I like the quote from President Obama that opens up chapter 10 on gender inequality, “These traditions may go back centuries; [but] they have no place in the 21st century” (Mooney 318). Tradition often times can become the enemy of progress, and although it’s important to acknowledge your own cultural bias when criticizing another for their own backwards values, when it comes to human rights abuses and endangering the well-being of others it’s important to remain vocal. Although transgenderism has permeated American culture for a long time, mostly jeered at by making fun of stereotypical representations of all non-cisgender individuals as drag queens, divas, butch, etc., it really became a debate at the forefront of American culture in 2015 when former Olympic athlete Bruce Jenner announced his male-to-female transition and became known as Caitlyn Jenner. Sex changes have happened in the past, usually on the fringe of society, but it’s an unprecedented occurrence with such a high-profile celebrity. At the same time, M.C. v. Medical University of South Carolina was underway in the Supreme Court system over the distinction between sex and gender. According to the textbook, sex is officially defined as “a person’s biological classification as a male or female” while on the other hand gender is defined as “the social definitions and expectations associated with being female or male” (Mooney 320). Therefore, while one could be born male and biologically be considered as such, they could feel more comfortable identifying as the opposite gender, as transgender individuals do. Though gender inequality is undeniably still present today, I do think it’s a bold claim the textbook makes that “there is no country in the world in which men and ...
... middle of paper ...
...rtaken by some religious groups are fruitless and in fact dangerous making homosexuals feels as though they’re freaks of nature that need to be changed, which is untrue and scientifically impossible. These efforts have thankfully been found to be illegal by the Superior Court of New Jersey, on the basis of consumer fraud and false-advertising since these programs have been proven unsuccessful in changing one’s sexual orientation. Unfortunately, Pope Francis has backed anti-gay protest and stated that “the [Catholic] Church will never accept gay unions” so religiously-backed gay marriage may be a long-time coming. In the meantime, homosexual individuals must continue the fight, especially overseas in countries where homosexuality is still harshly punished, and fight to be legally recognized as equals and receive the same rights as the cisgender, heterosexual majority.
In class, we talked about how transgender people face many hardships today and are a highly discriminated group in America. In this article however, the author uses transgender men to prove a point. Prokos states that before the man transitioned, he was not treated as well in the work place when he identified as women. Discrimination can also be based on race, class, and cultural backgrounds of people rather than just discrimination based on
Around the world gender is genuinely seen as strictly male or female. If you step out of this “social norm,” you could be considered an outcast. This disassociation includes, biological males/females, interssexed, and transgendered individuals. These people are severely suppressed by society because their gender identification, behaviors, and even their activities deviate from the norm. Most Americans are exceedingly devoted to the concept that there are only two sexes. Therefore, the constrictive American ideals of male and female gender identities inhibits growth and acceptance of gender expression.
If the line is clearly drawn in the sand between church and state it will ultimately be for the betterment of many. Members of the clergy will no longer fear the repercussions of performing marriages for the select homosexual couples who wish to be joined in their church of their choosing. Moody states one catholic priest said: “We can bless a dog, we can bless a boat, but we can’t say a prayer over two people who love each other.” (355) The sacrament of marriage will forever be a topic not everyone can agree upon but as history proves change is inevitability a spoke on a wheel that will constantly be moving forward.
For the past century, the United States of America has made countless advancements in technology, medicine, and many other fronts. As a society, it has advanced at an incredible rate, becoming a major world power in an incredibly short period of time. The biggest barriers that America is working on are currently taking place within its own borders; civil rights and the battle for equality have men and women of every race up and arms. Specifically, the fight against sexism is the most modern struggle in America. Discrimination against women is harmful to both men and women; it holds women back into a useless position and forces men to take the brunt of the work. Men are expected to work, but women are almost expected not to, and instead "be nothing more than dangling, decorative ornaments--non-thinking and virtually non-functional” (Chisholm 4). There is progress to be made in the American society in its attitude and treatment of women. Gender inequality continues to be a social problem in the business, family, and personal lives of women.
The LGBTQIA community has faced strong opposition from groups falling outside this minority for years, primarily conservative and religious groups. This phenomenon is not particular to the United States, but spans hundreds of countries across the world. Religious leaders in varying religions not only oppose the act of marriage, but often times oppose the actual act of homosexual behavior. Often religious oppositionist will cite religious text, like the Bible as a means of opposing the LGBTQIA lifestyle. One of the most blatant oppositions to homosexual b...
In this article, Shaw and Lee describe how the action of labels on being “feminine” or “masculine” affect society. Shaw and Lee describe how gender is, “the social organization of sexual difference” (124). In biology gender is what sex a person is and in culture gender is how a person should act and portray themselves. They mention how gender is what we were taught to do in our daily lives from a young age so that it can become natural(Shaw, Lee 126). They speak on the process of gender socialization that teaches us how to act and think in accordance to what sex a person is. Shaw and Lee state that many people identify themselves as being transgendered, which involves a person, “resisting the social construction of gender into two distinct, categories, masculinity and femininity and working to break down these constraining and polarized categories” ( 129). They write about how in mainstream America masculinity and femininity are described with the masculine trait being the more dominant of the two. They define how this contributes to putting a higher value of one gender over the other gender called gender ranking (Shaw, Lee 137). They also speak about how in order for femininity to be viewed that other systems of inequality also need to be looked at first(Shaw,Lee 139).
The “Politics” section, from the UN’s 2008 report of the progress of the world’s women, discusses in detail how women’s roles in government and politics in general have expanded and can continue to expand. Moreover, it also explores different challenges and obstacles women may encounter when it comes to politics, and how these obstacles can be overcome. In discussing these issues, the author describes a “cycle of political accountability”. This so called cycle is a process by which women’s engagement in politics results in a positive “feedback loop” whereby a more gender-balanced political system may arise. According to the report, there are five stages: mobilization, representation, legislation & policy, implementation, and transforming politics. Of course, the cycle can also go backwards leading to the loss of rights for women.
The issue of gender inequality will never truly be solved in the United States. This arises from differences in socially constructed gender roles as well as biologically through hormonal differences, chromosomes, and brain structures. Gender inequality is defined as unequal treatment or perceptions of individuals based on gender. One of the reasons for gender inequality is income disparities. Another reason is because of the positions in the workplace. Thirdly, the reason is because of beliefs that one another has. For these reasons is why these situations should be examined to get to the root of the problem.
Throughout the twentieth century, American women fought for the right to vote, the right to make choices regarding their own bodies, and the right to be their own people. The disparities between men and women were often overlooked or blindly accepted, but as Gloria Steinem said, “history is herstory too.” After nearly 200 years of struggling, women made up only 10% of Congress, received wages less than 75% of their male counter parts, and are stigmatized based on their class and race. By the end of the century, female citizens were still treated unfairly in every aspect of American society. Women did not achieve equality in America in the 20th century, based on their roles in politics, the widespread views of female sexuality, and the race, class, and gender ideals for women at the time. Although women have made progress in each of these areas, and more, they still have so far to come.
This endeavor is necessary to protect women’s rights in the labor force in matters such as sexual harassment, salary, work opportunities, etc. Currently, there are several trade unions in Malaysia namely Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) and Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public and Civil Services (CUEPACS). However, specific trade unions that fight for women and their equal rights does not exist. At the most, women are only a small part of the committee in general trade unions due to a low number of female workers in the labor force. Therefore, the formation of FTAs can reap benefits in terms of gender inequality and female labor participation which eventually leads to an increase in income per capita and economy
We, as a people only considered two gender roles as of till recently that included males and females. Now there are 63 different ways for an individual to classify his or herself. We all have been accustomed to the staid notion that organisms are either male or female. Now our culture is starting to consider that the permanent, dual nature of gender is incorrect. Bruce Jenner who was once a male gold medalist in the 1970s Olympics and on the cover of a Wheaties box, is now a woman that goes by the name of Caitlyn Jenner who is on the cover of a female friendly magazine called Vanity Fair. Laverne Cox is also a transgender actor, who was chosen for an Emmy for outstanding actress. “America has seen openly transgendered individuals serve as a mayor, state legislator, judge, police officer, a model for a global cosmetics brand, and a high school homecoming queen” (Sapolsky,
Starting from hundreds and thousands ago gender inequality exists. Some would point out that there is not any gender inequality around us, but there are. For this paper, I am going to write about gender inequality. First, I would attach an argument from articles. However, I would object the articles and provide an explanation for my objection. Then, I would consider a response of my objection and reject the objection.
Homosexuality has been shamefully denounced in Catholic religion over time ever since St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas’ ideas shaped the views of the Catholic church. Today these religious teachings express how homosexuality is not in any way, part of God’s plan for marriage and family instead it is seen as sinfully going against Natural Law. Catholics lack the realization that people’s sexual desires do not in any biological way, shape or form change a person’s overall morals determining if they should be scrutinized or accepted. Catholic homosexuality beliefs are demandingly strict and tend to over criticize basic religious intentions of love and acceptance. Homosexual participants are deserving of support, faith and love despite what
and wages. It will also tackle what is being done to solve this problem and what
There are many opponents of gay people as it is, and they all have their reasons to dislike the idea of permitting them get married. One of the main reasons is that the primary purpose of marriage is procreation. Because gay couples are unable to have children, they should not be allowed to marry (Schiffen 495). Another main argument is that the word marriage means the union of one man and one woman. This is a long-standing theme of most major Western religions. Under a proposed bill known as the Defense of Marriage act, marriage is defined as “a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife.” Furthermore, it defines a spouse as “ a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or wife” (What 1). Under these guidelines, it is quite obvious that gay couples would not be eligible for marriage. People against homosexual marriage also say that it is a person’s choice to be gay. Since the individual chooses to be a homosexual, they should not be given special privileges. Another argument that you hear is that these couples should not get married simply because of the torment and ridicule they would be faced with in their everyday lives. There are news reports from across America telling about how a gay person was beaten or killed just because they were looked at as different. Some of these people would end up the target of verbal abuse and maybe even physical abuse, just because some heterosexual people see them as different.