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Sometime back, this young boy was harassed at an elementary school by his seniors for being feminine. The matter is now in oblivion as no media covered the incident. Also, no action was taken against the harassers. One of the burning issues of the world in the present times is the incessant gender discrimination that thwarts the holistic development of the human society. In a society that is immensely patriarchal in nature, male dominance has become institutionalized. Concepts of gender have come to be complicated, as the individual is influenced by the hegemonic markers that tend to ascribe gender to an individual based on his or her sexual identity. Gender awareness is one of the immediate needs in the American society. People have to give up any sort of bias in their minds regarding genders. It needs to be understood that gender construction cannot be and should not be imposed societally or culturally on any individual. While there are laws in the country to curb crimes against women, these laws fail to protect women in all the instances. Also, gender discrimination laws have to take the role of ensuring a better future for one and all. With regard to the educational institutions, the government should bring a law in the state so as to ensure gender equality by making room for disciplinary action against any person(s) who would be responsible for inflicting discriminatory behavior on an individual based on his or her gender identity. Also, there have to be autonomous committees that would be empowered with the responsibility of taking disciplinary steps against the people responsible for the unsolicited discrimination.
It has to be taken into account that there are no committees at present in the elementary and high schools of the United States to address issues of gender discrimination. According to the educational experts, Stratton, McLaughlin and co-researchers, while there is some amount of gender sensitization at the college level in the nation, the schools are left out from the purview of committed efforts to ensure gender equality. However, it needs to be reckoned that gender discrimination can very well happen in the schools of the country as well. By the adolescent period of one’s life, an individual’s gender identity gets determined. (Stratton et. al. 401) Gender sensitization and protection of individuals with regard to being prone to any kind of gender discrimination is an important factor in school education of the entire country. According to the expert opinion of Clements-Nolle and associates, the law makers as well as the educationists have to comprehend the grave issue in context so that no delay is made in the process of ensuring safety and security to children and the teenagers (Clements-Nolle et. al. 54). Hence, there should be a very committed effort to curb any sort of disparity like misbehavior, ostracizing, physical or mental abuse based on gender in the schools as well. In the present day scenario, gender discrimination is on the rise. If the authorities and the law makers turn a blind eye to this social issue, it will soon escalate as the people involved in discriminating others on the basis of gender would be sure of not having to face any disciplinary action at all. The change in law has to come all through the nation so that a holistic transformation in the social practices and psyche can be initiated. Hence, it is imperative under the circumstance to set up the disciplinary committees that would play a proactive role in the schools across the nation to address the burning issue of the day.
These committees that are being thought about in the course of this discussion would have the optimum power in their hands to take firm disciplinary action against any person who is found to be guilty of gender discrimination at the schools. As such, the committees can be the vanguards of the students by providing protection from discrimination. In case a student is discriminated by his or her teacher, the committee would be the place where the student can come to for protection and justice. The committee would have an office in the educational campuses and the contact details of the members would also be publicized among the students and the parents. No form of discrimination should be accepted by the authorities. Educational expert Schmitt and his associates opine that the authorities have to ensure that the schools are the places for imbibing the students with proper education. No student should feel vulnerable or victimized during his or her school days. Gender identity is a personal matter and this cannot be a parameter for inappropriate behavior being meted out to an individual (Schmitt et. al. 297). The responsibility of these proposed committees to take action against the offender would surely deter many from discriminating others on basis of gender. Even if a person has a tendency of discriminating, he or she would think twice considering the strict action that can follow in any case of discriminatory act. As such, the committees in context would work to protect the students of the schools acting as an effective armor. However, it needs to be reckoned that all the proceedings of these proposed committees have to be done in accordance with the law. The committee members should abide by the rules and should keep a detailed account of the minutes of their meetings for future reference or in case the person convicted comes to challenge the procedure of work and decision of the committee. The society needs to understand that gender identity might not be congruous with a person’s sexual identity. A person can be male but yet feminine, while a female can have a masculine gender. Someone can also be a transgender. This is a very personal matter and no person should be judged in the society based on this parameter. The discrimination occurs due to the social construction of gender and the hegemony of the patriarchal norms.
The proposed committees in all the schools of the country would bring a sea of change in the domain of education as well as social awareness. The committee would be able to provide a healthy and protective ambiance for every child or teenager in their schools. According to educational expert Nora and her associates, it can be taken to be the need of the hour as any delay would only work to accentuate any gender discrimination that is already existent in the schools of the country. (Nora et. al. 127) The proposed committee has to be constituted as per the guideline of the law. There can be no arbitrary inclusion or exclusion in the committee. The committee has to work in a systematic way as per the legal guidelines so as to maintain proper functionality and sanctity. Apart from this, there has to be representation of preferably all genders in the committee in context. This would ensure that there is no bias in the committee itself and it can view every complaint with the best possible perspective. The authoritarian head of the school should play a key role in ascertaining the members of the proposed committee as per the guidelines. The can even constitute a search committee to find people suitable to be taken in the proposed committee. The people constituting the search committee should be reputed and experienced academicians with no legal cases ever registered against them. Also, they themselves should never have been accused of any discriminatory act based on gender during their entire past tenure as teachers.
Once the committee is formed they ought to have a lot of responsibility in their hands for the purpose of upholding the cause of gender equality in the school. The committee should be autonomous in nature only answerable to the judiciary of the state. As such, the committee can function independently without any hassles. Also, there would be no scope of putting any pressure on the members of the committee so as to safeguard any accused person. The authority of the school too would not be able to lobby for or against the case. As such, a very unbiased and unhindered investigation and subsequent action in response to any accusation can be carried out by the autonomous committees dealing with the issue in context. The committee should take legal advice as and when if considered necessary by a 2/3rd majority of the number of members in the committee. Since gender discrimination would be henceforth treated as a criminal offense, there can be cases that are complicated in nature. The members of the committee need to be very sure of the legal clauses and their domain of action so as to be legally flawless. The members of the proposed committee might not know the legal details in so much detail. So, they might very well feel that there is need to consult a lawyer for getting proper information about the procedure and scopes of action. So, the committee would be empowered to hire a lawyer as well if the 2/3rd majority think it to be a necessity in the particular case. Thus, any sort of loopholes in their action or proceedings can be neutralized so as to make the functioning and decision-making more efficient in nature.
It would be correct to conclude by saying that there can be no denial of the fact that gender discrimination is one of the burning issues that affects many students in the schools across the nation. According to educational expert Stratton and his co-researchers, children or teenagers mostly do not know whom to go to for help. (Stratton et. al 402) They might feel shy or might think that there is no place where they would get justice. As a consequence, the victims might inflict self-harm or their studies can be adversely affected. Also, they might feel socially awkward and have psychological stress. The formation of the proposed committees in every school across the entire nation would definitely be an immensely constructive change that would aid every student who is on the receiving end of such injustice in the educational institution. Hence, the law makers as well as the schools have to come forward to take immediate action. The parents too have to be aware of the issue so that their children are safe from any mental abuse in the schools. The committees can engage in seminars and discussions with the parents to raise their awareness. The parents, teachers and the student community should stand united against this systematic violence that has come to be institutionalized due to the hegemonic views of the dominant culture and society. The proposed committee would be a radical change indeed, but for a better place for studying and growing up in.
Works Cited
Clements-Nolle, Kristen &, Marx, Rani & Katz, Mitchell. “Attempted Suicide Among
Transgender Persons.” Journal of Homosexuality 51.3 (2006): 53-69.
Schmitt, Michael T. & Branscombe, Nyla R. & Postmes, Tom. “Women's emotional
responses to the pervasiveness of gender discrimination.” European Journal of Social Psychology 33.3 (2002): 297-312.
Nora, Lois Margaret & McLaughlin, Margaret A. & Fosson, Sue E. & Stratton, Terry D.
& Murphy-Spencer, Amy & Fincher, Ruth-Marie E. & German, Deborah C. & Seiden, David & Witzke, Donald B. “Gender Discrimination and Sexual Harassment in Medical Education: Perspectives Gained by a 14‐school Study.” Academic Medicine 77.12 (2002): 126-1234.
Stratton, Terry D. & McLaughlin, Margaret A. & Witte, Florence M. & Fosson, Sue E. &
Nora, Lois Margaret. “Does Students' Exposure to Gender Discrimination and Sexual Harassment in Medical School Affect Specialty Choice and Residency Program Selection?” Academic Medicine 80.4 (2005): 400-408.
