Gender Inequality in Africa

1396 Words3 Pages

Gender Inequality in Africa

It is true of Africa that women constitute a treasure that remains largely hidden. (Moleketi 10) African women grow 90% of all African produce, and contribute about 70% of Africa’s agricultural labor every year. (Salmon 16) Both the labor and food that are provided by African women go towards the increase in Africa’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). (Moleketi 10) Although African women are feeding the majority of Africa’s inhabitants, the constricting ropes of gender inequality are still holding them back from being appreciated and living up to their full potential. Outstandingly, women such as President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, of Liberia, have gladly accepted the challenge of breaking free of these ropes. The history of women’s rights in Africa, the glass ceiling, and the modern aspects of women’s rights, all play prominent roles in the overall condition of women’s rights in Africa. Until the day arrives that these discriminatory injustices are corrected, individuals in African nations will continue to struggle.

The history of women’s rights in Africa has affected its present state. Established in 2003, by the African Union (AU), (Meyersfeld 13) the Maputo Protocol promises women equal rights and the right to an abortion if the woman conceived he baby through incest, rape, or if having the baby would be injurious to the mother’s health. (Meyersfeld 12) However, as of 2013 the Maputo Protocol has yet to be ratified by eighteen countries. (African Business News 51) Africa is a continent in which there are countries where a woman needs permission from her husband to travel, to work, or to open a bank account. (Moleketi 10) To this day, women are still seen as subordinate to men. These primit...

... middle of paper ...

...discrimination in North Africa than elsewhere on the continent, says poll.” The Canadian Press 27 March 2014: Page 1

• James F. Guyot. “Is the Ceiling Truly Glass or something More Variable?” Society November 2008: Page 529

• Barrington M. Salmon. “ African Women in a Changing World.” Washington Informer 13 March 2014: Page 16-17

• Bonita C. Meyersfeld. “Why Africa?” World Today August 2008: Page 12-13

• Adele Ferguson. “Glass Ceiling Scratched not broken.” The (Melbourne Age) 7 March 2014: Page 28

• African Business News. “Women’s Rights in Africa: 18 countries are yet to ratify the Maputo Protocol!” African Business News 10 July 2013: Page 51

• Janet Wash. “Women’s Property Rights Violations and HIV/AIDS in Africa.” Peace Review April-September: Page 190, 192, 193

• Michelle Shephard. “#BRING BACK OUR GIRLS.” Toronto Star 6 May 2014: Page 1

Show More
Related

  • Summary Of Film Response To Waste Land And Emmanuel's Gift

    1047 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...12) Since Vik and Emmanuel have brought good changes to the lives of the catadors and people with disabilities in Ghana, I believe the rest is up to the people who can make it even better for the next generation. “Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home -- so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. Yet they are the world of the individual person; the neighborhood he lives in; the school or college he attends; the factory, farm, or office where he works. Such are the places where every man, woman, and child seeks equal justice, equal opportunity, equal dignity without discrimination. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

    Read More

  • Leith Mullings' On Our Own Terms: Race, Class, And Gender In The Lives Of African American Women

    874 Words  | 2 Pages

    and the academic endeavour, to illuminate the experiences of African American women and to theorize from the materiality of their lives to broader issues of political economy, family, representation and transformation” (Mullings, page xi)

    Read More

  • Civil Rights

    576 Words  | 2 Pages

    For centuries, educated and talented women were restricted to household and motherhood. It was only after a century of dissatisfaction and turmoil that women got access to freedom and equality. In the early 1960’s, women of diverse backgrounds dedicated tremendous efforts to the political movements of the country, which includes the Civil Rights movement, anti-poverty, Black power and many others (Hayden & King, 1965). The Africa...

    Read More

  • Awa Thiam's Arguement Against the Statement “Rape is to Women what Lynching is to Blacks”

    1724 Words  | 4 Pages

    Awa Thiam speaks on the topic of the daughters of black Africa trying to find themselves. She also states the comparison of the black women struggle with the European women. Thiam is arguing the point that the European feminist imposed the false argument “Rape is to women what lynching is to Blacks” (Thiam 114). Women in the text suffered from double domination and double enslavement by the colonial phallocratic. Thiam explains the false consciousness of the black women as well. The goal for the women is to achieve total independence, to call man bluff and all alienating influences.

    Read More

  • Gender Inequality: Equality And Equality

    1436 Words  | 3 Pages

    Many laws and regulations are implemented everyday into our society, involving equal rights for all. But, even with being in the year 2015; there is still much discrimination and inequality seen throughout many different institutions. Gender inequality is defined as unequal treatment or perceptions of individuals based on gender. This has been seen for many decades now, revolving mainly against women. Throughout history to even today, men have always been seen as the stronger, faster, and harder working gender as opposed to women. Today, with more women being seen working at larger firms and corporations, we still see many obstacles and challenges that they must face. While many women have fought for equality in the workplace, it is still a

    Read More

  • Women In Liberia Essay

    1465 Words  | 3 Pages

    Liberia, located in the west part of Africa, was a settlement to native Africans in the 1800’s would eventually stablish a settlement consisting of thousands of individuals, freed or non-slaves. This was an attempt of resolving the moral issue of enslavement by colonizing Liberia with freed, or ex-slaves. Not only were freed black men transported across the Atlantic, but women as well. No provisions had been made to ensure equality as a foundation to colonize which causes the issues misogyny and with the lack of historical content of women in Liberia the need for further analysis it is noted that women were hardly acknowledged and only seen as an object in creating a bigger population needed

    Read More

  • Colonialism and Oppression in the African Diaspora

    2021 Words  | 5 Pages

    Arguably, the effects which Europe’s global colonialism have had on women of the African diaspora can be most easily seen on the African continent. Kenyan feminist and environmental activist, Wangari Maathai, explores the legacy of colonialism and oppression in her native country through her moving 2006 memoir, Unbowed. Maathai explains that over t...

    Read More

  • The Glass Ceiling: A Human Capitalist Perspective

    1422 Words  | 3 Pages

    Cotter, David A., Joan M. Hermsen, Seth Ovadia, and Reeve Vanneman. "The Glass Ceiling Effect." Social Forces 80.2 (2001): 655-682.

    Read More

  • Hiv / Aids : A Manifestation Of Poverty

    748 Words  | 2 Pages

    The World Bank (1997) stated that “widespread poverty and unequal income distribution of income that typify underdevelopment, the lack of choices and the inability to determine one’s own destiny fuel the HIV epidemic.” Contestably studies from African countries which delve deeper in to the root causes and impacts of the correlation between HIV/AIDS and poverty through analysing statistical epidemiological and socioeconomic data suggest that there is a notable correlation between the spreading of HIV/AIDS and wealth / more prosperous states within Africa.

    Read More

  • Racial Discrimination and The Civil Rights Movement

    962 Words  | 2 Pages

    Aldridge, Delores P., Carlene Young. "Africana Womanism: An Overview." Out of the Revolution: The Development of Africana Studies. Lexington Books, 2000: 205-217. The University of Missouri-Columbia. Web. 11 April 2014.

    Read More

  • Corruption in Equatorial Guinea

    1462 Words  | 3 Pages

    Williams, Robert E. "From Malabo to Malibu: Addressing Corruption and Human Rights Abuse in an African Petrostate." Human Rights Quarterly 33.3 (2011): 620,648,925. ProQuest. Web. 10 Oct. 2013.

    Read More

  • Gender Inequality In Society

    572 Words  | 2 Pages

    Since the 19th century, the women's movement has made fantastic strides toward obtaining civil rights for women in America. Woman suffrage has been abolished, and they are no longer viewed as second-class citizens. Unfortunately, the issue of gender inequality still echoes in today's society. The fight to change a society shaped predominately by men continues, and will likely pursue for decades to come. Whether it be social, political, or economic rights, the main idea is equality for all genders, man or woman. In modern society, it seems that such a simple concept should be accepted globally by everyone – so why do women still face the daily toils of demanding the privileges that should available to all? No matter the class of woman, it is likely they will suffer from inequality and stereotypes at some point in their life. We see this in the workplace, where women have been shown to earn less then men. Some women also face the dangers of sexual violence, and are left victimized for such crimes.

    Read More

  • Gender Discrimination Essay

    1586 Words  | 4 Pages

    rights recognized by the law, even after thirty years of the adoption of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). It is unfair how in many countries, women are not entitled to own property or inherit land. Furthermore, social exclusion, trafficking, restricted mobility, and early marriage among others, does not grant the rights to health to women. As a result, an increase in illness and death plays a major role throughout the course of a women’s life. Progress is something that will not be witnessed unless individuals fix failures within the health systems and society so that girls and women can receive equal access to health information and services, education, and

    Read More

  • Gender Inequality: Problems and Solutions

    1662 Words  | 4 Pages

    and wages. It will also tackle what is being done to solve this problem and what

    Read More

  • Education for Girls in Africa and Its Impacts

    1871 Words  | 4 Pages

    Julia S., Children's Rights in Africa: A Legal Perspective. Burlington: Ashgate Publishing Ltd. 2013. Print.

    Read More

More about Gender Inequality in Africa

Open Document