Lilly Ledbetter to Deliver May 2 JSU Commencement Address

04/18/2014

Lilly Ledbetter, whose fight for equal pay and women’s rights went all the way to the Supreme Court and resulted in the Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act, will speak at Jacksonville State University's spring commencement on Friday, May 2 at 6:30 p.m. on Burgess-Snow Field at JSU Stadium.

Ms. Ledbetter, a Calhoun County native, filed a sex discrimination suit against her employer, Goodyear, when an anonymous note revealed that she was making thousands less per year than men in her position. She won her case, but lost on appeal. Over the next eight years, the case made its way to the Supreme Court, where the court ruled that she should have filed suit within 180 days of her first unequal paycheck, even though Ledbetter contested she had no way of knowing that she was being paid unfairly at the time. Undaunted by her loss, Ledbetter continued to champion equality and advocate for change. The piece of legislation bearing her name was the first signed by President Barack Obama after he took office. Her story is told in “Grace and Grit: My Fight for Equal Pay and Fairness at Goodyear and Beyond,” which was published in 2012.

JSU's Spring Commencement will be televised on WEAC-TV24 (local Cable One channel 9). It can also be viewed live from a computer on the web via the JSU Television Services website. 

Graduating students needing information may find it on the Registrar's website.

Photo: Lilly Ledbetter (courtesy, www.lillyledbetter.com)