Women's Equality in Society
The United States Congress passed in 1963 an amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act that prohibits wage discrimination in the workplace based on an individuals Gender. This amendment was titled the Equal Pay Act and was a hard fought victory for proponents of gender equality in the United States. Prior to the signing of this bill women's jobs were often listed separately from men's, and were quite often considered less senior or less skilled jobs. Even when similar, or the same jobs were listed under both men and women, the pay scale was vastly different for women, as compared to men. Women were paid on average $.59-.64 less per dollar than women were, based solely on their gender. While the passage of the bill was certainly positive the effects have not been as dramatic as desired. Now, over 50 years later, a woman performing the same work as a man is still only paid about $.80 per dollar. There are less female executives in the business world and mid level managers face even more harsh situations in terms of promotions and raises.
A more modern, very explicit example of misogyny within pop culture is the website Return of Kings. This is a website/blog that posts articles advocating for the return to the relationship dynamics of the past. They have article titles such as '“Rape Culture” Was Manufactured To Wage An Unjust War Against Men", "Women Should Not Be Allowed To Vote"" and ""The Intellectual Inferiority Of Women"". Websites that post these concepts continue to entrench the ideas that men are better than women, are are the type of websites that radicalize men who already believe they are superior to women.
As a society we must take conscious, deliberate action in eradicating the ideals of male superiority. As a society we we can only accept actions that are working towards equality of the sexes and equality of opportunity within the workplace and society as a whole.
What are some other areas, other than wage disparity, in which women suffer from being viewed as inferior?
What do you think are specific steps we can all take to improve the equality of sexes?
Jordan, I think I will have to come back with another question, in what areas are we not seen as inferior? It may seem asinine, but think about it. It would be an exercise in patience to list all the OTHER areas other than at the workplace where we are seen as inferior…but to entertain your question, sports (we can only be as good as the weakest male player if that), mathematics, the “hard” sciences like chemistry and physics, for instance. I think the steps we can all take to improve the equality of the sexes is not only to advocate to bolster women’s position but to support men in their desire to change. I mean speaking about things in gender neutral terms, stopping the shaming of “girly” or the admiration of “manly” things, tasks and behaviors should be spoken of in terms of their essence or principle and not because of the gender that carries them out. For example, doing the dishes or cleaning the household should be done by the very people that occupy it, and that it is itself should be a complete sentence. If something needs doing or cleaning, it should be done, not be done by X or Y because it has always been done by X or Y gender. If it is two males then it should be done by both, if it is two women it should be done by both, or if it’s the traditional male and female composition then it should be done by both, though a simplistic logic, it makes the point that gender should not necessarily dictate role or pay in the case of the blog. Some argue for gender fluidity rather than equality and that is fine too, I am in agreement if I need to do more mowing of the lawn if my future husband is busy or away, just as he should be fine with doing cooking and laundry when I am unable to. My point is if it needs cleaning, it should just be done, PERIOD.
ReplyDeleteIm not sure women and men will ever be seen as equals in other settings than the workplace. I do believe men and women should be viewed and seen equally in all aspects, I'm just saying I believe we are far from it. For example a female is less likely to get hired in the NFL setting because they can not go all the places a male can and the upper administration doesn't have to necessarily worry about a male sleeping with another male. Is this fair? No, but do they have a point yes. I want to work in an elite setting but am I willing to go into the guys locker room and listen, smell, and observe all the things they may do in there. Not really, therefore do I complain that the NFL doesn't hire females or do I understand that this setting is male dominated. I personally do not want to submit myself to a males locker room however to get equal pay I should have to. Women will ultimately always be seen as inferior until the mindsets of both male and female are equal, and that will most likely not happen. Steps society should do should be geared to earning the same respect as each other. Pay will come but as for now respect should be equal.
DeleteFirst, I have to say that that website (Return of the Kings) is extremely disturbing to me, but I am glad that you put it out there for us to check it out. Also, I agree with Sayra's initial response to your question, in what ways are we NOT seen as inferior? Wage discrimination is one (very unfortunate) facet of the gender inequalities that are present in our current culture. These inequalities will take time to eradicate, and considering the more fluid gender spectrum, I am personally uncertain how/when things will improve for those who do not conform to binary gender norms, let alone women. Just some thoughts! :)
ReplyDeleteHi Jordan,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your blog and was surprised to learn that the equal pay movement was lumped in with the sexual freedom movement- very interesting. Unfortunately, I had already heard of the Return of Kings website through an article on Facebook. I read one of their articles and found it shocking that people could really still think like that. When you asked about where women were seen as inferior, one major discrepancy came to mind. People like to say that women are stereotypical bad drivers, but women actually have lower insurance rates. There are many areas in which women are seen as inferior to men, but I think there are also instances in which males (specifically boys) are viewed as inferior. Some schools and female teachers treat boys worse than girls especially if they are more active, possibly as a reaction to feeling mistreated and undervalued themselves as women. Some studies suggest that teachers expect boys behavior to be worse than girls, so they treat most boys worse and well-behaved boys the best because they see it as an anomaly. Here is an article on that if anyone is interested: http://ideas.time.com/2013/02/06/do-teachers-really-discriminate-against-boys/
As far as what to do about it, I think big strides are already being made and I agree with Crystal that it will probably be affected by the more fluid gender spectrum.
I was unaware of that website that you pointed out and I also find it quite unsettling. It seems that this is a response to men feeling threatened by women. Like you mentioned in your post, men were not okay with women getting equal wages because it would encourage them to not stay at home. Thankfully, I feel like this stereotype is breaking today but at the same time, women who now stay home are seen as inferior and lazy. It seems that we can't win either way. We've discussed this in this class before, but the more "equal" rights we receive to men, the more that is expected of us. And if we are not taking all the opportunities we are getting offered, we are taking for granted the rights that we fought for.
ReplyDeleteGender inequality is such an important topic to discuss, and wage disparity is one of the major ways women are viewed as inferior. The other major areas that first come to mind are sports and intellect (specifically in math and science, as Sayra already mentioned). However, these are just a few of the countless areas in which gender inequality exists, and unfortunately, without the support of women AND men, this will continue to be a problem. I had never heard of the website, "Return of Kings" but that is extremely disturbing to know there are people who still think and act that way. I appreciate you sharing that website with us, it was extremely eye opening!
ReplyDeleteI would have to agree with Tesa on this one, I do not believe that women will ever be seen as equals in the workplace. I think that even if her colleagues see her as equal, people investing or buying the product may not. I also think that women have to prove themselves more to gain the same acceptance as a male in the same position. I know that I work in a male dominate field and not just because I work with more men but that I work for more men. For the most part, athletic trainers seem to want to work more for the male dominated sports because they are more publicly seen and its higher demand. So not only do some organizations not even accept women, if they do I better not let them know that I have a butt and boobs. Its a respect thing (answer to your first question about what other ways women are seen as unequally). Each day that I go to work I have to make sure that my clothes are not too tight or too revealing so that I do not distract the male athletes. And to be honest, its not fun going to work knowing that I have to be physically aware of the way I act simply because I am a female. I currently work with an male team and the phrase "do not be such a girl, no offense" gets thrown around daily. Like excuse me, why is it such a bad thing to act like a girl?
ReplyDeleteHi, thanks for writing about this topic. Just as everyone else has mentioned there are more areas of inequality for women than there are areas of equality. I checked out the website you shared and it kind of blew me away. I know that sexism is very real even if we have made improvement, but that was just down right primitive thinking from that website. I read some of the article about why women are intellectually inferior to men and it was just infuriating, but I have seen this kind of thinking outside of that website as well. I play competitive Super Smash Bros. Melee and earlier today I found some comments made by guys stating that even if there were as many women who play as men that there would still be no top female players in the community. The person believed that women were just not capable of being as good at the game as men. There is an incredibly small number of females that compete in Melee and therefore obviously the number of good female players is going to be limited, but that is not in any way proof that women are intellectually inferior. That thinking is similar to the person who writes for Return of the Kings. It is upsetting to me, because that kind of sexist thinking deters women from wanting to participate understandably so. I think it can be difficult to rise above that and choose to participate anyway, which is why we need men who are supportive of women. I think men who are in positions of power can make a big difference in how socially acceptable sexism is and could potentially influence other men positively. There is certainly supportive men in the smash community, but it is hard to say how some of the men in the community think about women. Since I am a woman, men will not always speak to me the same as their male friends, so I cannot always truly know what some men think. I think what will help is open communication about these issues from both men and women and the honest pursuit of open mindedness, understanding, and empathy.
ReplyDeleteI believe, in today's society, women are viewed as less capable than men. When you want something completed, you go to a guy. And that is definitely not true in all cases. I believe the best person should be hired for the job regardless of sex, race, religion, etc. And this might not be a popular opinion but sometimes males are better in a given situation and sometimes females are better in other situations. It is difficult to have equality in a patriarchal society and it seems to be a popular sentiment in these comments that it is going to be difficult for women to truly achieve equality in everything. Steps are being taken in order to improve the equality, but as long as we live in a patriarchal society, men will always be viewed as superior to women in most cases.
ReplyDeleteSadly I do not find this website surprising, as the internet is a bastion for the counterculture and really a place for everyone to have a voice at this point in time. This is subject to change, of course, and probably should - considering there are plenty of things that are awful in this world. Again I would take the critique of mentioning such a thing by name and including a backlink to their site actually gives them more credence, credibility, and as far as the internet is concerned increases the rank that it holds in google searches. It would be best to be aware of such things and not link to them or give them any credit for their ideas, though there are plenty of other types of horrific opinions about women, and really about life in general on the web.
ReplyDeleteThe shock didnt really hit me because for this because after reading "helpful tips" for learning how to not eat and lose weight on some of the pro-Ana(orexia) blogs out there while living in a parent's household, I have realized that people are going to have their own wrong opinions one way or another. All I can do is work against these people's terrible agenda's and strive for a more tolerant worldview.
I think Sayra is right whereas if the attitudes change, then the hard and fast indicators of respect and equality will change such as the wage gap and other severe discriminatory practices that our society has taken up.
I also found it fascinating that the women's pay movement was the shadow that overcast the womens sexual freedom movement. While both are important indicators for where society is in regards to minorities, I think the thing that really change hearts and minds of people. I think there is a large amount of disrespect rooted in the idea that women are supposed to be non-sexual beings and that by changing thi we will ultimately conquer the minds of others and equalize the status quo
I would have to agree with Sayra in that STEM-related fields seem to still prize male involvement and the like. I recall a female friend in high school who was discouraged by a male teacher from taking an advanced chemistry course. Although I can't speak to the reasons why, I do remember her as being a high-achieving student. It could be argued, then, that this discouragement had more to do with her gender than with any fear/concern she couldn't excel in the class. What I would add to this is that sports seems to be another professional field wherein women's authority and reception is, while applauded in itself, does not receive the same attention or degree of financial support as male-centered sports seem to. Neither is there an equity in women's participation in all sports, e.g. football, rugby, and similar sports where physical contact/hitting is a fixed part. I'd check this as more evidence that women are seen inferior in terms of not only skill, but as frail in respect to body.
ReplyDeleteI would first like to start by mentioning that although the Return of the Kings website was extremely disturbing I am quite happy that you shared the link, as I was completely unaware that it existed. You posed the question asking in what other ways are women viewed as inferior to men but I would have to agree with Sayra in questioning in what ways we are not seen inferior to men (which would be a much shorter list in my opinion). As women, our mere presence is not taken as serious or viewed as menacing as men which says a ton about how we are viewed in society. Two important parts that I think will help improve equality between the two sexes is parenting and education. The way we perceive things to be has much to do with how we were raised. It is imperative for parents to set the tone and have these discussions, demonstrate, and teach kids the importance of equality within sex, race, and even religion.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jordan, for your blog post. This is a really important topic that needs attention. I feel like it gets attention, but as soon as a little progress is seen it's like they back off the topic. I don't understand what's so hard or complicated about this issue. Everyone with the same qualifications, doing the same job, should get paid the same. I believe we as a whole can do much better if we were all treated equally in the workplace. Now, I do believe that men and women were created differently for a reason. There are things that women were made to do that men can't and vice versus. However, in cases where everything is the same besides gender, there's no reason to discriminate solely based upon that.
ReplyDeleteI think not only do women face wage disparity, but they also are doubted when it comes to being in charge or having power. There are some men and women that I know that don't believe a woman should be President. For non-sense reasons, such as "women are unstable mentally." As if having everything that comes with it on her plate would "too much" and she would break down or blow up some stuff. I believe a woman is just as capable as a man to run the country. Women multi-task on a daily basis between work, children, relationship, home, social life, and taking care of herself. Not to mention those that make it look easy, yet it's really strategic behind the scenes.
I'm not sure what it would take to get everyone on the same page of acceptance. Some people are just set in their beliefs. Maybe if some women continue to push through and make ways for other women to get on, those wouldn't have to depend on men for equal pay. However, some men in power should also get over the fact that a woman can actually qualify for a position. Some women can be overqualified and still get paid less than the average Joe. I don't really have any specific steps. However, it starts with the parents and the environment of the child.
Jordan,
ReplyDeleteI really like how you mentioned a huge problem about the Return of the Kings website is that it “radicalizes men who already believe they are superior to women.” I honestly can’t wrap my head around steps we can take to improve the quality of sexes.. but I know that websites like these are only contributing to the problem because it is validating sexist beliefs and opinions. I know we can’t make messages like the ones displayed on the website go away, but we can even the playing field by making sure that people receive more messages promoting equality and equal pay in the workplace.
Hi Jordan, I enjoyed reading your post. Clearly, the search for women's equality has not been easy or peaceful at all. I also agree with what other classmates have said and I believe that the biggest struggle is to find a balance and fairness for both women and men. I do also have to say that I looked at the website (Return of Kings) and it was disturbing, I couldn't believe how are they still allowed to have that website active! Moreover, I believe that there are hundreds and hundreds of things we could do to change this reality, bur it is not certainly something we can change by just raising awareness through campaigns. Society, education, even our own family have a lot to do with that.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing the website- and while it isn't surprising there are websites like this one all over the internet, it is none the less disturbing. I agree with many people in class that the inequalities women face in our society are too numerous to discuss in this response. Like many of the complex issues we have discussed this semester, I believe change must start with education and strong leadership. Patriarchal systems can only be broken if women are willing to continue fighting misogyny and continue speaking out against oppressive ideologies. Our children must hear our voices and see what is looks like to be a woman...not simply a sexual object. We, as women, must stop buying into consumerism which drives sexualization of girls and women and the negative messages from media.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sayra in that we need to look at ways we are not seen as inferior. It is important to look at both for sure but I think as much as we want to dwell on where the system is flawed we need to see the advances women have made so we can better understand how to get there in other areas but the answer is simple. The best way to fight women inferiority is to raise generations of girls who believe in their voice and have the skills and the confidence to push into worlds they want not matter the pre-existing standard. It will be challenging, as it has been, there is no way to shit down anyones opinion, especially those of men who think theirs matters more. All we can do is be a presence, keep pushing and prove them wrong. Think of it like this, it was not too long ago women had to use a mans name to put on her work, no recognition, these days we can be out and proud, but that does mean that more pf a presence will be met with more of a resistance.
ReplyDeleteI think when it comes to whether or not a female is right for specific jobs, gender also plays a role. I do not think that a company will come out and say outright that they did not pick a female for a specific job or position because they are female, but I think it is still a little bit involved in today’s workforce.
ReplyDeleteI think overtime it will all settle down. Just as we talked about race earlier in the year and how African Americans are beginning to pick up more CEO positions and head coaching roles in athletics, women will be next on the line to give it a shot and show they can also compete with men.
I have never heard of "Return of the Kings"...so I looked into it. As I am growing old, I am very disturb that we have people that still think that them however, I am no longer shocked. I want equality in the workplace and sports area its unfortunately that I don't see it happening in the near future. Please know That I will continue to advocate change and equality for all people.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing Jordan! Through this course and entering into the workplace, I have become more and more aware of the disparities among women versus men. The wage gap alone is crazy…I agree with Zadie…why is this such a difficult issue? To me it is complete common sense that women and men should get paid the same if they are doing the same job. I also have seen how it is more difficult for women to get promotions and transition into leadership positions. I mentioned this before but at LSU there is a major discrepancy of women represented versus men in the leadership roles….and we should be a leader in this as a higher education institution right? On a micro level, I think we as women have to advocate for ourselves and our positions and hopefully one day that will lead to a “macro” change.
ReplyDeleteThe pay gap is a great, tangible example of how women are valued in comparison to their male counterparts. Women are historically less valued for their time, knowledge, and expertise. I agree that the sexism and misogyny within our society continues to work as an insidious force that continuously threatens our endeavors to obtain equality. A more compact list of inequalities seen in other industries are: the disparity women face in Hollywood, the educational opportunities available to girls versus boys, the exclusion of women from certain careers in the military, the he said/she said in sexual assault trials where it is up to the victim to prove that she was raped and that rape can even be rape if she wears skirts, etc.
ReplyDeleteThere has to be a huge cultural shift in values in order to enact real change that would bring about equality of the sexes. Until that happens there will always be factions that will actively fight against and block efforts to equal the playing field between the sexes. Girls in school need to stop being discouraged from pursuing studies in STEM fields. We need national leaders to not discuss sexually harassing women as if it were a beloved pastime.