Gender Inequality

Gender Inequality

Discussion Outline • I. Gender Stratification • II. Gender Differences • III. Theory and Gender

??? • Is there any difference between sex and gender?

Introduction to Gender Stratification • Sex refers to the biological differences between males and females. • Gender refers to the social and cultural patterns attached to women and men, or the way a society treats those biological differences • Gender identity and gender roles • Who is Thomas Beatie? • “The murder rate of people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and HIV-affected (LGBTQH) is at its highest, according to a recently released 2011 report from the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs (NCAVP). The report also shows that transgender women, people of color, and youth and young adults are at a disproportionately high risk of being victims of what the NCAVP terms hate violence.”

Are there only two sexes?

Gender Stratification • Sexism • Individuallevel: belief that one sex is superior to the other • Institutionallevel: policies, procedures, and practices that produce unequal outcomes for men and women • Patriarchy: system of social organization in which men have disproportionate share of power in institutions • Sexism supports patriarchy by claiming that men are “better” than women and therefore should dominate them. • I.e.: How does the traditional family represent patriarchy?

What makes women a minority group?

Gender Inequality Around the World • “More girls have been killed in then last fifty years, precisely because they were girls, than men were killed in all the battles of the twentieth century” (p. 250) • There is no nation where women and men are equals. • A History of global patriarchy • Survival rates and gender • Discrimination and persecution • Sex trafficking • Violent and sexual victimization • Literacy rates • The U.S. vs. other countries

Women and Men are Differentiated and Ranked • Gender Stratification: the ranking of the sexes in such a way that women are unequal in power, resources, and opportunities • Gender inequality exists in most parts of the world. • Does it continue to exist in the Unites States?

Male Domination • Politics and Government • 1920-Right to vote • 1990’s big influx of women into politics • Currently congress is about 17% female • 17 Senators/100 • 72 Reps/435 • 7 Governors/50 • Equal representation? • Studies show that treatment of female politicians focuses on family traits and appearance rather than political platform • Largely demeaning and sexist towards female politicians

Male Domination • Religion • What major world religions allow female leadership? How does this affect way members of a religion view gender roles? • The Stained glass ceiling • Many religious text place women in subordinate positions • Often justifies women in subordinate positions in society and families • Is a woman’s place to “submit graciously to her husband and serve him respectfully”? • The Family • On average, women lack power, are more likely to be abused or killed by husbands, and perform more domestic work • The “second shift”

Male Domination • The Economy-Women in the Workplace • The Gender wage gap- Women earn 81 cents on the dollar that men earn even with equal occupation and level of education • Women often encounter the “glass ceiling” in business ventures • Pink Collar jobs • For women of color, earning discrimination is even greater • The Matrix of Domination- Social forces that contribute to the subordinate status of many women

Figure 12-4: Matrix of Domination

II. Is Gender Biological or Social? • Biological Basis for Gender Roles: • Males and females are different from the moment of conception. • Chromosomal and reproductive differences • Hormones • If gender is completely biological, the suggestion is that these biological differences explain the domination of women by men. • A sexist notion

Gender Differences • 2. Social Bases for Gender Roles • Cross-cultural evidence shows a wide variation of behaviors for the sexes. • Society transforms females and males into socially interacting women and men. • Every known society makes gender a major category for organizing social life. • Gender is socially constructed

The Social Construction of Gender • Gender Role Socialization • Femininity and masculinity • Through what agents do boys and girls/men and women learn proper gender behavior? • When does gender role socialization begin? • Social Learning Theory • Imitation/observational learning • Rewards and Punishments • I.e: Do boys and girls learn to express emotion differently?

Gender Roles in the United States • Gender-Role Socialization-Traditional gender ideology • Boys must be masculine • Active, Aggressive, Tough, Daring, Dominant • Girls must be feminine • Soft, Emotional, Sweet, Submissive • Are all boys traditionally masculine? Are all girls traditionally feminine? If boys love playing rough sports and playing with toy guns while girls side with less rough sports/activities and playing with dolls, is the cause nature or nurture?

Gender Stereotypes are expectations about how people will look, act, think, and feel based on their sex. Such expectations can have negative physical and psychological consequences for males and females What consequences?

Gender Myths • We tend to associate stereotypically female characteristics with weakness and typically male characteristics with strength. • He’s firm, but she’s stubborn. • He’s careful about details, but she’s picky. • He’s honest, but she’s opinionated. • He’s raising good points, but she’s “bitchy.” We tend to see men as strong, not emotional and women as emotional and not strong, although we have seen those stereotypes change through the years and we are seeing them change even more.

Media and Gender • In what ways does modern media contribute to gender role socialization? • What do boys and girls/men and women learn about masculinity and femininity from media sources? ( • Is media really that powerful in shaping our views about what proper gender behavior is? • How to dress • How to act • How to express emotions • What proper male and female careers are • What sports to play • What toys to play with • Television, Magazines, Music, Movies, advertisements in all forms of media, etc • Bro code: http://www.mediaed.org/cgi-bin/commerce.cgi?preadd=action&key=246

Gender Roles in the United States • Homophobia: fear of and prejudice against homosexuality • Important element in traditional views of masculine and feminine behavior • Tied to social problem of bullying in schools as well as hate crimes towards the LGBT community and high rates of suicide amongst LGBT teens

Consequence of traditional gender role socialization • Notion that modern American culture fosters what many activists and scholars now call “Rape Culture”. • Social movement organizations identifying longstanding issue as a social problem • What is “Rape Culture”? And how can we actively combat it? • http://www.marshall.edu/wcenter/sexual-assault/rape-culture/

III. Theory and Gender • Functionalist • Conflict Perspective • Feminist

Gender Inequality