Feeling Feminist, How About You?
Opinion
Thumbnail image by That's Her Business on Unsplash
We still need feminism today. Feminism. There, I dared to say it. A word which, when uttered, is met by, at best quizzical looks or, at worst, downright vilification. Firstly, it is crucial to note that feminism is not a personal attack on the average man, but rather, a need for the recognition and reconstruction of a society which is controlled by the patriarchy. For those who believe that traditional gender roles, whereby men have more power than women in society, simply support natural order, biological research disproves this hypothesis by showing there is no biological reason as to why women and men cannot work in the same positions, complete the same tasks, and collaborate in harmony without the need for one sex to oppress the other deliberately or else as by-product of societal convention. Although feminism might seem to be a divisive concept it is simply a call to action. Considering the impact of Covid–19 on women, progress has somewhat been reversed, meaning we must, once again, level the playing field.
Author Gloria Jean Watkins defined feminism as ‘the struggle to end sexist oppression.’ The history of women’s struggle for equality in the Western world is well documented. A first wave of feminism began in 1792 with the publication of Mary Wollstonecraft’s A Vindication of The Rights of Woman, followed by the granting of access to higher education, equal distribution of property and income within marriage, followed by the beginning of the quest for suffrage. The second wave was heavily influenced by the publication of Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique in 1963 which claimed that woman should not be expected to be satisfied with a solely domestic life, whilst the third wave saw the likes of Kimberlé Crenshaw coin the term ‘intersectionality’ in the 1980s to refer to the way in which systemic racism, sexism and classism conspire to form barriers which disadvantage the marginalised.
Current feminist thought leans into the need for intersectional feminism by understanding that to achieve true equality, every woman must be advocated for, no matter the colour of their skin or their background. For this ideal to be made a reality, there must be a push for inclusion, equity, and justice by supporting those who have been neglected by society for too long.
The impact of discrimination is felt both on an individual and collective level. I believe in understanding the causes of underlying inequality and making a conscious effort to provide everyone with not just basic human rights, but the opportunity to fulfil their potential in a safe environment. Progress is undeniable as women have the vote, the right to use contraception, to work in the same positions as men and obtain an education, but women are still not treated as equals. As Michelle Obama said, “No country can ever flourish if it stifles the potential of its women and deprives itself of the contributions of half of its citizens.”
The fact is woman are being hurt right now. Literally. According to the World Economic Forum, six women are killed every hour by men around the world. In the United States, 1 in 5 women has been raped in their lifetime (as compared to 1 in 71 men), 1 in 7 women has been injured by an intimate partner (as compared to 1 in 25 men), and victims of intimate partner violence lose a total of 8 million days of paid work per year. In England and Wales, around 7% of women and girls experience domestic abuse, 3% of women aged 16-74 experience sexual assault and 5% experience stalking.
Gender–based violence is clear proof of the obvious misogyny embedded in cultures which continue to promote the oppression of women. The root of the issue is a belief (conscious or not) in the inferiority of women, enforced by harmful gender stereotypes and social conditioning. Covid–19’s lockdown only worsened the situation, as stated by Sima Bahous, the executive director of UN Women; there has been a “shadow pandemic of violence against women and girls, where they often found themselves in lockdown with their abusers”.
Evidence of domestic abuse takes on many forms including intimate partner violence, abuse during pregnancy, honour killings, genital mutilation, and infanticide. Such examples can be found in Kenya whereby an astronomical surge in violence towards women was recorded, with the National Crime Research Centre reporting an increase of 87.7% in the total number of gender-based violence cases in lockdown between April and June 2020 resulting in irreversible sexual, psychological, and economic trauma. Human Rights Watch reported the abusers to be close family members with the affected families being those in poverty. Closer to home, the murder of Ashling Murphy in Ireland as she was running, and the rape and murder of Sarah Everard by a Met police officer as Everard was walking home in London were simply indiscriminate acts of violence, giving rise to public outrage and a new wave of sympathy for victims here in the UK as well as internationally. In the US, 22-year-old Gabby Petito was murdered by her abusive boyfriend just days after police had been called for an incident and had falsely determined that she was the primary aggressor, even though eye witnesses had reported seeing him hit her, and not the other way around. Isolated incidents such as these cease to be ‘isolated’ in light of the #metoo movement.
One thing is clear. Women are facing a pandemic of violence and we need to do something about it. I propose that prevention, treatment, and aftercare strategies need to be strengthened by both government investment and policy. On a global scale, laws that prohibit gender-based violence need to be enforced; child marriage outlawed; medical professionals, police and other first responders trained to be sensitive and to recognise the signs of someone suffering from domestic abuse; grassroots organisations supported; and the level of public awareness raised so that we all can recognise if someone we know might need help. Some leaders have made promises to reduce the level of gender-based violence in their countries with President Kenyatta in Kenya promising to plough millions into combatting the violence against women in 2020 and Ireland’s Justice Minister McEntee promising to produce a thorough document consisting of a prevention and action plan for combatting the violence. However, governments need to be held accountable.
This is precisely why we still need feminism. We need strong, public support for victims which will create positive change. There needs to be government support for the work of organisations such as The UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women.
Violence against women is one clear indicator that we still need feminism, but it is not the only one. The gender pay gap, while contested, exists to this day. Many critics argue that sex discrimination is not a catalyst for the gap or else confuse the pay gap with equal pay, but the truth is many who take this stance of denial have not experienced the inequality and therefore are oblivious to its true nature. Some opponents use the hugely problematic (and disproved) meritocracy model, arguing that if women are of equal merit to men, then surely, they would be paid the same as their counterparts? No. The World Economic Forum estimates that at the current rate of change it will be another 136 years before the gap is closed worldwide. The ‘motherhood’ and ‘unemployment’ penalty are just two recognised causes which refer to the increased likelihood of being paid less should a woman wish to return to work after having a child or if a woman is unemployed before securing a job.
The journey to unfair pay in developing nations begins when girls are unable to go to school due to child marriage, lack of funds or else period poverty which leaves them falling behind their male counterparts and unable to work in the same, highly skilled jobs as the boys. The Global Wage Report 2018/19 found that women in Pakistan were earning 34% less than men. In Western nations the gap grows due to a myriad of complex factors ranging from overt barriers, such as domestic violence, to more nuanced ones, such as societal expectations of gender roles. Similarly to at home, in the workplace women are relied upon to voluntarily work overtime, attend more social engagements, and carry out unpaid work beyond the terms of their contract. Concurrently, women in both developing and developed nations are likely to be hired for jobs with less financial reward than men and likely to be the main caregivers, taking lower paid and zero-hour contracts to allow them to do so, cementing the existence of inequity worldwide.
The UK Office for National Statistics reported that in 2021 women were paid 15.4% less than men. Considering the accessibility of education, the equal pay act of 1970, and the greater awareness of the status of women as capable of the same intelligence as their counterparts, this is shocking. In other words, employer bias is no longer an acceptable excuse. Whose job is it to hold society accountable? Ours. The future workers, mothers, fathers, CEOs, politicians, and law-makers.
Unsurprisingly, medical research remains biased in favour of men, based on research conducted by a predominantly male profession, for men’s bodies. The historical neglect of women in clinical trials has been recorded and is matter for concern. Recently, research into the effects of the Covid-19 vaccines upon menstrual cycles was neglected. The UK’s Medicine and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency received 30,000 enquiries between January and October 2021 about heavier and late periods.
Similarly, women are far more likely to suffer worse injuries and die than men in car accidents due to the safety features being designed for male bodies, despite their being less likely to be involved in a car accident than men. A study from the University of Virginia in 2019 discovered that women were 73% more likely to be badly hurt in a crash affecting the front of a car. The cause of this disturbing statistic is the widespread use of crash-test dummies which model the male body and the design of the inefficient seat belt which fails to protect female bodies. More recently, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in the USA found that females were 17% more likely to die in a crash than men.
Action in the form of advocating for feminism ensures the safety of our future whilst giving us the chance to reclaim our bodies as worthy of the same extensive research that men are given by default. Advocation for inclusivity in medical research allows us to disband the so-called truth which has dominated society, whether consciously or unconsciously, for too long – “Woman is an imperfect man” – Thomas Aquinas. This idea of a woman being ‘other,’ or a mutation of man is, while an officially rejected belief, still a practiced sentiment. In this age of secularism, in an evidence-based field, this paradox is unacceptable.
In summary, we, as a collective, have the power to effect change. In a divided world where disparities deepen through silence, a conscious choice to advocate for our rights and those around us who cannot advocate for themselves becomes one of necessity. Speaking out in a discussion, attending a protest, or signing government petitions may seem insignificant but it is only when we come together through the basic premise that women’s rights are human’s rights that positive change will happen. In making a promise to ourselves to act, we become catalysts for a much bigger chain reaction. We must not allow Covid–19’s reign to diminish or stunt the progress of women. Through challenging traditional thought, we have the power to inspire others around us and create communities of forward-thinking individuals who hold governments accountable for the implementation of both laws and practices which support the call for equality.
