#5SmartReads - March 23, 2023

Diksha works in international development by day tackling some of the most pressing public health issues confronting children. Her IG, An Inspired Day, covers life with her 2 tweens, recent reads, eats, skincare finds and current events. A native of Nepal (by way of Italy and Thailand), she currently resides in New York.

Gender Pay Gap Barely Budged In The Past Two Decades (Axios)

Ladies we're not paying attention.

This recent read on how the gender pay gap has not budged in the last two decades is wholly awful. We've made progress on so many fronts, how are we still not making progress on pay equity? When you look at the wage gap for women of color it is even more stark (Black women earned 70 cents and Hispanic women 65 cents, respectively, to every dollar earned by a white man in 2022).

While Equal Pay day was marked earlier in March, I still am not convinced any real effort is in place to close this gap. Are we willing to wait another 20 years to move the needle on this?

U.S. Launched Pilot Program To Allow Private Sponsorship Of Refugees From Around The World (CBS News)

In a major innovation on refugee resettlement, the US is now allowing "groups of at least five U.S.-based individuals to have the opportunity to sponsor refugees if they raise $2,275 per refugee, pass background checks and submit a plan about how they will assist the newcomers."

While it launched in 2022 limited to Ukrainian refugees, it now includes refugees from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela. After refugee admission rates plummeted under Trump, Biden has yet to make significant progress to return to pre-pandemic levels.

In 2022, the U.S. admitted 25,465 refugees, using only 20% of 125,000 refugee spots allocated by Biden. In the first three months of fiscal year 2023, there's only been 7000 refugees resettled (5% of the annual total target). Take a look at the Welcome.US Program. A decade ago when I volunteered with resettled refugees, it was some of the most fulfilling volunteer work I've done.

In Search Of Stolen Gods At The Met (Nepali Times)

What happens when a beloved community sculpture goes missing and turns up at the Met a decade later?

The fact that the antiquities smuggling business doesn't get more attention and justice still isn't served for so many looted pieces of art is one I have a hard time understanding. Perhaps it's because the countries impacted are far less powerful but it's heartbreaking none the less.

This article details how the Met when it was first founded aggressively pursued antiquities, at times embracing antiquities smuggling as a mainstay of the museum’s sourcing. The Met is an institution my whole family loves, and one that's always amazed us with the breadth of geography covered.

Now walking its halls is a different experience, wondering on the unjust provenance of many of it's pieces.

‘Hi, This Is Oprah Winfrey. I Read Your Novel And I Love It So Much.’ (New York Times)

Ann Napolitano's "Hello Beautiful" was recently selected by Oprah as her 100th book club pick. Napolitano's story is of an author toiling in obscurity for years, turned down by 80 agents and reconsidering her career.

It is gratifying to watch someone come into success later in life. Napolitano's description of receiving the call from Winfrey also made me chuckle “one of the most exciting things that’s ever happened to me in my life.

I felt like I went into full menopause because my whole body system was just adrenalized and it was so crazy.” I am saving "Hello Beautiful" to read on an upcoming trip, but spurred by this article watched "Dear Edward" based on her book of the same title, on Apple TV. It's a terrific series I hadn't otherwise heard of, with a compelling story line and amazing acting by Connie Britton and a strong cast.

The Queen Of Everest Trains While Working At Whole Foods (New York Times)

All hail mighty Nepali women! Lhakpa Sherpa's lifestory of ascending Mount Everest despite all of the challenges on her path (domestic abuse, poverty, gender discrimination, lack of sponsorship) is just a stunning one and if Hollywood was actually a fair place someone would be making a movie out of this stat. By day Sherpa works at a Whole Foods and trains at local peaks in Connecticut. She has no major sponsorship- yes being a female athlete contributes to that, and while this article doesn't touch upon it, race is an obvious major factor. The Sherpa people guide people tirelessly up Everest and carry their load literally for pittance and get so little of the credit. I hope this article opens up new opportunities for Lhakpa Sherpa.