• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

The U.S. spent $30 billion to ditch textbooks for laptops and tablets: The result is the first generation less cognitively capable than their parents

2

Current price of oil as of July 13, 2026

3

Current price of silver as of Monday, July 13, 2026

1

The U.S. spent $30 billion to ditch textbooks for laptops and tablets: The result is the first generation less cognitively capable than their parents

2

Current price of oil as of July 13, 2026

3

Current price of silver as of Monday, July 13, 2026
CommentaryIvanka Trump

Why Women Need to Stop Believing in Ivanka Trump

By
Lauren Stiller Rikleen
Lauren Stiller Rikleen
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Lauren Stiller Rikleen
Lauren Stiller Rikleen
Down Arrow Button Icon
September 1, 2017, 11:56 AM ET
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

It is not surprising that President Donald Trump has sought to eviscerate the Obama administration’s record of supporting gender equity in the workplace. It is astonishing, however, that Ivanka Trump has failed to have any influence on her father’s damaging policies, notwithstanding her stated commitment to be a force for women’s equality.

When Ivanka introduced her father at the Republican Convention, she vowed that they would both fight for equal pay for equal work, and stated that policies allowing women and children to thrive should be the norm, not novelties. When her father became president, she assumed an official role with a West Wing office, and a sweeping portfolio with a focus on gender inequality. Yet in failing to moderate her father’s harsh actions against women, Ivanka’s words demonstrate either dishonesty about her commitment or a complete lack of influence in her role. Either way, the result is an unfettered Trump administration agenda that hurts working women and, by extension, their families as well.

In his first few months in office, President Trump revoked Obama’s Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order that required companies with federal contracts to comply with identified labor and civil rights laws, stop the use of forced arbitration for victims of workplace sexual harassment or assault, and infuse transparency into salary reporting. In an uncharacteristically private ceremony, President Trump signed into law a bill that will restrict access to family planning and contraceptive support for low-income women, despite considerable evidence that access to family planning and contraception provides social and family benefits and reduces women’s poverty levels.

President Trump’s most recent action takes direct aim at the Obama administration efforts to eliminate the gender wage gap. The president halted implementation of a rule that would have enabled the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to collect salary data by race and gender to better understand patterns of pay discrimination.

Ivanka Trump has remained publicly silent with each rollback until now, when she issued a statement supporting her father’s latest effort to cement inequality in the workplace. It was a crushing blow to those who hoped that the First Daughter would have some ameliorating influence on President Trump’s obsessive efforts to eliminate any evidence of the Obama administration, particularly its policies supporting working families and gender pay equity.

It is hard to retain hope that Ivanka will ever influence the president’s demonstrated indifference to women’s equality. Maya Angelou famously urged that when someone shows you who they are, believe them. In her recently released book, Ivanka advised working women to build a culture of success, without any seeming understanding of what those words might mean to someone born in poverty. Her recommendation that women be the architect of their own life resonates best for women who can effortlessly afford the related design and development costs, but demonstrates little understanding of a life separate from the gracious existence she has known.

Ivanka and Donald Trump have consistently demonstrated who they are. Both have shown a comfort with saying what is expedient in the moment, while making choices that promote their own idealized images of their brand.

Ivanka’s well-developed brand as a poised woman of wealth and successful young professional is her top priority. Based on months of anti-women actions by the president, and the First Daughter’s silent acquiescence, Ivanka has made clear her priorities. Ivanka has shown us who she is, and we have sadly learned we cannot believe in her—we can only believe her.

Lauren Stiller Rikleen is president of the Rikleen Institute for Strategic Leadership, a visiting scholar at the Boston College Center for Work & Family, and author of the book, You Raised Us, Now Work With Us: Millennials, Career Success, and Building Strong Workplace Teams.

About the Author
By Lauren Stiller Rikleen
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Commentary

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Commentary

b
CommentaryWorld Cup
Columbia Business School professors: What the Balogun red card can teach us about AI and judgment
By Oded Netzer, Christopher Frank and Paul MagnoneJuly 13, 2026
19 hours ago
usa
Commentary250 Years of Innovation
For 250 years, work defined American identity. That era Is ending
By Keith Ferrazzi and Wendy SmithJuly 11, 2026
3 days ago
m
Commentarymedicine
America’s bone health is quietly headed for a $19 billion crisis
By Matthew T. DrakeJuly 9, 2026
5 days ago
t
CommentaryEducation
AI is about to disrupt millions of jobs. A century ago, America’s answer was to build a new high school
By Tim KnowlesJuly 8, 2026
6 days ago
amit
CommentaryVenture Capital
Physical AI’s $50 trillion opportunity requires long-term conviction, but the payoff is huge 
By Amit ChaturvedyJuly 8, 2026
6 days ago
heat
Commentaryclimate change
McKinsey Global Institute: Climate planning has prioritized floods. Heat demands equal attention
By Sylvain Johansson, Mekala Krishnan, Kanmani Chockalingam and Annabel FarrJuly 7, 2026
7 days ago

Most Popular

The U.S. spent $30 billion to ditch textbooks for laptops and tablets: The result is the first generation less cognitively capable than their parents
Innovation
The U.S. spent $30 billion to ditch textbooks for laptops and tablets: The result is the first generation less cognitively capable than their parents
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 12, 2026
2 days ago
Current price of oil as of July 13, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of July 13, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJuly 13, 2026
1 day ago
Current price of silver as of Monday, July 13, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of silver as of Monday, July 13, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJuly 13, 2026
1 day ago
How Pete Hegseth's DEI order just put Scouting America's future at stake
North America
How Pete Hegseth's DEI order just put Scouting America's future at stake
By Seth T. Kannarr, Derek H. Alderman and The ConversationJuly 13, 2026
15 hours ago
Trump embraces Australian retirement system backed by Larry Fink
Personal Finance
Trump embraces Australian retirement system backed by Larry Fink
By Brianna Sosa and BloombergJuly 12, 2026
2 days ago
The U.S. and Iran can't agree on fully reopening the Strait of Hormuz. The solution could be straight out of the Old Testament
Middle East
The U.S. and Iran can't agree on fully reopening the Strait of Hormuz. The solution could be straight out of the Old Testament
By Jason MaJuly 11, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.