Join us for IWPR’s 2026 Power+ Summit, The Power Grid: Driving Gender Equity Forward, taking place September 28–29 in Detroit, MI.
Together, we will spark bold ideas, share breakthroughs, and shape the future of gender equity.
While this particular incident might have taken place in a fictional universe, the treatment of Olivia Pope mirrors exactly how Black women are treated every day. Whenever their skills or expertise are needed Black women are treated in a way that says they’re good enough to get the job done, but not good enough to get the credit when it’s all said and done.
In fact, a report from the nonprofit Institute for Women’s Policy Research, funded by the National Domestic Workers Alliance, showed that Black women work more and make less, across all areas of American life. Black women voted at higher rates than any other demographic group in 2008 and 2012 (and in 2014, more than any other group except white men and women) — but they remain drastically underrepresented in both state and national politics.