Author: kdh5409

Hello everyone and thanks so much for reading for all this time! I’ve enjoyed writing for this blog as well as all the other ones I’ve done this year. It’s crazy to think that this is my last blog post ever. Since I’ve covered a lot of topics about sexuality, I thought I would explore and dive into some of the different sexualities out there that I, personally, as well as a lot of others, may not know about. There are so many different sexualities because there are so many different forms of expression and endless opportunities of be who someone truly is.

In no way am I meaning to sound uneducated or trying to offend anyone by using these terms. In fact, I thought it was interesting to learn about all the different ways people express themselves, and I think it’s better for a community to be well informed and know a little more about something that they may not know a lot about.

Obviously we all know about heterosexual, homosexual, and bisexual. I feel like these are the most common ones we may see day to day.Upon researching I’ve learned about pansexuality, genderqueer, gender fluid, and a few more. Here’s the definition for each, provided by dictionary.com. Then I will dive a little deeper into each one.

Pansexual: Expressing or involving sexuality in all its forms, or sexual activity with people of any sexual orientation or gender identity.

Queer: A way of describing one’s gender that does not include the current definitions of “man” or “woman.” They may identify and express themselves as “feminine men” or “masculine women” or as androgynous, or outside of the categories “boy/man” and “girl/woman.” Not all genderqueer people are trans.

Gender fluid: noting or relating to a person whose gender identity or gender expression is not fixed and shifts over time or depending on the situation.

Intersex: A person born with a combination of genitals and/or chromosomes that are different from the medically defined “male”

Two spirit: a sexual and gender minority identity specific to Indigenous cultures. Two Spirit people hold masculine and feminine spirits. Before colonization, Two Spirit people were respected in many Indigenous communities and played valuable roles as educators, healers and leaders. After colonial contact, Two Spirit people were abused and assaulted

Here, I will go a little more in depth on some of the ones I learned about. When researching more about pansexuality, I found out that I lot of people who identify as pansexual also call themselves gender blind. This means that they don’t acknowledge gender or sex when looking for a partner. Instead, they focus on who they’re attracted to, not the sex that they’re attracted to. I also learned that a lot of pansexual people also identify as polyamorous. However, not to be confused, the two terms have different meanings. Polyamory is more about relationships with multiple people while pansexual is defined as being attracted to people regardless of gender or sexuality.

Upon researching more about two spirit, I found that it is something that people use to describe almost a third gender role in their culture. The term was described as ” a modern, pan-Indian, umbrella term”. I also learned that a lot of people think two spirit describes being gay. However, this was disagreed with: “Gay specifically is about attraction to a person of the same sex. Two Spirit is more about the embodiment of two genders residing within one person”.

Overall, I thought this research was really interesting and I learned about sexualities that I never even knew existed. Honestly, I think overall as a community we should learn more about the different sexualities that exist so we can be more informed.

For generations, makeup has been seen as a “female only” enterprise, but in later years, the world of vanity has completely changed.  It was around the mid 1800s when makeup became a generally one-sided spectrum; it represented femininity, beauty, and docility.

However before these times, like in Ancient Egypt, masculinity was an important part of culture, and makeup played a key role in that. Thick, black, cat-eye-like eyeliner was used to display power and wealth, while green eye shadow was believed to warn off illness. Nevertheless, the male makeup seen here, and in many other eras like 18th century France, 1930s Hollywood, and Ancient Rome, is nothing like the dramatic, colorful, and creative designs seen in makeup today. People like Prince and Pete Wentz initially popularized male makeup with the introduction of “guyliner”, but like I said, there were never these crazy eye shadow looks with fake eyelashes, foundation, and everything else in between.

Pictured above are possibly the two most influential and popular men in makeup as of right now. Both Jeffree Star and James Charles have millions of subscribers on YouTube and they’ve allowed others to do the same.

Vicotor Ramos, a  beauty influencer, opened up about how he believes the industry is really taking a turn towards genderless beauty: “I do believe that society has taken appropriate steps toward gender inclusivity… I believe we are heading in the right direction, but there are so many other things the beauty industry and society as a whole must work on…Defeminizing makeup would help this dynamic shift”.

Ramos is right. Why do we feminize makeup to a point where some people consider it weird for a man to be wearing it? Why is makeup seen as something that enhances femininity, when really it should be seen as something that helps anybody feel good about themselves. Why is makeup in general seen as something that enhances beauty?

Many males in makeup today receive endless amounts of hate, whether that be online or in person. Despite their success and message, it is clear that a lot of people still aren’t okay with the idea of male makeup influencers. Carine Green, one of these many influencers, shares his first experiences with makeup and the cruel things he went through from then on:  “Like many of the male figures I admired, I would receive so much hate as I walked the halls of my school.  People would shout things like “faggot,” or would grimace at the sight of me. They would push and bump into me purposefully, or worst of all they would watch and do nothing at all. They would make me feel worthless or ashamed for doing nothing more than expressing myself”.

Nevertheless, men in makeup continue to persist and rise up against hateful comments and words.

So what does the rise of men’s makeup say about masculinity?

Whatever they want it to say! Personally, I think the rise of men’s makeup gives anyone involved more opportunity for self expression and more opportunity to feel more confident with who they are. Instead of looking at it like covering up insecurities, I think it’s giving a lot of men an outlet for creativity and inventiveness.

Perhaps men in makeup is the very thing that will continue to drive the makeup industry to its rise. So many men are now openly wearing makeup (I see it around campus and I love it) and there are so many male influencers online that inspire others to be themselves and wear makeup if they want to.

 

While same-sex couples have been able to enjoy many advancements in society, some transgender Americans still feel isolated and left behind. In fact, many transgender Americans face homelessness, unemployment, depression, violence, suicide, and loads of other problems that seem to build on each other. U.S. news states the reasoning behind all of this suffering: “Family rejection leads to increased homelessness. Fear of being openly transgender makes it difficult to find a job and discourages transgender victims of crime from going to the police. Unemployment leads to more homelessness and with it, danger of sexual assault on the streets. Frequent harassment, public ridicule and ongoing isolation from family fuels anxiety and suicidal tendencies” (U.S. News). From young kids and teens who are unaccepted and kicked out of their homes, to adults seeking work, not much safety and acceptance exists for them in their day-to-day lives. Mahina, a transgender woman from Las Vegas has found support through the Salvation Army Shelter, “the only homeless shelter in the city that has a special “Safety Dorm” for transgender people” as she has not felt accepted in other places. The truth is, a lot of people are in the same situation as Mahina and feel that the “T” towards the end of LGBTQ is continuously ignored and there hasn’t been much progress throughout society.According to the National Center for Transgender Equality, in 2015 29% of transgender people lived in poverty, 30% had been homeless at some point in their lives, 47% had been sexually assaulted at some point in their lifetimes, and the unemployment rate among them was 15%. “In the month before the survey was taken, 39 percent reported severe psychological stress. Four in ten transgender people have attempted suicide” (U.S. News). These numbers are only the beginning.

Don’t get me wrong. Lesbians, gays, and bisexuals have faced absolutely unneeded discrimination. Furthermore, I think as I research more into the way transgenders are treated, and how their lives are so much different than coming out. Someone who wants to transition but remain at work may face discrimination from their peers. They can’t exactly hide that they’re transitioning and that’s the hard part for them. Getting health care may also be a struggle, especially if a person’s health records show a different gender. Even getting a name changed on a license takes so much more effort than should really be put in, effort that could be used in other places. Furthermore, many face uncomfortable questions about which body parts they have or have not removed.

Gender is so deeply ingrained in our culture. We have always identified a baby as either a boy or a girl. Based on that decision, we’ve bought boy clothes for boy babies and girl clothes for girl babies. We’ve painted their rooms a certain color and decorated it with certain toys for their gender. In adolescence and adulthood, we label bathrooms and locker rooms either “men” or “women”. In fact, some don’t even feel like one or the other, and this is a concept that a lot of people in today’s society struggle to grasp. For transgenders, it is so easy to feel lost. I sympathize with those who all the time feel like they don’t belong and that they can’t find their place.Today, there has been little to no help from government legislature to protect the transgender community. “The Trump administration has reversed two Obama-era policies protecting transgender people, one involving schools and the other, the military” (U.S. News). Now, schools are not required to allow transgender students to use the bathroom of their choice. Instead, it is now the school’s decision.

Clearly, something needs to be done to protect the transgender community. The discrimination they face and the lack of help from the government should not be flying through society as easy as it is. Something needs to be done.If you would like to donate to the transgender community, check out this website for organizations to donate to.

The 1980s era saw a major shift in society towards more modern global gay culture. However, there were still storms ahead for the battle of equality seen amongst gay rights. The catholic church continued their attack on the gays and legislation in places like the UK and US surely didn’t help. For example, the UK’s government added Section 28 to their Local Government Act that made it illegal for local authorities to support anything that promoted homosexual relationships as an alternative to a heterosexual “family life”. Furthermore, in 1986 Pope John Paul II labelled being gay as “evil” and ordered the Church to withdraw all support from gay Catholic organizations. Even the US army in 1982, declared that homosexuality was “incompatible with military service”. The 1980s, essentially, was a decade of sanctioned homophobia.

This era also marked the emergence of HIV and AIDS and the epidemic was commonly linked to gay men. The HIV epidemic has always been closely linked to the LGBTQ community. Because no one really knew anything about AIDS when it spread like wildfire in the 80s, many referred to it as the “gay plague” and many wanted this to lead to a ban on homosexuality. Sensational reporting in the press became increasingly homophobic and much of the media demonized the LGBTQ community. Many believed that AIDS was some form of punishment by God for homosexuals’ “sins”. Reverenced Jerry Falwell once argued that “AIDS is not just God’s punishment for homosexuals; it is God’s punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals”. Eric Jimenez-Lindmeier shares his experience growing up as a closeted teen in the 80s: “Being gay in the 80s meant being isolated from an identity. There was no discussion of homosexuality in school… not even in our year long “Health and Sexuality” class, even though we were in the middle of the AIDS crisis”. He recalls there being an extreme form of censorship during this time as “no men ever hugged, or held hands, or kissed on TV”. If they did, he claims that there would have been riots. Jimenez-Lindmeier shares more of his experience: “Worse yet, in the 80’s no one talked about actually being gay. Of course, there were rumors about others ― whispers here and there about a few of my classmates. One was picked on relentlessly for his “gay-sounding” voice, lack of sports abilities, and unwillingness to stand up to his bullies”.

In 1980 in the United States, Gay activists won support from the Democratic Party the party added to its platform a nondiscrimination clause that included sexual orientation. This support, along with the many LGBTQ activist campaigns, urged gay men and women to “come out of the closet” and enter the political field as candidates. The 1980s was also when National Coming Out Day was established and is now celebrated on October 11^th. Barney Frank, a member of the US House of Representatives, from this had the courage (for the time) to come out while serving in Congress in the 1980s. Tammy Baldwin also became the first openly gay politician to be elected to both the US House of Representatives and the Senate.

Two years after the Representation of the People Act 1918, the Times published warnings against movements to extend voting rights to women under 30. Women, at this time were in the midst of little political engagement and to men, most women were merely “scantily clad, jazzing flapper[s] to whom a dance, a new hat or a man with a car is of more importance than the fate of nations”. The flapper era is surrounded by a 1920s  female stereotype, and was a threat to the older generation of feminists as well as thought to be offensive to men in political power. However, many argue that the greatest achievement for women in the 1920s was realizing their worth and learning the value of their identity.

Women were given electoral equality with men in 1928, legislation brought equality in unemployment benefits, and women benefited from the Sex Discrimination Act which, in 1919, had given them access to higher professions like law. During the 20s, there was a large change in work patterns for women as third of unmarried women moved into paid employment with a range of jobs in medicine, education and industry. this also gave women more economic power, as making their own income gave them consumer capability.However, that’s not to say that things for women in the 1920s was all moving towards sex equality and empowerment. In fact, here are some things that women were not allowed to do during the 20s:

1. Have their own name printed on a passport- During this time, receiving a passport was utterly straightforward, with the exception of being a woman. For female travelers, passport applications could be rejected based on the name they used or because their husband was already issued a passport. Married women were issued a joint passport with their husbands and those that requested a separate passport were often denied or had troubles trying to use their maiden name, as the passport was always issued in their husband’s surname.
2. Have the freedom to wear what they want- Obviously this era was dominated by the rebellious flapper style outfits. This included knee-length skirts and bobbed haircuts. However, in many states, politicians were working in legislation to ban these types of clothes. In Virginia, a legislative bill (which failed to pass) attempted to prohibit women from wearing “shirtwaists or evening gowns which displayed more than three inches of her throat,” while Utah legislators worked to fine women whose skirts were “higher than three inches above the ankle”.
3. Keep their citizenship if they were marrying a non-citizen- Between 1907 and 1922, due to Expatriation Act, women who married non-citizens immediately lost their U.S. citizenship. According to Linda Kerber, a gender and legal history professor at the University of Iowa, during WWI, women in these circumstances were forced to register as “enemy aliens”. However, in 1922, the Cable Act was passed and this protected a woman’s citizenship no matter who she married.
4. Attain the same jobs as men- Women rapidly entered the workforce during WWI, but with the return of nationwide peace again, things drastically changed. Workplace restrictions made it extremely difficult for women to find jobs outside of their homes. “Protective laws” were created during this era that restricted how, when, and where a woman could work. Many women were even prohibited from working in jobs where a man could supposedly “negatively influence their behavior” such as taxi driving.
5. Work late at night- Some bans were put on women from working later into the night, another way of “protecting” them from rough men and health hazards. New York even put restrictions on working women, not allowing them to work waitressing shifts from 10pm to 6am.
6. Hold a steady job while pregnant- Women of the 1920s regularly faced unemployment after finding themselves “in the family way”. Mnay employers saw pregnant women as a form of nonproductivity in the workplace and some even fired women before their due date. Because of this, many women tried to conceal their pregnancies and some maternity clothing brands campaigned their clothing for women to be “entirely free from embarrassment of a noticeable appearance during a trying period”.

Gender equality can most certainly be subjective to where you are in world, not who you are. Here are some countries around the globe where gender inequality is at its worst.

• Jordan:

While education levels for women in Jordan are equal, if not slightly higher than men, outside of schooling they struggle for equal economic opportunity and rights. According to World Bank, the unemployment rate of women is double the amount of men, lying at around 20%. According to USAID, Jordan is has one “of the world’s lowest rates of women’s workforce participation at only 13.2 percent”. However, among this percentage, a great deal of these women have graduated from college and received a higher education. Additionally, violence against women in still highly prevalent and underreported due to societal norms and pressures. Marriage is often forced onto young girls as in the next few years, “early marriage could be as high as 33 percent among Syrian girls” (USAID).

• Egypt:

Egyptian women have experienced an alarming amount of sexual assaults in the past and it continues to happen regularly today. Egypt is also home to the largest number of women who have had to undergone genital mutilation. According to a survey conducted by the Ministry of Health and Population “a practice that more than 90 percent of married Egyptian women between ages 15 and 49 have been subjected to”. Amany Zeinab, a resident of the small village of Awlad Serag, states that “every girl must be circumcised so she can get married… It’s our … tradition”. In Egyptian societal norms, female genital mutilation is often looked at as a way to promote chastity, and most men prefer their wives to be circumcised before marriage. Because of this, many young girls do not have a choice and “all a girl can do is to pray that god eases the pain of the operation” (Reuters).

• Turkey:

Between 2008 and 2014, Turkey made absolutely no progress towards ending domestic violence. Throughout those 6 years, the amount of domestic violence remained the same. There is also a huge gap between the rights of men and women politically as well as in the work force. AS of 2015, almost half of Turkey’s cities had no political female representation and there was “only 28% of Turkish women [participating] in the workforce, compared with the European Union average of 63%” (BBC News). In 2014, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan even said himself that “women and men are not equal” and Minister Mehmet Muezzingolu suggested that the best career for a woman was motherhood. The outrage that has been seen from women by just these statements alone has contributed to rallying and activism towards women’s equality, but this has contributed to much of men’s violence against women.

• Iran:

As of 2016, Iran had been one of the six nations that had not ratified the United Nation’s Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women. In Iran, the last attempt to rally on women’s international day (a battle against the consequences that women faced if they worked) was in 2006 and police forces told everyone that the “demonstration [was] not authorized,” and to “disperse”. Since then, there has not been much improvement on the role women play in Iran’s society ad workforce. Furthermore, since 1979, women have been forced to use a hijab when in the presence of a non-related male. Even today, women run the risk of being arrested if this rule is not followed. In the past, women have been attacked with knives for not following these rules or for not wearing the “correct” clothing around a man.

• Saudi Arabia:

Saudi Arabia is perhaps one of the strictest nations for women. Here, women are considered minors that have to be escorted by male guardians, also known as mahrams. Women are not allowed to leave their houses without their male escort, otherwise they could face serious consequences. Women in Saudi Arabia were not give the right to vote until 2015, and it wasn’t until the end of 2018 where the first drivers license was issued to a woman. On June 24^th, 2018, the ban against female drivers was finally lifted. Women in Saudi Arabia are also not allowed to wearany clothes or makeup that “show off their beauty”. The majority of women wear an abaya – a long cloak – and a head scarf, and without it, they are harassed by religious police.

Different countries have their different religious beliefs of course, but many of these countries still face huge issues regarding gender equality and basic human rights that we acknowledge here in America like voting, protesting, and other political and societal standards.