Women and Inequality

1. Women and Inequality `

2. Table of contents • Reflection page 1 • Research Articles • Charts/Tables • Reflection page 2 • Bibliography

3. Reflection Page 1 • Women play a vital role in every culture. We raise kids, we have jobs, we conduct business, we travel, we have the right to vote and also hold important roles in politics. This is not how it is in all cultures. I come from India and grow up as a young girl with a disability which is even worse. Women in India are nothing. They have no say in anything. Their opinion does not count or matter. You need to ask permission from a male to do anything. It is almost like they do not trust you to do it on your own or you are incapable. I grew up in a patriarchal society where only the men’s opinion counted. Women are supposed to marry and take care of their husband and kids. They do not have a job and are not required to go to college. The man of the house gets all the education and provides for his family. When I came to the United States this was all in the past. Women had jobs. They were part of important decision making and raised families as well. Even though inequality still hinders around in the US it is not as bad as it used to be or currently is in developing countries. In the United States women still don’t get paid as much for the same job as men do. Women are still expected to pursue home economics and other education while men pursue engineering and finance. Even though the inequalities are not as bad as what they used to be before the Women’s Suffrage movement I am still glad that I live in the United States where I am free and have a right as a woman.

4. 5 Research Articles • Gay/Gender issues @ suite 101, Women and Financial Success, retrieved from : http://jan-hill.suite101.com/trappedbythedoubleworkday-a1375 • Gay/Gender issues @ suite 101, Gender Bias in Scientific Worldhttp://jan-hill.suite101.com/gender-bias-in-scientific-world-a4406 • Questia online research, Measuring the Pay Disparity Between Typically Female Occupations and Other Jobs: A Bivariate Selectivity Approach, retrieved from: http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=96392810 • Questia online research,Gender Inequalities in Health, retrieved from: http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=114773758 • Questia online research, Educating Women: Gender Inequalities among Canadian University Graduates , retrieved from: http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=95173263 All of these articles talk about the inequalities of Gender especially women in the workforce, Health care, career choices and education.

5. Education- Women are well educated but still don’t get the good jobs

6. Income-Men make more than Women

7. Wealth-Men are wealthier than women

8. Reflection Page 2 • In doing my research for this reflection paper I found out that inequalities against women in the United States are really not bad compared to the inequalities against women in other parts of the world. Here are 10 things that I found that I should be grateful for being able to live as a woman in the United States of America and for the equality laws that protect us from discrimination. The first inequality that I found was how women in middle eastern countries such as Saudi Arabia are forbidden to drive. They are only allowed to get a ride with a male relative. The country faces a crisis as to how to get all their girls to school if only males are allowed to drive the buses and the girls can only ride with male relatives. I am glad that everyone in the United States has the right to drive and freedom to get from A to B and be independent and not reliant on relatives. The second inequality is the clothing requirement for women. All women are required by law to wear the Burqa that covers them from head to toe. If women are seen without this some have experienced acid been thrown in their face as punishment. I am glad that here in the US women can wear anything they choose to wear as long as you are not naked and even then we don’t get acid thrown in our face if we do go naked. The third inequality women suffer in several countries is the right to divorce. While it is ok for men to divorce their wives, women do not have this same right. Some of their laws require a doctor’s note showing proof of abuse and in other countries the man has to grant his wife a divorce a woman does not have that right. In the US I am glad that women and men have the right to divorce especially if there is abuse. The fourth inequality is the right to education. In some countries the right to education is only given to the males. Women in those countries do not know how to read or right. I am so glad that in the United States both men and women can get educated. The fifth inequality is the right to travel. Women in some countries have to ask for written permission of a male relative or guardian for permission to travel. Husbands can even prevent their wives from leaving the country. In the United States women are free to travel on their own without anyone’s permission. The sixth inequality is they are often victims of violence. In the United States domestic violence is against the law but outside the US domestic violence is a private matter. Since women are considered unequal they are often subject to violence. Spousal rape is not a crime and if a woman does get raped by someone the charges are dropped if that person agrees to marry their victim. They don’t have any shelters for women to escape to. The seventh right that women in other countries do not have is the right to the custody of their children. The judges have complete power to deny women the custody of their children. If they do try to fight for it their name is slandered. The eighth inequality is the right to citizenship. Women in some countries are not allowed citizenship. It is passed down from their fathers but if they marry non-nationals they do not get it. I am glad in the US does not follow this law. The ninth inequality is sexual subjugation. Men own their wives bodies. Women however cannot have sex prior to marriage or get pregnant or they face prosecution. In the US women are allowed to have sex prior to marriage and not prosecuted. The tenth inequality is female infanticide. Women are required to abort their female babies. I am glad that this is not the case in the U.S. After doing this research I found that I am really better of in a country like the United States compared to my home country India where I would be faced with these inequalities as a woman.

9. Bibliography • http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/education/cb11-72.html • http://listverse.com/2008/11/20/10-extreme-examples-of-gender-inequality/