Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Feminism
I just heard in class, only moments ago, that "feminism" means "equality." I feel that this is an obsolete word if that is the case. This definition of the term insinuates a negative assumption about our world today. Is today's society considered feminist? If not, then describing equality as "feminist" is assuming that the standard of society is to assume an inferiority of women. I imagine the term was created in a time when women were not viewed as equal, which would make the term "feminism" relevant in the sense that equality is an improvement for women. However, in today's world, where we do see equality for women and at times we see circumstances such as reverse gender discrimination in the corporate world, describing "equality" as "feminist" is inaccurate. When you ask if I am a feminist, I would say no, however, if you asked if I believe in equality for women I would say yes. Using equality as the definition of the term, society as a whole today could be considered "feminist" because the gender equality gap of the past has for the most part dissolved, and at times is overcompensated for.
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The time in which women were not viewed as equal has not passed us yet. It's still present.
ReplyDeleteFor example, there are more women than men in the United States. If women were equal to men, this would imply that there would be equal or near equal numbers of women and men in government. However, the overwhelming majority of elected officials in Congress are men.
It's not just because women aren't trying to be active in politics. It's that people are not voting for them. When they run for office, one of the first things discussed is how they look. With men, we look at them as people rather than pretty objects.
Men are still given more attention, promotions, money, and opportunities.
Women are still the overwhelming majority of victims in domestic violence, sexual harassment, and sexual assault cases.
Women are still paid about 75 cents to each man's whole dollar.
There's still a long way to go and feminism is still important.