Debra Messing & Ai-Jen Poo on The Effect of the Pandemic on Women & Unequal Pay: BlogHer Fireside

Debra Messing ("Will & Grace) and Ai-jen Poo took the BlogHer International Women's Day stage to discuss the highlights and challenges they’ve faced in their careers, and why they’re dedicating so much of their time and platforms to raising women up through their work with many organizations including Supermajority and National Domestic Workers Alliance. Ai-Jen and Debra start off by discussing Debra's early years in the film industry and how the narrative has always been about women not supporting one another and having to compete with one other. She's excited about the progress made over the decades and celebrates our first multi-racial Vice President, Kamala Harris! Debra talks about her work as a global ambassador for Population Services International in Africa and how she learned that the way to fix things “is to go to the women first." Ai-Jen and Debra discuss the importance of caregivers, equal pay, and how without them the entire infrastructure collapses. Additionally, Debra expresses her support and excitement for the Biden campaign, while mentioning his new policies that expands coverage for those caregivers. Debra hopes in the next year we can celebrate the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment mentioning that 2023 will mark 100 years since the fight began for equal protection under the Constitution. Siting that the US is the only Industrial Nation in the world that does not have women’s protections permanently as a part of the Constitution. Ai-Jen and Debra close out the panel by reminding us to always look for opportunities to lift up other women and to use our voices to ask for we deserve and need because at the end of the day, “Congress works for us.” Leaving viewers with one final message, “your voice matters." Debra Messing is best known for her Emmy Award-winning role as “Grace Adler” on NBC’s Emmy-winning and Golden Globe-nominated comedy series, “Will & Grace.” After 11 years, Messing reprised her role for the revival series in 2017, and made her final appearance after three successful seasons in a finale event on April 23, 2020. Messing was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and Critics Choice Award for her reprisal of the role in 2019. Other TV credits include starring in the NBC series The Mysteries of Laura, for two seasons and as Julia Houston in NBC’s Smash (2012-2013), a musical drama about the creation of a new Broadway show. In 2007, Messing starred in the successful acclaimed miniseries, The Starter Wife, for the USA Network, which then returned as a regular series in 2008. Her performance as “Molly Kagan” earned Messing a Golden Globe and Emmy Award nomination. Additionally, in 2017, Messing starred in ABCs three-hour remake of Dirty Dancing, as Marjorie Houseman. Her film credits include the upcoming Jon Stewart-directed political dramedy by Focus Features, Irresistible (2020), The Dark Divide, Sony Classics’ Searching (2018 – Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize at the Sundance Film Festival), Like Sunday Like Rain (2015), The Women (2008), Nothing Like The Holidays (2008), Along Came Polly (2004), The Wedding Date (2004), Hollywood Ending (2002), and The Mothman Prophecies (2002). In 2014, Messing made her Broadway debut in the Tony Award-nominated production of John Patrick Shanley’s Outside Mullingar. This Fall, Messing will return to Broadway in the New York premiere of Noah Haidle’s play, Birthday Candles, at the Roundabout Theatre Company. This Spring, Messing will headline in Noah Haidle’s, Birthday Candles. The play will follow “Ernestine Ashworth” (Messing) from age 17 to 101, and recount the beauty of the circle of life.  Messing is the Global Health Ambassador for Population Services International (PSI) focusing on HIV/AIDS. She has traveled extensively in Africa in this role and in 2010 testified before the House Foreign Affairs sub-committee on Africa and Global Health. She was also a key speaker at the 2012 AIDS conference in DC. Other charities Messing supports include HRC (Human Rights Campaign), Everytown for Gun Safety, and Joyful Heart Foundation. She was honored with The Trevor Life Award for her contributions to the LGBTQ+ community. Ai-jen Poo is an award-winning organizer, social innovator, author, and a leading voice in the women’s movement. She is the Executive Director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance, Director of Caring Across Generations, Co-Founder of SuperMajority and Trustee of the Ford Foundation. Ai-jen is a nationally recognized expert on elder and family care, the future of work, gender equality, immigration, narrative change, and grassroots organizing. She is the author of the celebrated book, The Age of Dignity: Preparing for the Elder Boom in a Changing America.