Page 9 - CCCA 295084 Magazine_Summer 2019

{ an exPaT PersPeCTive }

The Winding roAd To

Women’S empoWermenT

By Patricia Osoko

Clicking through the channels the other day, I happened across 2015, women held only 5.7% of positions
the movie “The Battle of the Sexes.” The hairstyles, clothes and on major corporate boards in Mexico, well
below the global average of 14.7%.
2
cars brought me back to my childhood. But what struck me the Yet, there are some encouraging signs.
most were the words being used. Women are assuming positions of author-
ity in government, and Mexico is now
ranked fourth globally for representation
irls were “chicks,” women were They wanted to know all about me, of women in legislature. The mayor of
“broads” or “girls” and racial referenc- what I was doing in southern India, and Mexico City, one of the most important
ges were unrepeatable. Men were “ma- about my husband and two sons. They political positions in the country, is a wom-
cho” and many labeled themselves as “male said they had never imagined that a wom- an. In my offce, half of us are women.
chauvinist pigs” with pride. And, because an could be a business person and lawyer, Here, like in Canada, we still have work
the movie was sponsored by Virginia Slims, that she could travel away from her family to do to make sure we promote women,
I was reminded of the slogan from the ciga- for work, or that she could represent an achieve pay equity and ensure underrep-
rette ads: “You’ve come a long way, baby.” international company in a foreign land. resented groups have a chance to succeed,
When I went to law school, women rep- The conversation touched me because I among other things. However, when I con-
resented about half of my class. The gold had struggled to get ahead for many years sider what it was like in the seventies, and I
medalist in my year was a woman, and we and did not realize how far I had come. refect on that day in India, I am optimistic
mooted and debated and gave advice in the Now I live and work in Mexico City. Be- because “we’ve come a long way, baby.” ❚
student clinics right alongside our male cause the population here is more homoge- Note: The views expressed in this article are
colleagues. I loved law school and the pow- neous than in Canada, most diversity initia- those of the author and not those of her employer.
er of legal knowledge and discipline. tives are focused on women’s equality—and
When we graduated, my female col- we have a way to go. A woman with post-
leagues and I articled, got jobs and con- secondary education in Mexico can expect Patricia Osoko is the Legal Director for ATCO Méxi-
co, where she supports operations in energy infra-
tributed to the profession. Many of these to get paid 66% of what a man earns, 8% structure and modular construction, as well as new
women now run law frms, work in senior lower than the Organisation for Economic growth opportunities. When she is not busy learning
government positions, sit on the bench Co-operation and Development average. In Spanish and dodging Mexico City traffc, Patricia
and on boards, and are corporate leaders. leads Silver Birch Innovations, where she studies
and implements innovation and cultural transforma-
We support ourselves and our families, tion through digital reinvention, policy and process
and although we still don’t make as much restructuring. Connect with her on LinkedIn.
money as our male colleagues, overall,
we’ve made a lot of progress. 1
So I was completely taken aback when
I travelled to India last year. Between
business meetings, I went to an incredible
underground shrine. I was enjoying the
cool temperature and tranquility when a
family approached me to ask if they could
have their picture taken with me.
I was curious: why would anyone want
their picture taken with me, a stranger?
This family—grandmother, mother, sis-
ter, daughters and one young son—told
me they had never seen a woman in a
business suit.

1. https://www.catalyst.org/research/women-in-law/
2. https://www.catalyst.org/research/women-in-the-workforce-mexico/

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