I understand that this assignment is asking to explain my own experiences in the present with social differences, oppression, and privilege and or that of the readings I have done or research. I also understand that I must explain what it means to me based on my surroundings and what is going on in the world to be part of history at this particular time and how it has shaped my identity and my understanding. What strikes me as most important about women of color in particular be given an equal opportunity that of a white woman. In Lordes The Uses Of Anger: Women Responding to Racism she speaks of how she responds to racism with anger, how her fear of anger never taught her anything and how letting it put fear in oneself will also not teach anything. Lorde explains how anger isn’t a bad thing rather something used to express for growth, she speaks of an incident where she says “I wheel my two-year-old daughter in a shopping cart through a supermarket in Eastchester in 1967, and a little white girl riding past in her mother’s cart calls out excitedly, Oh look, Mommy, a baby maid!” (Lorde) She goes on to say how the mother only shushes the child instead of correcting them. How can women fight for rights of women and not include ALL women? …show more content…
This was after Alice Paul had just refused to publicly exclude colored women in the enforcement of the Nineteenth
The fight against sexism is not a new fight. Women have been fighting for equal rights, as well as fighting for their lives, culture, and values to be just as important as men's. On August 18, 1920, women were granted the right to vote; but this was only the beginning. From then to now, the role of women in society has significantly changed due to women standing up for their rights at protests and rallies, as well as on social media. While “The Good Wife’s Guide” focused on the promotion of the traditional gender role of women and defined appropriate emotions for women, “The Revolt of ‘Mother,’” by Mary E. Wilkins Freeman, represents the start of the resistance of the traditional gender role of women that we see in society today.
When black women respond to racism they are responding with anger; the anger of exclusion, of unquestioned privilege of racial distortions, of silence ill-use, stereotyping, defensiveness, misnaming, and of betrayal. Black women may have a well-stocked arsenal of anger potentially useful against those oppressions, personal and institutional, which brought that anger into being. Focused with precision it can become a powerful source of energy serving progress and change. —Audre Lorde, "The Uses of Anger: Women Responding to Racism" (1981). The emotion which accompanies the first steps toward liberation is, for most women, anger. Through the exercise strength may be gained.
With these mediums of oppression, her first theory, referred to as the Matrix of Domination is brought up. Previous models of oppression were considered additive, or hierarchal, meaning that they must be ranked. Collins uses the experiences of black women to explain that all these modes of oppression, gender, race and class are interlocking and equally important when viewing domination. This bleeds mores into Part II, but the essentials are discussed in this section.
When the time came to push for the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment a group of women stood together to let their voice be heard. As Alice Paul said, "We came to be heard, not to be questioned or to be turned around. We will answer your questions and you may turn us around, but we will prove the burden of justice in our favor then you can no longer make us leave. With that we will
Throughout the semester, we have discussed many different social justice issues. One issue that has stuck with me is gender and racial inequality. Gender inequality is very important to me because I was raised by a single mother and surrounded by women all the time. I do not believe that anyone should be payed or treated differently due to their gender. While growing up, I saw that women are capable for doing anything and often times have to work harder than men to prove themselves. Racial inequality is an issues that is important to me because I feel that all individuals should be equal. I think Dr. King’s idea of color blindness, not today’s definition, should be something that we as a society strive for. We need to move past the idea that
This week, the readings touched on issues relating to resistance and social change. Martinez explains how the U.S. has struggled to see issues of race beyond just Black and white. She also stresses the importance of including other races when speaking on these issues. Hernandez argues that the mainstream feminist movement fails to include minority and low-income women and the issues they face. She states that the movement only benefits white middle class women. Collins explains how people’s ideas and behaviors actualize other people’s inequalities. She says comparing levels of oppression is a competition for attention and instead we should use a new mentality that interlocks these inequalities. Harris
Throughout our experience, we have encountered so many challenges when it comes to gender in the society. Gender is being used as a basis for stratifying people in the society. In this article, the racial caste system that used to exist in the United State is depicted. In that the black women were denied the access to justice because of their status. They were perceived to be people who do not have any right within the society and no one could believed them when they were raped by the white men because all the court judges were white men according to this article. The women were classified to be from poor background and they should remain at a low class in the society.
The oppression of certain groups of people is nothing new. These oppressed groups tend to be looked at as different because of their physical features and/or cultural background. Many efforts to improve the lives of the oppressed have been achieved, but there is still a long way to go. These oppressed groups consist of women and different ethnic groups which have had to deal with being pushed around by the white man throughout history. Frantz Fanon deals with his experience as a black man in the French colony of Martinique. Simone de Beauvoir speaks about her experience as a woman in the French mainland. Both authors assert the idea that the man, in particular the white man, sets himself as the superior being that defines what it is to be human and views women and blacks or minorities as the “Other”.
This essay will critically analyze the various forms of oppression that are set out through Audrey Lorde’s concept of the “mythical norm” as discussed by Barbara Perry. Through the “mythical norm”, it can be seen that oppressions exists through the forms of racism and sexism which are exhibited through many scholarly texts and articles. Racism can be seen as a means of privilege and power that is given to individuals who coincide with the criteria of societies norm. In this case, these individuals consist of white, heterosexual, male beings who unknowingly oppress their racialized counterparts. Oppression can also be seen through the form of sexism. Sexism looks at the injustice and inequality of male dominance over female, which results to men being more privileged and advantaged in society over women who are disadvantaged. Therefore, privilege and power is obtained by those who coincide with the concept of the “mythical norm”, leaving minority groups who do not coincide with this conception oppressed through the forms of racism and sexism.
The first time that I ever took a woman’s and gender studies class was this semester, and before taking the course all information regarding gender, class, sex, language, identity, exile, agency, power, and race was based on personal experience. I have never formally learned about the proper terminologies that define the systems of oppression that I experienced in my everyday life. I feel that this information was vital to me because now that I can properly identify these problems I have the tools necessary to fix them. I also learned that may of those themes are universal and the way that women in particular suffer is the same across various cultures. Considering the theories, novels lectures, class discussions, and presentations I can say that I am walking away from this class with an ample amount of critical information. Most importantly are the themes that contributed to my new perception of the world and the role that I play in it. I have learned that gender and sex, contrary to popular belief, are not synonymous terms. This is important because society has a set of sex and gender roles that society says people are supposed to follow. While one is not given the opportunity to choose their sex, they are given the opportunity to choose what gender and behavioral expectations they uphold. This in turn means that gender is not assigned at birth; it is culturally mandated and therefore allows for change. Additionally, one of the most important terms that I learned in this
Women all over the world have been mistreated for more than a century. It has been exploited throughout the world as how “women aren’t currently treated the same as men in certain situations” but it is far more beyond that. Only half of the world seems to at least know what is really happening behind the curtain. Ambiguous people have manipulated the very much realness with what is exactly taking place in our society. In this essay, I will be talking about the following things; Inequity in the workplace, “Asking for it”, Violence against women globally, Education, and The psychology of it all. These five topics need to be demanded attention. Our younger generation needs to be cognizant of what has been going on for many millenniums. Girls and women should be able to walk around at night and not be afraid, nor should they be afraid to oppose another man. There is no real justification on why women should be treated like this but there is plenty of justification on why they shouldn 't, so genuinely why is this problem happening? Some of the books that I read to have mostly validation on this paper from other human beings but also to enlighten myself even more that I already am. “Subjection of Women” by John Stuart Mill, “Created Equal: Voices on Women 's Rights” by Anna Horsbrugh-Porter, and “Equal Pay for Equal Work” by Grace C. Strachan. I chose these three texts because each one yet talks about the same thing but has a little bit of a different perspective on each. I
The structure of gender relations throughout these transitions, help us understand the sense of minority group powerlessness. Slaves in the American system were brutally repressed and exploited, but females faced greater subordination. For black female slaves, inequalities tripled and they became the most vulnerable group to sexual victimization. For example, the men of the dominant group saw their female slaves as a resource for more profit. They were often raped and used to breed more slaves for their owners to sell. Under the Jim Crow system, African American women were “free” but were relegated to domestic service or agricultural positions, and denied access to the education needed for social mobility. In the postindustrial era, structural inequality is less overt, but exclusions for opportunity abound in housing, and career mobility.
Are women less privileged in today’s society than men? Yes, women face many issues on a regular basis that men don’t experience to the same extent. Women are victim to sexual violence, domestic abuse, and gender bias. Firstly, a very common violation to the human rights of women, is sexual violence and harassment. This is a very extensive topic, covering much more than just sexual assault. Sexual violence covers street harassment, unwanted sexual touching or comments, rape, and consent issues. Secondly, women face domestic abuse very often in today 's society, it is rarely discussed, and it covers physical, sexual, and mental abuse, as well as marital rape. Lastly, the final point to be covered in this essay would be gender bias, gender bias occurs in the workplace, schools, the home, public places, and can be a very disturbing public violation of women 's rights. In conclusion, this essay will be looking into each of these topics in depth, explaining that women are indeed less privileged in today 's society than men.
Prior to taking this class I only thought about the differences related to race. The main reason I only thought of racial differences in relation to power and privilege is due to my experiences. According to Johnson (2006), there are six characteristics that allow us to have power and privilege. These six characteristics include: age, race, ethnicity, gender, physical abilities/ qualities, sexual/ affectional orientation (Johnson, 2006). Reading this chapter allowed me to reflect on where I stand in each of these characteristics. I am a heterosexual Latina female, in my early twenties with no disabilities. Before reflecting on the privileges I hold I did not see myself as holding any privilege,
The first question is why am I interested in exploring these issues related to privilege and I believe that society generally neither give lessons on how to cope or speak about privilege, so it's important to make a contribution to addressing these issues. In my experience as an Indian girl, gender discrimination is very prominent in my background and especially in the terms of taking on specific jobs and duties. For example; In my household, girls are expected