten women who have the most nominations on March 21, 2008, will move on to the second round. I was flattered to see that somebody had nominated me. Then I found out that I need to encourage other people to nominate me if I want Around Des Moines to be included in the final round.

M.R. Field is editor of Leading Voices: Iowa, a print publication for women, politics, and change.