As part of the 100 women's season on the BBC World Service this is the taboo of

feminism. I'm Katie Watson and I've come to Los Angeles in California one of the

most socially progressive and liberal states in all of America.

But it's also the home of Hollywood,

and the heart of the country's film and TV industry

has been a battleground for equality and gender.

Yes, there's an awful lot of love for Hollywood actresses from Marilyn Monroe to Merrill Street and Jennifer Aniston,

but when it comes to paying them, there's a double standard.

Just last year, actress Jennifer Lawrence weighed in about the gender pay gap in Hollywood to huge

applause.

She put her thoughts down in an essay entitled, Why Do I Make Less Than My Male Co-Stars?

And said this.

All I hear and see all day are men speaking their opinions, and I give mine in the same

exact manner, and you would have thought I had said something offensive.

It's something that I think resonates with many women,

the feeling that we're treated differently,

even when we can't see what we've done differently.

I'm a feminist, but I would never have labeled myself as one until I was in my early 20s.

I had access to great education, I pursued my dreams.

But it wasn't until I started working and Lattley lived abroad in the Middle East and Latin America

when I saw patterns repeating themselves.

And for many women the debate over feminism has taken on of renewed importance as the first female

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