Personal is Political
Social issues that are often classified as "women's issues" such as reproductive rights, violence against women, and balancing child rearing and employment transcend the individuals and become societal concerns. "The personal is public" was a frequently used feminist movement of the late 1960s and early 1970's (Peters and Wolper 115). The women consciousness-raising groups that were popular during this time was not for personal support and comfort but rather a formality of public deed to evoke political change regarding domestic violence, childbearing, and unsafe working conditions(Peters and Wolper 115). Such political issues referred as "women's issues" is an example of the interactions between the personal and the public, which is the foundation for much sociological inquiry of all matters of social welfare(Mills).
In Living Between Danger and Love: The Limits of Choice directly challenges the conception that domestic violence another person's issue, and dispels the myth that "It can't happen to me," precisely because it creates a community in the emergency to address an issue like domestic transgression in a way that does not imagine a victim/perpetrator dichotomy. By connection of telling one’s story shows the many ways this issue weaves through alive. As Jones says in her biography:" Finally, we can live by attracting up our ground among all those others who have started to breathe in and out and in the world and without whom we cannot even imagine being alive. Without all those others" (Jones). Jones's emphasizes the power of our stories once they are told, as one does not realize silence breeds silence, once that silence is broken the potential for change is immense.
The safety of citizens of our society is a concern for us all, not just 50% of the population. Thus, the right to safe abortions and reproductive rights is a personal and political issue that impacts the well-being of the world at large. Unsafe miscarriage leads to deadly consequences for nearly 47,000 women each year around the world(World Health Organization, 2011). Legal restrictions often leave women without options, thus leading them to turn to unsafe providers or take it upon themselves to conduct dangerous methods that pose a threat of death to the pregnant women and unborn child(WHO, 2011). Individuals of the field of clinical and social science research can help the majority of women in this position by studying ways to mend second-trimester abortion and inform policy to provide affordable and quality services to all women.
My Link to Women’s History
We are all linked to Women's History because the women's rights movement is not just about females its about freedom and justice, which are American values. Women, like our forefather's fought against discrimination and undue hardship, they have never given up on the strengthening freedom and equality of America(Cahill 12-18). For too long, females were formally excluded from full association in equal fellowship in our democracy(Cahill 17). Women who had the courage to exceed preconceived expectations and organized to get the right to vote are true Americans, and I identify with these beliefs and political actions. Such experiences are depicted in the film, Iron Jawed Angels, based on the true-life story of Alice Paul, a prominent figure in the women's suffrage movement(Marcus et al. 107). The film brings to life the pain and suffering read in history books. One scene that is exceptionally compelling is when one of the suffragists are taken to jail for rioting for legislation for equal voting rights. She is violently further stripped of her rights and begins a hunger strike in prison(Marcus et al. 107). After a week, the guards began to force feed her and each time she spits it out crying for freedom(Marcus et al. 107; Cahill 88-91)
Such tales have lead to the right to vote and continue to be used to ensure the Federal Government works with women's right organization to provide safe working conditions and equal pay (Cahill 88-91). As an American, I am inherently linked with Women's History, from Susan B Anthony's first stitch of the American Flag (Cahill 86) to the continuing fight for freedom, for all
Future Political Challenges: Martial Reform
Marriage as a legal institution continues to be a political challenge, as in today’s context marriage remains to be a sexist institution. It was not long ago that women did not have the right to vote or the right to have a life outside dedicating oneself to her husband and children (Peters and Wolper 14). Such beliefs were founded upon earlier laws that stated: “The very being or legal existence of the woman is suspended during the marriage, or at least is incorporated and consolidated into that of the husband; under whose wing, protection, and cover, she performs everything.” –Sir William Blackstone, 1765. (Millhiser). Gender roles are changing in the sense that women are now not overtly sanctioned or legally enforced to have their life's purpose to serve their husband and children(Peters and Wolper 14-16). However, lingering sexist foundations of marriage prevail. One example is taking on the last name of the husband which was initially enforced by law because the woman was considered to be something owned and exchanged from her father to her future husband(Millhiser). This is a symbolic and covert way sexism is weaved into the current customs, but there are very problematic political realties that fuel sexism.
In 2012, a woman living in Arizona was charged and could of faced a month in jail (Lee) .Today, a woman in North Carolina can be legally sent to jail for six months for a year for cheating on her husband.(Lee) Legislation that continues to penalize women and not men are currently being fought for reform because they are used in modern times. Such laws are an example of the ways in which marriage continues to be a sexist institution, both in the past as well as present day. Therefore, marital law reform is clearly an example of a political challenge particular to women that need to be addressed to ensure equality of the sexes.
Work Cited:
Lee, J. (2014). New Hampshire Senate votes to repeal anti-adultery law. Retrieved May 4, 2016, from http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2014/04/17/anti-adultery-laws-new-hampshire/7780563/
Cahill, B. Alice Paul, the National Woman's Party and the Vote: The First Civil Rights Struggle of the 20th Century. McFarland & Company Incorporated Pub, 2015. Print.
Jones, Kathleen. Living between Danger and Love: The Limits of Choice. Rutgers University Press, 2000. Print.
Marcus, A.S., et al. Teaching History with Film: Strategies for Secondary Social Studies. Taylor & Francis, 2010. Print.
Millhiser, Ian. "When ‘Redefining Marriage’ Meant That Women Had to Be Treated Like Human Beings." Think Progress 2014. Print.
Mills, C Wright. The Sociological Imagination. Oxford University Press, 2000. Print.
Peters, J., and A. Wolper. Women's Rights, Human Rights: International Feminist Perspectives. Routledge, 1995. Print.
WHO. "Preventing Unsafe Abortion." World Health Organization. 2011. Web. 04 May 2016.
