Women

Leave a comment Posted on by ojg5046 Women

This article highlights the stridea women in the Americas have made in leadership and politics in the past decade. Most notably, Bolivia was found to have more than 50% of its leaders as female, almost double the world average for gender equality in government. Mexico, Costa Rica, and Argentina were also found to beat the world average, yet their scores were still less than perfectly equal/were dominated by men. The United States did not meet the numbers necessary for the world average, with only about 20% of its leaders as female vs the world average’s approximate 30%.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.economist.com/the-americas/2018/07/28/latin-america-has-embraced-quotas-for-female-political-candida

The gaps in equality are blatant in our region of the world. The data shows that despite our close radius, the United States has fallen behind when it comes to gender equality compared to South American countries and Mexico. Based on the information we have learned about political equality in this course, we can contribute this to Latin America’s popular quota laws that require a certain number of seats to be held for female leaders so as to promote gender equality. Would these laws work in the United States? How long do you think it would take to catch up to Mexico and South America without these laws?

Leave a comment Posted on by ojg5046 Women

https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2019/06/05/the-world-is-a-long-way-from-meeting-its-gender-equality-target

This article compares the differences between countries with higher rates of gender equality than others. It focuses on GDP and income equality as its main factors for comparison, and decides that richer countries naturally have better rates of gender equality. Based on what we have learned about economics and gender in class, we can further explain this issue by remembering that women on average work harder and longer than men do all around the world, so richer countries with more people working are more likely to have more women and therefore more reason to support womens rights to bolster the economy and labor force. Also, richer countries are less traditional and conservative than poorer countries who do not have access to higher education, public resources, and technology to lessen the importance of someone at home to do housework. All of these factors affect women being able to detract themselves from the home and gain employment and equal rights to their male counterparts, and because these factors are found to be more prevalent in richer countries, the phenomenon of richer countries scoring better for gender equality makes sense.

1 Comment Posted on by ojg5046 Women

This article highlights the strides women have taken in government around the world, as well as their exemplary performance in handling the corona virus pandemic. The article attributes this to the early actions taken by these women to protect their citizens over concerns for economic issues, which most male-ran countries have chosen with disastrous results.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.forbes.com/sites/avivahwittenbergcox/2020/04/13/what-do-countries-with-the-best-coronavirus-reponses-have-in-common-women-leaders/amp/

Although the article exemplifies the accomplishments of women around the world, it unfortunately still treats these women in a sexist way at times. For example, in the opening paragraph, it reads “women are stepping up to show the world how to manage a messy patch for our human family”. It places these women in the “mother” or “caretaker” role, while a male leader would be labeled as a leader without hesitation. We have learned about this phenomenon of writers letting their bias effect their writing style in class, and this is a perfect example. Have you noticed any other instances in the article where the author makes a mistake in this way? Do you think that this downplays the accomplishments these women have made?

Leave a comment Posted on by aet5217 Gender, Stereotypes, Women

When Mom’s Zoom Meeting Is the One That Has to Wait

The article generally sums up the experiences of women working from home during the pandemic. It talks about how though in 2020, more women are a part of the workforce, being stuck at home with their children has taken us back more steps than forward in the cause if feminism and equality. The article talks about the experiences of some women who have had to hold off doing their work and attending zoom meetings at home because they, along with their children are all self isolating at home and the women have naturally taken on the nurturing role.

 

The article ties into class themes of how female politicians and females in the workforce in general are seen as the ones who are solely responsible to take care of household work as well as tend to their children because day cares and schools are shut down. Women in the workforce always have to face the dilemma between choosing their careers or choosing a family life if not both, whereas for men, that distinction is a lot clearer and defined. The article reminds me of female political office aspirants who are all asked if they would be able to balance a political career with their family life which men are generally not asked. Though more women are in the workforce now, and more women are starting to get into politics, the coronavirus pandemic seems to have set us back in time with regard to feminism and the struggle after the pandemic might be much worse than it already was. The article makes you think about where all societal problems stem from, and it very simply looks like all these problems start from home. How we treat and respect our peers start from our households and though we may be making social advances in society, no movement seeks to make a difference in the household level.

Leave a comment Posted on by Tom Lichtel Democrats, Women

Mfume to Return to Congress, Succeeding Elijah Cummings

This article talks about Representative Kweisi Mfume’s election to represent Baltimore in Congress. Mfume had previously served in the same representative seat from 1986-1996, and had been the president of the NAACP in the time in between. This was a special election in lieu of the death of Representative Elijah Cummings.

Mr. Mfume took back this seat after over two decades away from it, but it seems like he retained his prominence in the Baltimore area, and was thus able to get re-elected. With that said, what really got my attention was one seemingly insignificant detail: Mfume won the Democratic primary for that seat against Maya Rockeymoore Cummings, the wife of the late Representative Cummings. We learned earlier in the year that the most common way for women to get elected to Congress until around the 1960s was that when sitting congressmen died, their wives often ran for the seats they left vacant, and won them. I always found this to be curious, but it was a surprise to see that something similar had happened in Baltimore, except in this instance, the wife of the late congressman did not prevail. Maya Rockeymoore Cummings was not just the wife of Elijah though; she was once the chair of the Maryland Democratic Party, and has had a distinguished career in her own right. So, in that regard, it’s a lot different than the politics of the early 1900s, but in any case, it caught my attention.

1 Comment Posted on by sjs6174 African-Americans, Gender, Race, Women

In a Field Dominated by Men, She’s in Charge

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/05/business/women-electricians.html?searchResultPosition=1

The New York Times narrates the story of Tonya Hicks, an incredibly inspiring woman in Atlanta, Georgia.  Hicks had completed 5 years of electrician school only to be faced with an even more difficult roadblock; blatant sexism in the industry.  Hicks had been denied work, sexually harassed and told that she would not progress anywhere in her career.  Instead of complying and following what she was told, she decided to create her own space where she can live up to her full potential as an electrician.  Hicks created her own company against all odds.  2.4% of electricians are women and only 9.5% of electrical contracting businesses are owned by women.  Not only did Hicks create her own electrician business but she also helped create a venture which gives women training in male dominated industries.

I think Tonya Hicks is incredibly inspiring.  She followed her passion of building things and playing with trucks and messy things and pursued a passion in a field she is excited about.  Hicks’s struggle is not a struggle that she faces alone.  Many female politicians also face a glass ceiling between their interest areas and then gender, racial and sexual barriers and the productivity and success they could garner.  In class, we learned about Shirley Chisholm and her Presidential run.  This reminds me a lot of Hicks’s story.  Chisholm was a hard worker, had great policy initiatives and had a good amount of support, however, she was widely looked at as the “joke” candidate due to her gender and religion.  Hicks is also very well qualified, smart, hardworking, and great at her job, but she too had many doubters and disbelievers.  I am happy she is able to prove them wrong as she expands her company to Europe next year.

2 Comments Posted on by Tom Lichtel African-Americans, Democrats, Voting, Women

Black Leaders Want a Black Woman as Biden’s Running Mate. But Who?

This article discusses presidential candidate Joe Biden and his search for the optimal running mate in the 2020 general election. He is the presumptive Democrat nominee, and has already committed to running alongside a woman in 2020. The article discusses the pressure on Biden to choose a black woman for that role.

This seems highly relevant to what we’ve learned in class. In the March 17 module, the integral role played by women of color and specifically black women in in the Democratic Party is highlighted. African American women vote in comparably higher proportions for Democrats than anyone else, and Barack Obama garnered heavy support from them in his 2008 and 2012 campaigns. African American women strongly supported Hillary Clinton as well in 2016, but many black leaders today encourage Biden to consider black women such as Senator Kamala Harris of California and Stacey Abrams. This would ingratiate Biden among African American women voters, and reaffirm their support in the upcoming election, rather than take it for granted.

4 Comments Posted on by srm5803 Appearance, Gender, Men, Stereotypes, Voting, Women

When Mom’s Zoom Meeting Is the One That Has to Wait

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/22/us/politics/women-coronavirus-2020.html

Social interaction has been narrowed down to essentially one platform over the course of the past month: zoom. According to the NYTimes article, women who earn a lower salary than their significant others are often also handed domestic work. These adjustments are tolling for all, but added aggravations falling onto a single person causes anxiety and affirm gender roles. For Saba Lurie, the stress became so great “Her bathroom became an emergency office.” Lurie has been tending to her two daughters while her husband continues in his normal routine. As a private psychotherapist, many of her clients have expressed the same sentiment. Prior to the crisis, women spent four hours a day doing unpaid work compared to 2.5 hours for men. This has only worsened with the outbreak. Having childcare has gone out the window for most and is hitting after stinging political defeats for women. The two seemed disconnected, but the representation remains constant; lacking and discouraging. This is a topic we discussed at the very beginning of the semester as we reviewed gender roles. I️  find it disappointing to hear how these issues have been dismissed in the wake of an emergency. While it may not be urgent nor deadly, it is important and changes the trajectory of the lives of countless females and male counterparts.

2 Comments Posted on by sfd5363 Women

The Coronavirus Is a ‘Disaster’ for Feminism

This article discusses the difficulties many women face as a direct result of school closures due to COVID-19. The responsibilities of childcare and domestic work will fall more heavily on women because of the existing structure of the workforce. This isn’t purely because of social norms, but also due to practicality. In heterosexual relationships, women are more likely to be the lower income earners, meaning their jobs are considered a lower priority when disruptions come along. Despite the mass entry of women into the workforce during the 20th century, the phenomenon of the “second shift” still exists. Across the world, women—including those with jobs—do more housework and have less leisure time than their male partners. With school and childcare services closed, these domestic conditions and expectations will be exacerbated.

https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2020/03/feminism-womens-rights-coronavirus-covid19/608302///////

Relating back to the lecture on generational feminist differences, I hope the increased domestic responsibilities women overall are facing do not bring about additional scrutiny from older feminists. Older feminists, whose children are already grown, do not have to worry about young child care or schooling in the same capacity younger women currently do. As we have seen, older feminists have critiqued younger women for being ‘boy crazy,’ ‘approval hungry’ and ‘not feminist enough.’ They see younger women living their lives for granted and not truly grasping the struggle older feminists endured to create reproductive rights or independence for women. Now with national quarantines in place, the domestic sphere is becoming the only way of life for nearly entire societies, yet this type of life is all to familiar to women who already tend to most household keeping. Additionally, with home schooling and domestic duties, younger feminists may find themselves at a loss for time to maintain their feminist, independent mindsets, and may dip into the ‘traditional housewife role’ temporarily in order to keep their children’s education and home life as stable as possible. With the whole world currently on stand-still, I do hope older feminists do not take this shift to domestic life as an opportunity to further critique younger women that find themselves in this dire situation.

1 Comment Posted on by Lauren Saylor African-Americans, Gender, Men, Race, Women

Who gets a ventilator in a shortage? ‘Can’t buy your way into salvation,’ NJ governor says

New Jersey has created a state-wide plan deciding who would be issued ventilators and other critical medical supplies in the case of an emergency. That emergency being if the state (or even the region) runs out of supplies to save everyone who contracts COVID-19. The policy does clearly state that people will not be turned away/denied based on their race, ethnicity, sexuality or gender, insurance, age, etc.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2020/04/14/coronavirus-who-gets-ventilators-shortage-new-jersey-adopts-plan/2989244001/

Governor Murphy of New Jersey stands behind this policy because he believes that every state should have an emergency plan in case. this plan is not to be used unless absolutely necessary, but it is a reasonable and equitable plan if need-be. He said that an individual basis will be accounted for, and no one will be denied access based on their character, wealth or self-worth. But rather, the individual’s current state of health on a 1 to 8 scale will be used. If they are likely to survive on their own without the need for assistance, they will be far less likely to get it than someone who could die if they are not put on a breathing machine. 

He said “you cannot buy your way into salvation” and that absolutely struck home with me. I am pleasantly surprised by Murphy’s choice to use a religious anecdote because even if one does not believe in salvation, the quote reigns true with numerous other things. Generally speaking, in a time of crisis, and ideally, at any time, a person with money or status should not be chosen before someone without these assets. We are all human and we all have needs in one way or another. We often find that those who have insurance or those who pay for medical costs out of pocket tend to be “the first pick” and have more choice in their medical care. But thankfully, according to Governor Murphy, the state will do their absolute best to ensure not one race or gender or socioeconomic class will be chosen above another. We see across the nation that African Americans are subject to poor health insurance and thus have lower rates of seeing doctors. If more plans were put in place like this, then maybe we would see the trends change.