At the dawn of 2002, it is still possible to hear women describing themselves as an oppressed minority, vulnerable, helpless, and permanently in need of government assistance, especially gender quotas. These women, however, are a vocal but tiny minority, led by overexposed celebrities such as Gloria Steinem and Betty Friedan. Most women are too busy to indulge such nonsense, as the latest figures on women-owned businesses confirm.

The San Francisco Chronicle recently observed that the number of female-owned businesses is growing at twice the rate of all businesses in the United States. In fact, according to the Center for Women’s Business Research, the number of female-owned firms has grown by 14.3 percent since 1997, compared to seven percent for all U.S. firms. While that is impressive enough, women-owned businesses also show greater increases in both employment and revenues.

Despite talk of an economic downturn, California ranks first in the number of firms owned by women, first in the number of employees, and first in sales. The Bay Area is particularly impressive. In San Francisco, women-owned firms represent 30.8 percent of all businesses—60,601 businesses employing 97,927 people and generating $22.5 billion in sales.

In Oakland, women own 32.5 percent of all businesses, trailing Portland, Oregon, which leads the nation with 35 percent. Oakland’s 59,794 women-owned companies employ 92,866 people and rack up annual sales of $16.1 billion. In San Jose, women own 37,150 businesses, 28 percent of the total, and employ more than 60,000 workers with $11.3 billion in sales. The trends are onward and upward.

The number of Bay Area businesses grew by 1.6 percent from 1997 to 2002. The number of businesses owned by women, however, grew by a full 6.5 percent. Further, the number of people employed by these businesses grew by 50 percent—a full 20 percent more than that of female-owned businesses across the nation. As for sales, local female-owned businesses increased 61.5 percent, compared to 40.4 percent nationally.

These figures, it should be noted, reflect privately-held companies and a more restrictive definition of what constitutes a woman-owned business. To qualify, a firm must be majority owned by women, not just 50-percent owned. This definition makes the numbers even more impressive, but a wider inventory is needed to reveal the full truth.

Government gender preferences have been illegal in California since 1996, when voters passed Proposition 209. Therefore, this amazing growth cannot be attributed to government set-asides. This, in turn, means that women are not helpless victims in the absence of state largesse. All that women need, it turns out, is a level playing field to show that they can perform as well as men, and in some cases better.

From a policy standpoint, the growth in women-owned businesses means that vestiges of government preferences must be abandoned, and everyone should be treated as equal regardless of gender. Instead of a search for victims and rhetoric about a “glass ceiling,” governments should make it easier for everyone to start businesses by lowering taxes and cutting red tape. Privatizing government services would provide women with more opportunities to launch businesses.

One hopes that the increase in women-owned businesses will help relegate verbose feminists and their victimhood industry to permanent irrelevance, a quaint footnote to a dwindling movement. The business of American women is business, and the latest figures give new meaning to an old feminist slogan. A woman needs a government program like a fish needs a bicycle.

Sally Pipes is the President and CEO of the Pacific Research Institute, a California-based think tank. She can be reached via email at spipes@pacificresearch.org.