Feminists, stop whining and go home.
It's so much easier than thinking about the information so excellently encapsulated by the movie, Miss Representation, a documentary about the debilitating influence of media on girls and society that aired recently on the OWN network.
We are so screwed. Feminist should stop whining about sexism in culture and women should go home like we keep telling them to. This too hard. It's easier to ignore the problems of gender inequity and it's definitely more fun to. I mean, who wants all this striving for equality. Girls get it. They're not stupid. That's why they're receding from public life.
Besides, it's not so bad here, is it? Women aren't thrown on pyres when their husbands die. Our girls aren't subjected to the torture of genital mutilation. So what if we don't have a female head of state for the next 500 years. Go get a facial. You'll feel better. If that doesn't work and you're still distracted by a vague feeling of injustice, develop a hobby. I hear recreational pole dancing is really fun.
So what if girls "opt-out" of leadership roles and think public life is the exclusive arena of boys and men? It's unpleasant out there in the big bad leadership world.
So what if boys think of them primarily as accessories that they acquire like so many shiny, molded cars? That's why I had girls. Duh.
And if boys feel pressure to grow up and take care of women, like they're children? That's what they're here for, right?
So what if the best thing my girls and yours think they can aspire to is the real life paper-doll cut-out of the object of a 15 year-old boys wet dream, which is the image of girls and women promulgated by our gaming, media and entertainment industries?
What if all that makes them happy? What is wrong with that? After all, this isn't human rights we're talking about. It's women's rights.
And, really, if more than 50 percent of our population is effectively denied the ability to pursue public service, to the detriment of the greater good, by a system of informal, entertaining bias, it's not like it's a major problem for a democracy or anything.
I mean, why do our girls need to understand the effects on their health, jobs ... life, of having no gender representation in Congress? It's homecoming weekend, after all.
The last spark of a feminist in me this morning is compelled to point out that all of this not making any of us happy. Twice as many girls experience depression as boys, beginning in adolescence. And the entire nation is focused on bullying, but won't talk openly about the fact that much of it's root cause is misogyny. That's just too much to wrap our tattooed-Barbie-benumbed brains around. Bullying is the norm in a culture that denigrates what is female (what do you think street harassment is?). It's why boys in religious private schools say they experience bullying at a higher rate than boys in public or non-religious private schools, for example. There are dots screaming and turning blue in the face to be connected.
I give up. No, I don't.The wealth disparity in our country is one of the largest in the industrialized world and continues to grow. Look into which countries have the largest wealth gaps and compare that to a ranking of those with the least gender equity. We need to educate ourselves, and our children, about the importance of these issues as a society. Like THAT's going to happen. Ok. I give do up. Aren't you glad?
Besides, it's boring. How do I compare with my friends, really excellent moms who aren't thinking about it much and are cheerfully taking their girls for a weekly manicure and the next showing of "Bad Teacher"? And dads who are proud of their girls and coach their soccer teams. These are the friends that I need most now, because misery loves company. They can be depressed with me.
There is no way to watch the movie without feeling the enormity of the issue at hand. Our country is cobbled by a structural misogyny that permeates every dimension of life. As a new friend, Emily Hoechst, a professor of Political Philosophy at both Georgetown University and George Mason University, pointed out during a recent screening of the movie, it's not men that are bad, it's the structure of our culture and the nature of our economy.
Louder now, so the fear of a female planet people can hear: Men are not sitting around in man-caves, watching football games and plotting devious ways to undermine women's equality, just like feminists are not trying to destroy boys' ability to be masculine. What we have instead is something much more insidious and difficult to deal with -- a systemized, traditional, destructive and amorphous bias that polarizes masculinity and femininity in extremely harmful ways.
There is no way to think deeply about the information imparted in Miss Representation without realizing its vast implications. Changing the status quo means literally changing everything from the way toys are packaged to the structure of capitalism. I'm stating for the record that the last statement is not a joke, it's not meant to be sarcastic or an exaggeration for effect. It's so pervasive that even those of us who have been ardent lifelong feminists, who want to change the world and work hard to do it, struggle with where to start and how to continue. It's exhausting.
Forget about teaching kids about women's history. At this point, I've been reduced to thinking about Barbie. The one I'm worried about doesn't look like Pink and wear tattoos, she wears an apron and is looks like Grace Kelly.
In the end however, in the words of a savvy girl who recently saw the movie, "those people (women fighting for the right to be fully human) aren't glamorous and they don't look like they're having fun."
That pretty much says it all.
Follow Soraya Chemaly on Twitter: www.twitter.com/schemaly
Yes we like women's bodies and women like to use those bodies to attract men. This is not sexism, it's human sexuality and its time feminist get over it. These images they speak of are an expression of our sexual nature as it provides a pleasant stimulus to men who view them. It does not make them think less of women but it might cause them to think about more than whatever activity they are currently engaged in assuming it's not of a overtly sexual nature.
I would not dare to police the thoughts rushing through a women's mind as she witnesses some good looking man doing some manly stuff so I don't think women need to get in men's head to tell them how and when to be turned on by women, or how much of said stimuli is acceptable. Please get out of our heads and less us be experience our passive sexual desires without shame or ridicule from the likes of you.
There is much to learn from the many "Female Political Leaders", and the countries in which they live. Living in a Kardashian oriented society, is actually quite sickening and a detriment to all American Women who direct their energy towards a more sane, and responsible life commitment. There is hardly any energy or force that can be noted, in trying to discredit the "Booty Babes" in this nation. You reap what you sow. But there is a way out, and it is an obvious one.
oooh, and a question i've been pondering for quite some time, ya know, becauase i'm CONSTANTLY thinking of new ways, and old ways, and sideways, subliminally, overtly, etc., women are struggling so badly in the 21st century! here, check this out!! (from the same article):
"The rise of female economic power is by no means limited to the U.S., nor necessarily to the young. Late last year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that for the first time, women made up the majority of the workforce in highly paid managerial positions. The change in the status quo has been marked enough that several erstwhile women's advocates have started to voice concerns about how to get more men to go to college. Is there an equivalent to Title IX for men?"
- Workplace Salaries: At Last, Women on Top
By Belinda Luscombe Wednesday, Sept. 01, 2010 TIME Magazine
WoW!! all the pressing issues about young women, and how poorly they're doing in this country! i now see the necessity of this article and that important film. clearly, we are being duped by the sexist media, i mean, just look at the evidence!!!!! would boys be thriving so greatly if it weren't true??
"Here's the slightly deflating caveat: this reverse gender gap, as it's known, applies only to unmarried, childless women under 30 who live in cities. The rest of working women — even those of the same age, but who are married or don't live in a major metropolitan area — are still on the less scenic side of the wage divide."
And, since this is the second comment to cite a Time Magazine article about the rise of female economic power, I will add that a picture tells a thousand words. Take a look at Time's covers for the last 50 years to see who they think is relevant in our culture. For example (yes, as pointed out in the movie), there have been five covers featuring John Boehner in during his tenure as Speaker of the House. Nancy Pelosi during hers, zero. What's up with that?
for good measure, i'd also like to point out how young women of today are still so subdued by this country's inherent sexism, that their earnings are just a fraction of what their oppressor males earn. just look at this wonderful statistic from the New York Times, which clearly shows this:
"The analysis was prepared by Andrew A. Beveridge, a demographer at Queens College, who first reported his findings in Gotham Gazette, published online by the Citizens Union Foundation. It shows that women of all educational levels from 21 to 30 living in New York City and working full time made 117 percent of men’s wages, and even more in Dallas, 120 percent."
- article:By SAM ROBERTS
Published: August 3, 2007, NYTimes
here's more evidence of women lagging behind their male counterparts:
"But the new study suggests that the gap is bigger than previously thought, with young women in New York City, Los Angeles and San Diego making 17%, 12% and 15% more than their male peers, respectively. And it also holds true even in reasonably small areas like the Raleigh-Durham region and Charlotte in North Carolina (both 14% more), and Jacksonville, Fla. (6%)."
- Workplace Salaries: At Last, Women on Top
By Belinda Luscombe Wednesday, Sept. 01, 2010 TIME Magazine
And, despite the article you cite both above and below (the one below from 2007, which predates the recession) these statistics stand (from May 201
1 census of Fortune 500 Boards between 2004 and 2011, http://theabd.org/). Men still dominated boardrooms. In 2010, in Fortune 100 companies, they held 82.0 percent of board seats; in 2004, 83.1 percent. Although women gained 16 board seats―7 occupied by minority women―the overall 1.1 percentage point increase over 6 years was not significant. Fortune 500 boards were less diverse: Men held close to 85 percent of all board seats. Approximately one-half of Fortune 500 company boards were composed of 20 percent or fewer women and/or minorities. It's even wore when you look at Fortune 500 board leadership positions, where men (mostly white men) held 94.9 percent of board chair positions.
Love the "equivalent of Title IX for men" question by the way!! That's a hoot!
You know, be the change that you want and all that.
here, you can read this:
http://www.ncpa.org/pdfs/ba392.pdf
a fairy exhaustive look at the trends for women in the work place.
boys and depression?!? blasphemy!! it's little girls who suffer from our evil patriarchal tendencies who still need the saving!:
"Teen girls and boys are both at risk for suicide. Teen girls are more likely to attempt suicide, but teenage boys are four to five times more likely to die by suicide." - National Institute of Mental Health
Clearly, clearly, the media at large has a bias against women. men are nothing but REVERED in sitcoms, commercials, films...etc. we almost never see a woman SLAP a man in the face now do we??? fathers in sitcoms are never portrayed as indulgent, selfish, aloof, emotionally abusive apes now are they??? teenage boys are always the prototype which we model our children after, right???! they're never slacking, drug addicted losers, no!!!
http://www.askmen.com/top_10/entertainment_300/327_top_10_list.html
- see this wonderful portrayal we have of our men in the media!! i'm flattered and proud to be male, because our creative's have such a high opinion of us!!
and when you're finished, just google male bashing, and you'll see a wealth of very respectful, non-violent advertisements, tv shows, films, radio ads, banners/posters/billboards, clothing (for children, mind you) and accessories that do nothing but sing the praises of men and boys!!
"The gender gap in higher education overall is widening in favor of women. Colleges are handing out 200,000 more degrees to women than to men this graduation season — even as the debate over attracting women to the sciences continues." -NPR May 17, 2005
yes, yes, yes, we still need to bolster women's self esteem, it's obvious how academically, they are CLEARLY falling behind, and most ill-equipped to handle the big bad world of men:
"At age 21, women are more likely to be enrolled in college than men, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics‘ National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. Each year over a 10-year period, this survey interviewed about 9,000 young men and women who were born during the years 1980 to 1984. Respondents were ages 12 to 17 when first interviewed in 1997, and ages 21 to 27 when interviewed for the tenth time in 2006-2007.
During the October when they were age 21, nearly half (46 percent) of women were attending college compared with 36% of men. This difference in college-enrollment rates stems from three factors:
Women were more likely to have graduated from high school;
among high school graduates, women were more likely to attend college; and
once enrolled in college, women were less likely than men to leave college between school years."-Brenda Turner, Oregon Employment Dept, 20 April 2009
I've raised both boys and girls and watched many boys and girls fail and succeed in school. I think the biggest difference today is that boys are more video game oriented than girls, and as they get older, more porn addicted. In general, they're just more fascinated by electronic distractions, which lead to shorter attention spans and a constant craving for immediate gratification.
Do you have a better explanation? Or any suggestions?
One thing we must never confuse - just because girls are doing better doesn't automatically mean boys are being disregarded. If girls suddenly began to fail more often, statistically boys would be doing better, but this would not be a positive outcome for anyone.
i think boys education is suffering because of quotes like the one you just gave. there is a wealth of disinformation used to distract ppl from the unfriendly ways boys are treated in primary school. i'll take an article from the huffington post for example:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dan-brown/why-so-few-male-teachers-_b_87562.html
truth is, boys are sent wildly disparate notions as to how to behave, not to mention several outside factors that are a detriment to young boys' maturing process. remember the abhorrent clothing line from that sexist todd harris goldman?? boys are dumb, throw rocks at them?? this type of wear has thankfully been taken out of most stores, but was an acceptable item of clothing to wear to school no more than a few years ago. how this disturbing message if pushed on children is beyond my comprehension! i understand the animosity between men and women as adults, but when it's pushed into schools is something completely different.
'There are more male teachers than in the past and schools are MUCH more active and boy friendly than in the past."
Incorrect. The vast majority of school teachers are female, 82%. Even colleges have a 37% male / 63% female female professor ratio, and the proportion of females is increasing.
In grade school, when boys first fall behind, females teachers are over 90%. Few males want to become elementary teachers due to fear of being accused of child molestation. Such a majority of female teachers (as good as they are, and there are many good ones) can lead to unconscious "pro-female" bias, ("Now, why can't the boys sit still and study like the girls?")
A major part of the problem is the NCLB and the push for better math and reading scores and the need for local schools to get federal funds. Recess and PE, originally incorporated daily into children's lives, has all but been dropped. This affects boys much more than girls, and without some time to blow off steam and energy, they find it hard to concentrate.
Boy's have been disregarded for some time.
truth is, i can't fathom how anyone is surprised at this information. how these news anchors can say that women outnumber and outperform in in any educational context is alarming in 2011 is absurd! this trend is a quarter century old, and is just now even beginning to enter our consciousness.
Well, you are doomed.
STOP ASKING FOR PERMISSION.
No one is going to hold your hand. No one is going to give anything to you.
And no one is going to stop you when you talk yourself out of anything and everything before you even bother to try because you decide that "society is sexist."
we came here with it
and we would not let it go
no tribe or mountain would block us
our own reflection is all we’d ever know
filtered through the masters male line
distilled ultra masculine brew
harsh and unforgiving
the women too
a virgin continent
obviously the hand of god
our very own tribe of the israelites
hopefully never revealing christian facade
resources for industry and farming for wealth
people exploited as animals as well
natives and naturals died out
now normal in hell
why we compete
earth egg purpose to enjoy
as if we were all selfish male cells
was there more to human than little boy
There was a brief period, with the feminist movement and the sexual revolution, where maybe this was not the case. It didn't take long before capitalism worked its magic, and co-opted these movements. Where, in the 1950's women played the gender role out of duty, now the role is enforced through a redirected sexual "empowerment".
What is the way out?
I dont believe this. I'd like to hear the author justify that statement. Something to keep in mind:
http://www.usatoday.com/money/jobcenter/workplace/bruzzese/story/2011-10-31/women-work-survey/51009676/1
You mentioned that "Until domestic work is more equally split between working men and women (still responsible for more than 85% of the work at home)"
According to Ruth Davis Konigsberg, in the Aug 08, 2011 issue of Time magazine,
"American husbands and wives have never before had such similar workloads. According to data just released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, men and women in 2010 who were married, childless and working full time (defined by the BLS as more than 35 hours a week) had combined daily totals of paid and unpaid work — which is to say, work at the office and all the drudgery you have to do at home — that were almost exactly the same: 8 hr. 11 min. for men, 8 hr. 3 min. for women. For those who had children under the age of 18, women employed full time did just 20 min. more of combined paid and unpaid work than men did, the smallest difference ever reported. No, men were not doing the same amount of housework as women, but neither were women pulling the same number of hours at the office as men."
Read more: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2084582,00.html#ixzz1cUhgEQXO
Two points...
A- Who decides what constitutes domestic work...meaning, who makes the list?
Are you saying he's only doing 15% of her list?
B- Is she doing more than 15% of the car maintance, yard work, home maintanance? Those examples of domestic work are often deemed to be in a seperate pile labeled "men only."
Modern feminism seems to be little more than trying to get men to do more dishes...is this really all that's left?
http://pewresearch.org/pubs/536/working-women
Instead of underneath a mattress.
R/ PRONESE
Superior article! We need more pieces with this kind of shock-to-the-system reasoning! If I could add something meaningful, I would—but you have set out the problem with great clarity and the force of conscience!
Here's to a new and constructive equilibrium with all the speed possible,
William