Group items tagged

This webpage, an essay previously published in Ms. Magazine, a feminist magazine explores why some young women fear feminism. It explores why this fear might be present. Interestingly, it explores gender consciousness and how this changes once placed within the feminist lens. Feminism takes the consciousness of womanhood and asks questions and analyzes how this consciousness of womanhood can help and harm woman publicly and privately.

This is part of "Child Psychology, A Contemporary Viewpoint" which discusses gender-role standards and stereotypes, gender differences in development, biological factors in gender differences, the influence of the family on gender typing, and extrafamilial influences on gender roles.

This website is covering child psychology and children's development related to gender. This page discusses gender roles, stereotypes, and differences. Also mentioned briefly is that there is no evidence of differed gender roles if boys and girls raised by gays and lesbians. Other influences on gender roles, including television and school is discussed. Also mentioned is the fact that most people, especially children are actually to various degrees both masculine and feminine, not completely one or the other.

The terms "gender" and "sex" are interchangeable for many people. This idea has become so common, particularly in western societies, that it is rarely questioned. Nevertheless biological sex and gender are different; gender is not inherently connected to one's physical anatomy. Sex is biological and includes physical attributes such as sex chromosomes, gonads, sex hormones, internal reproductive structures, and external genitalia. At birth, it is used to identify individuals as male or female. Gender on the other hand is more complex. Along with one's physical traits it also entails what one's internal sense of self, whether it be male, female, both or neither as well as one's outward presentations and behaviors related to that perception. This relates to the image due to categorization of gays and lesbians. Their gender is based on the perception of themselves, not their biological sex.

This article from the NY Times site talks about the impact that Betty Friedan's book "The Feminine Mystique" had on altering women's perceptions of their gender roles and their place in American society. While the article is a little lengthy the first page alone offers a great deal of history and statistics concerning the gender gap and its persistence in American culture.

I was shocked to have read this quote, populated by the United Nations, but the truth hurts - "No society treats its women as well as its men." This is the conclusion from the United Nations Development Program, as written in its 1997 Human Development Report [source: UNDP]. Almost 50 years earlier, in 1948, the United Nations General Assembly had adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which specified that everyone, regardless of sex, was entitled to the same rights and freedoms. The 1997 Human Development Report, as well as every Human Development Report that followed, has highlighted that each country falls short of achieving that goal. The severity of the shortfall varies by country; Nordic countries such as Sweden, Norway and Iceland, for example, are routinely hailed as having the smallest gender gaps. In the developing world, however, women face unfairness that can be hard to fathom. In this article, 10 examples of gender inequality are examined - 10: Professional Obstacles 9: Limited Mobility 8: Violence 7: Feticide and Infanticide 6. Restricted Land Ownership 5: Feminization of Poverty 4: Access to Health Care 3: Freedom to Marry and Divorce 2: Political Participation 1: Education Attainment This site is useful in exploring this week's image largely because it is breaking free and bringing to surface the lack of basic rights compared to those of the male gender that women has had to fight for. Heidi Beckles

This page is from the World Health Organization web site which provides a wealth of information about a vast number of health and welfare issues under the umbrella of the United Nations. Here the definitions of the terms "sex" and "gender" are discussed. These terms can often be confused and I found this page to offer a clear definition of the two terms.

According to a survey of 3,500 Americans performed by Families and Work Institute released in March 2009, traditional gender roles are changing: there is has been an increase in the expectation of men and women to share in paid work as well as taking care of the home and children. This article discusses some interesting changes in percentages (compared to prior years) in the increased role of men in the home and women's increased ambition for jobs with more responsibility.

According to the World Health Organization, "Sex refers to the biological and physiological characteristics that define men and women. Gender refers to the socially constructed roles, behaviors, activities, and attributes that a given society considers appropriate for men and women." Behavior is never either nature or nurture. It is always a very complex interweaving of both. Because behavior is always an interaction of nature and nurture, socialization can modify even significant sex differences.

The American Progress site dedicates itself to the improvement of the livelihood of Americans. This article addresses the trends in gender equality in the workplace and the deep focus Americans have on clean energy as they look toward the future. By using research of female roles in the job market, the article encourages the presence of women as an equal part of the clean energy workforce. Based on the effects that the clean energy movement will have on the entire population, this article insists on equal representation of ideas form both genders to reach ultimate success.

History.com displays a very informative set of videos, images and articles discussing the meaning behind "Rosie the Riveter", the iconic image associated with gender equality. World War II marked the beginning of changes in gender ideologies as women found themselves carrying out duties that were typically filled by men. Women were also called to the war and the empowerment of a revolution began. 

This is an article by the International Labour Organization. This is an article describing some of the gender inequalities in the 1970s.

This article is old, but it still offered insight into some of the gender inequalities in the 1970s. This is independent research Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Are women in the media only portrayed as sex icons? Statistics Show a Massive Gender Imbalance across Industries. This site touches on some really central issues women in our society are collectively faced with, - with no fear change in the near future. The Women's Media Center has provided dismaying statistical data on the status of women in U.S. media. The report draws attention to the striking underrepresentation of women who determine the content of news, literature, and television and film entertainment, as well as the negative portrayal of women in entertainment television and film. As a consequence, the role of women has had major societal effects, including gender inequity. MissRepresentation.org, an organization that "exposes how American youth are being sold the concept that women and girls' value lies in their youth, beauty and sexuality," is campaigning to shed light on this issue and empower women and young girls to challenge the limiting media labels and recognize their other potentials. The goal of MissRepresentation.org is to expose how media influences youth in America into believing that youth, beauty and sexuality are the driving forces behind a girl's values. The media is a powerful instrument of change and change can only occur once we are able to see the type of force this tool has cast on society. It's up to us women to use the force of media to influence positive change and correct the representation of women. Lastly, stated in this article by Marie Wilson, Founding President of The White House Project, an organization that seeks to get more women into elected office, says, "You can't be what you can't see." This site is useful in exploring this week's image because it describes the leading force that drives the culture of society and the accepted notions constructed towards "woman"; the media. Heidi Beckles

This Washington Post article takes a look at a new and interesting way that Sweden is encouraging gender equality. The nation has implemented a grading system at several movie theatres where female characters in films are scored based on their proximity to a fully "developed" character. The "Bechdel" grading system was constructed by an "American cartoonist", and includes several standards a character must meet in order to earn an "A" rating. "Sweden is the fourth most gender-equal country," and the film grading system, they hope, continues to keep this topic at the forefront of citizen's minds.

This page on the NBC news website offers a surprising twist to the story of the Civil Rights Movement. It brings up a great point, why is Rosa Parks one of the only women we know about as an icon of that era? Racial equality was being fought for by those in the Civil Rights movement but what about gender equality? This story gives us more to think about when we look at the image of Rosa Parks and the white man on the bus.

This page from the Oberlin Collge LGBT Community History site describes the link between the Women's Movement of the early 1970s and lesbianism. The page offers insight into why many women were undergoing huge changes in the way they thought about traditional gender roles and sexuality in the late 60s and early 70s.

The American Civil Liberties Union seeks to "defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties" that are afforded to citizens as outlined in the U.S. Constitution. This page from the ACLU site addresses LGBT rights and seeks to allow LGBT individuals to live "free of discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity". The history of LGBT civil rights cases goes back to 1936 and continues to this day.

This particular link is to an article on the history of women's education and rights to equal rights in terms of receiving the same education as do their male counterparts.  The website, as a whole, provides great insight into the history of women's rights in many aspects. It also traces the triumphs and successes of women throughout history. 

In a study released by Pew Research Center in May 2013, women are the primary breadwinner of 40 percent of households with children under the age of 18. Although 51 percent of those polled thought that children are better off with a mother staying home, 79 percent thought that women should not return to the "traditional" role. Eight percent thought that children were better off if the father stayed home. I agree with the ending comment that this is insulting to men…the work-life conflict is not just a woman's issue.

In a study released by Pew Research Center in May 2013, women are the primary breadwinner of 40 percent of households with children under the age of 18. Although 51 percent of those polled thought that children are better off with a mother staying home, 79 percent thought that women should not return to the "traditional" role. Eight percent thought that children were better off if the father stayed home. I agree with the ending comment that this is insulting to men…the work-life conflict is not just a woman's issue.

This webpage explores the three waves of feminism. The first is the one that we usually think of when we think about early feminism, Rosie the Riveter, yes we can and suffrage. The second wave coincided with many other civil rights activist groups, we saw the introduction of women of color and lower class women. We saw a focus on family, sexuality and reproductive rights. The third, and current, wave is about defining roles and identities for themselves and not based on patriarchy or misogyny. It's okay to embrace sexuality, sexualized appearances, etc, as long as it's a choice and not forced.