Racism, Heterosexuality, Materialism, And Colonialism

Imagine a world in which men could act feminine and women could act masculine without being judged. Now try and identify why this may never happen. Men and women are both taught at an early age what they can and cannot do because of what gender they were born as; they are markedly similar in this aspect. There is a known gender stereotype for girls and boys, and the parents of these children enable these stereotypes from the day that they are born. girls are given pink clothes, and boys are given blue clothes. These colors set the rules of how they must behave for the rest of their lives, this idea is known as The Girl and Guy code. It is all black and white thinking, or in the case pink and blue. There is no in-between because once you stray from the code it is immediately recognized and looked down upon. Although the girl and guy code are almost polar opposites, they go hand in hand with one another because they are both used among society as a way to create a better image in front of others. The Woman looks better in the eyes of other women if she is more lady-like, and a man looks better in front of men if he is more manly; both genders deal with a heavy set of homosocial ideals.

"No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main." As a part of the society, it is unavoidable to enjoy the power and the privilege while experience the discrimination or micro-aggression both consciously or unconsciously. The sexual orientation and race is closely related to the power and the privilege. The perceptions of micro-aggression are largely based on the systems and situations that we are participating in. In this paper, I will talk about my relationship to the power and privilege, my experience with micro-aggression and my past and current perceptions of micro-aggression against LGBTQIA (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual).

The following thesis will lay out the progression in the LGBTQIA movement along with the deficits that these individuals have encountered throughout history. An interdisciplinary perspective through historical,

For centuries now, women have been bombarded with an infinite amount of conflicting and overwhelming messages about what it means to be a woman and which behaviors are considered appropriate, especially regarding sexual behavior. Traditionally, women have always been defined in relation to men. Men are seen as strong, while woman are seen as weak. Men are superior and women are their subordinates. This is exemplified by the fact that “masculine” traits such as strong, non-emotional, and competitive are considered socially desirable traits, while “feminine” traits such as docile, emotional, and passive are not. We evidently live in a society that is not only sexist, but also undoubtedly racist. The white woman typically appears as virtuous and pure, while the woman of color typically appears as unclean and tainted. If the woman of color also happens to be poor, she appears as being even more worthless. Therefore, in the United States, femininity as a concept is inextricably linked with concepts of race and class. In the present paper, I discuss the effect that this is having on women and their sexuality, the events that have paved the traveled path towards gender equality, and current issues plaguing women today, such as the attack on our reproductive rights and our value as women.

Gender roles have caused strain over decades to not only females, but recently males as well. There are many attributes that humans have associated with each gender, causing a divide between sexes not only with each other, but also separating the two into almost completely different species. Due to this categorizing which is placed on gender, there can be a declining value of a person or even a higher hand given to the one gender which is seen as more powerful to society.

According to Eller “Western cultural in general tends to reinforce this impression: there are two kinds of humans-men and women- and two proper codes of behavior- male female” (Eller 2013:90). The only way this argument could be supported would be if everyone was born cisgender. Cisgender is when the gender you identify with also matches your anatomy.

Even in queer communities, there is marginalization, as there are also factors of race and gender present. A heterosexual white man may have more power than a homosexual white man, but a homosexual white man will be more powerful than a heterosexual woman of colour, or another homosexual man of colour, or

There are a number of discourses surrounding women’s sexualities that make sexual agency difficult to achieve. I will discuss how sexist norms make practices of sexual assertiveness difficult in relation to the double standard of women’s sexuality, the LGBTQ community, and educational institutions. The following aspects demonstrate this: first, a double standard exists for women’s sexualities in the way that both “slutty” and chaste behaviours are judged and punished. Second, while women’s bisexuality is exploited for men, heteronormativity and a gender binary remain expected in relationships. Third, educational institutions use a number of tactics (e.g., victim blaming) to keep sexist norms in place. These pervasive sexist norms must continue to be questioned and systematically dismantled for both men and women to enjoy sexual autonomy.

In chapter seven, of Social Inequality Forms, Causes, and Consequences, gender identity and sexual orientation are discussed. The chapter discusses transgender;

Males are usually expected to act and look ‘masculine’ and females ‘feminine’. Also there is certain behaviors and norms that people are expected to conform to, based on their sex assigned at birth. In

Among the central claims of black feminists is the inseparability of the structures and systems of gender, race, and class. Most black feminists deny it is possible for women to focus exclusively on their oppression as women. On the contrary, each woman needs to understand how everything about her provides part of the explanation for her subordinate status. In Black Feminist Thought, Patricia Hill Collins explores the words and ideas of Black feminist intellectuals as well as those African-American women outside academia. In reclaiming and legitimizing the ideas of women of such diverse backgrounds, Collins demonstrates that there is indeed a distinct philosophical tradition among African-American women that is both Afrocentric and feminist in its themes and approaches. According to Collins, African-American women inhabit a sex/gender hierarchy in which inequalities of race and social class have been sexualized. By examining the links between sexuality and power, Collins reveals how important controlling Black women’s sexuality has been to the effective operation of domination overall. In other words, Collins claims that sexuality becomes a domain of restriction and repression when it is tied to race, class, and gender. Comparably, in her book Imposing Decency: The Politics of Sexuality and Race, Eileen J. Suarez Findlay, exposes the race-related double standards of sexual norms and practices in Puerto Rico. Findlay, examines concepts of honor based on gendered and

In Transnational Cycles of Gendered Vulnerability: Theory of Global Gender, Alison Jaggar argues that across the globe, women are entrapped in cycles of poverty, abuse, and disenfranchisement of multiple varieties. Part of her argument emphasizes women 's lack of education, which contributes to their inability to find work, escape abusive relationships etc. While I agree that women worldwide are continuous victims of vicious patriarchal oppression and subjection, and that said despotism should be viewed as a universal injustice, Jaggar’s particular view of the role of education, race, socioeconomic status and sexuality is fallacious. Her criticism of Susan Moller Okin’s theory of gendered vulnerability relies heavily on her perceived privilege of the “traditional woman” in the United States that Okin was describing; White, upper class, and heterosexual. In doing this, Jaggar subsequently downplays the education levels and accomplishments of minority women, portraying their setbacks as correlated to race, or class, instead of gender. Additionally, she dismisses the subjective plights of white, straight, rich women, implying that they are not included in the realm of oppression and subjection to patriarchy because of the advantages they have in other spheres. This leads to a cycle that discredits and stigmatizes most women. I will be arguing that even though privilege in other spheres appears to transpire into an advantage in the sexual sphere, to use this as the basis of a

Adrienne Rich attacks heterosexuality as “a political institution which disempowers women” in her 1980 essay Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existence (Rich 23). What most see as a traditional way of life, Rich views as a societal mandate that serves as “a beachhead of male dominance,” (Rich 28). For a woman in Virginia Woolf’s time, “the one profession that was open to her [was] marriage,” and though females entered the public sphere as the 20th century progressed, “single women…are still viewed as deviant” and somewhat ostracized (Woolf 25 and Rich 30). Compulsory heterosexuality, Rich argues, is one of many institutions that historically and currently have allowed men to maintain a dominant societal

Gender labeling has existed since antiquity as depicted in history where the males were expected to be dominant, strong, brave, stoic, the primary wage earners for the family. On the other hand, docile, sensitive, caretaker, gentle, source of affection are the words used to describe the females. Until today, gender labels continue to pervade society as majority finds it morally and ethically appropriate to do so. There are many concepts of social psychology pertinent and integrate with each other to bring about this phenomenon. Conformity plays a big role in this as the people of today are greatly influenced by the previous generations. If the previous generations have been labeling the roles of males and females in society for such a long

Throughout today’s society, almost every aspect of someone’s day is based whether or not he or she fits into the “norm” that has been created. Specifically, masculine and feminine norms have a great impact that force people to question “am I a true man or woman?” After doing substantial research on the basis of masculine or feminine norms, it is clear that society focuses on the males being the dominant figures. If males are not fulfilling the masculine role, and females aren’t playing their role, then their gender identity becomes foggy, according to their personal judgment, as well as society’s.