Backlash

This article regarding women’s rights, equality, and the wrath of all the cycles in between was a fascinating eye opener. The idea, and mention that all woman are trapped in this endless spiral of a winning and losing system of equality is exhausting. Until the 1970s, women’s liberties were stagnant, which is when there was noticeable incline in progress towards their rights, but the progression still seems unattainable (Faludi 47). In the mid-19th century, educated women suffered a man shortage. About 28 percent of college educated women were married, and because they postponed marriage and children for education and careers, they were criticized for creating “race suicide” (49). Starting in 1910, women activists started the feminist movement. Many parties and unions were founded to battle with better pay and working conditions. The national birth control movement was also making waves. Revolts against feminism were raging, with feminism being the cause of everything from divorce and infertility. Women were stuck in this tradition role where it is their obligation to be the passive, subordinate women and the wife that stays home with the children, where she is blissfully happy with domestic life. However, with all the men gone to war for World War II, a need for these domestic housewives to get out there and work to provide for their families caused women to be recognized as something more than just housewives. A small victory was won for women, but soon the husbands returned home, and the women were told to basically go back to their real jobs, homemaking. Some did not retreat, but they did settle for jobs geared toward their gender (54). The article says, the backlash in the past has been caused by feminists that have pushed forward way too fast and is the cause of too much change too rapidly. It has worn women out (58). Presently, it’s stagnation that is wearing out women because they feel helplessly to any real, new change. A good population of men did not support women’s independence and equality. A study conducted in the 1980s showed that men preferred women stick to their traditional roles of staying home and caring for children and men continue to be the “breadwinner“. A small percent. Less than a quarter actually support equality for women, whereas the rest of the male population are resentful toward the liberties and freedoms women have. Men do not define masculinity as being a leader, athlete, decision maker, or just simply being born male. Men have the preconceived thought that to be masculine means to be a good provider for their family (65). The Census officially stopped defining the head of the house as a man, because it is just as obvious that men and women can, and do, share this role equally. I am taking a Social-Conflict view while reading this article, and writing this essay. I do believe as a society we need both counterparts to be functional in certain instances, but it has become more apparent that these roles can be occupied by either sex. It is no longer that we need men to care and provide for us, just as so men don’t need women to bare the traditional role as a homemaker, child-rearer. Our household, for example is the epitome of the traditional family, but by choice. I am encouraged to go to school so that I can be a provider as well once my four children are in school. Until then, I do what I expect of myself and not what my husband expects of me. Women face these backlashes of inequality every few decades. Whereas men never have to. You don’t see men’s marches for equal pay, better working conditions, less discrimination. They have earned it just from being born a male. Heck, even super hero’s are often muscle bound men, while the people they are saving are the damsels in distress that are weak and often grateful that they‘d been saved. Wonder Woman was even portrayed postwar of going weak in the knees (52). That’s like saying, we created this female super hero, but know we can take away her powers. It’s like the two steps forward and two steps back thing that women suffer due to backlash. Women will continue to feel inferior to men in the work place because the glass elevator will keep women from climbing to the top. Mostly because women workers consequently pay the “mothers tax” even if they are not a mother. When employers have the opportunity to hire, they choose a male over female primarily because of the risk factors involved with insurance, pregnancy, maternity leave, and having to pay someone else to do that job while they are gone. It is also believed that inequality causes stress. From a female perspective I can see how a women would feel stress from being discriminated against because of her gender. Knowing that I will graduate within the next few years and enter the work force making one quarter of a dollar an hour less than my male counterpart is frustrating. Why is that' We will have had had the same amount of education, the same number of field work exposure and internship. Why then will he get the job over me' Why then will he earn more than me' I know there are more efforts being made to bridge this gap of equal pay and less gender discrimination but it is there. It is amusing from the article the part about the nation offering women the Miss America beauty pageant in place of equal respect. That is what women need, a chance to parade around in bathing suits while being critiqued on how well they look and what they’ll do to change the world. In what way is that a equal opportunity for respect' I wonder who came up with that idea'