“The belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunitiesorganized activity in support of women’s right and activities.” This is most basic, modern definition of feminism as defined by Merriam and Webster. The idea of feminism has been transformed over the course of the past several decades, altered by political motives, cultural differences, class segregations, and other civil rights movements. The core of the definition remains constant however, that there exists discrimination which is gender based. This also implies that the basic ideals of feminism should be of significant importance to all democratic thinkers and that there is not only an academic theory behind feminism, but a political standpoint as well.
Nancy Fraser believes that there have been several waves of feminism, and these waves have also experienced different phases. These waves have largely been guided by the political culture of the world at the time. Global events play a large role in what direction the feminist movement takes. For example, the first phase of the second wave began just after World War II, in an era of capitalism and belief in the welfare state based on Keynesian ideals. Feminism fought against androcentrism and for societal justice with its three pillars being; redistribution, recognition, and representation. There was a movement towards a global sisterhood, working for justice and melding economics, culture, and politics.
Feminism should be a global idea, a belief that is able to span international borders, religions, and social classes. Feminism should be the movement towards social, economic, and political equality of women globally. One of the biggest hindrances of the fight for women’s equality is no longer the pure thinking that men are stronger, smarter, and generally more able than women. Thanks to pioneers such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton, the Equal Pay Act of 1963, and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, women in the majority of first world countries have equal rights on paper. Feminism and women’s rights have come an incredibly long way in the past century, however there is still a tremendous amount of ground to cover. The feminist movement has been grouped together numerous times with other various civil rights movements, in particular the movement to end race discrimination. While the two are largely separate issues, the core ideas between them are common. Injustice, inequality, and discrimination towards a group of people based on a trait they had no control over.
The single most important issue that feminists should be working on today is education. There are so many facets of feminism today; equal pay, equal employment opportunity, healthcare rights, etc. All of these can be aided by starting off the younger generations on an equal level. In so many countries, young girls are not provided with the same access to education that their male counterparts are. How is equality ever expected to be achieved when they are denied equality starting at the age of five, sometimes even younger. These setbacks in education have tremendous effects on what sorts of jobs women are able to obtain as adults and subsequently how much money they will be able to independently earn. Women are then dependent on men for financial stability. Those women who happen to be fortunate enough to receive quality educations and fill higher paying positions are still faced with challenges that men are not in today’s society. One of the biggest challenges they face is whether to pursue their careers or start families.
Malala Yousafzai, who has recently gained even more global attention for being the youngest recipient of a Nobel Peace Prize, has worked tirelessly for the promotion of female education. In her book, I Am Malala, she recounts how her mother chose to stop going to school in Pakistan at a young age. “She was the only girl in a class of boys. She carried her bag of books proudly into school and claims she was brighter than the boys. But everyday she would leave behind her girl cousins playing at home and she envied them. There seemed no point in going to school to just end up cooking, cleaning, and bringing up children, so one day she sold her books for nine annas, spent the money on boiled sweets and never went back.” The idea that education was pointless for females because even if they showed aptitude, because they would never be welcomed into the workforce.
Malala’s generations faced a somewhat different obstacle. There remains a large gap between female and male education. Society has strict guidelines for what was acceptable work for females. “It’s hard for girls in our society to be anything other than teachers or doctors if they can work at all.” They also faced repression from other sources, such as the “Taliban who think girls should not go to school.”
Many middleeastern cultures have repressed women in many different ways, from a Western standpoint. There needs to be some boundaries drawn on the outside influence of other cultures before it looks as though the West is simply forcing their way of thinking. However, in terms of education, it is important that females have the same access that males do. Another great importance that is showcased through Malala’s mother was the necessity for education. Her attitude was, what is the point if I am just going to stay at home and raise a family. This attitude can be seen in other cultures as well.
Education in asian cultures has always been of utmost importance, for both men and women. However, it is important for different reasons. Japan for example, is a highly Confucian society and therefore incredibly patricial. “Japanese men are blatantly male chauvinists and women seem shamefully exploited and suppressed.” Women are expected to be subservient to their male counterparts. Women are expected to be educated in order to make themselves more desirable brides. Men seek bright women who will be able to aid their children in their education and also to maintain the home and the finances. Women in Japan only make up one fifth of students at high education facilities. “An expensive four-year university education seems less worthwhile for girls, who are expected to end up as no more than housewives.”
Japanese women generally over ever work temporary jobs, as they are expected to leave the workforce once they begin having children. They never have the opportunity to grow in a profession or receive wage increases the same way men are privy to. This is in large part due to a lack of quality childcare options. Japanese society is constructed in a way where it is practically impossible for a woman to have a successful career and a family. In today’s aging society in Japan, there is more and more pressure being put on women to have babies rather than enter the workforce. There needs to be institutional changes where both can be possible.
The United Nations created a list of Millennium Development Goals, to be achieved by 2015. The third goal on their list was to promote gender equality and empower women. One of their biggest goals was to lower the gap between male and female primary school attendance. There has been quite a big success here, with the exception of some sub-Saharan African, Northern African, and Western Asian countries where only 93 girls for every 100 boys attend school. One of the greatest obstacles facing girls and school attendance is poverty. In poorer nations, girls are expected to help with running the house instead of going to school. The family’s livelihood is more important than their education. Child violence and trafficking are also huge barriers against education. Even though there has been some success with more women entering the workforce, it is still at lower levels than men because of their lack of equal education.
The UN has had success in some areas. In Yemen, backed by World Bank financial support, female teachers have been recruited to teach out in very rural areas to help foster education where otherwise it would have been impossible. In Brazil, UNICEF and UN-Habitat launched an onine program to help offer support and care to women who have experienced violence. In Rwanda, UN Women is working to help promote the training of women in business agriculture so that they are able to take more active roles in business. These are great examples of how true changes are being made to how women are being handled in the world today.
In conclusion, thoughts and ideals have changed, but in order to truly achieve equality, there needs to be changes made to our institutions in order to achieve actual equality of women. There needs to be a change in which the world views gender altogether. My ultimate definition of feminism would therefore exclude any distinction between genders. The promotion of women, based on the sole fact that there are female, is in itself gender biased. This is comparative to how Affirmative Action is a form of racism. It is making decisions based on a person’s race. The modern definition of feminism ultimately, shouldn’t exist. There should not be purely feminist movement. There should be a movement towards truly equal opportunity for all humankind.
References
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Fraser, N. “Feminism, Capitalism, and the Cunning of History.” New Left Review 56 (2009): 97-117. Accessed October 15,2014.
Peksen, Dursun. "Foreign Military Intervention and Women's Rights." Journal of Peace Research 48, no. 4 (2011): 455-68. Accessed October 14, 2014.
"Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women." Millennium Development Goals 2015 and Beyond. September 1, 2013. Accessed October 14, 2014.
Simwaka, Bertha Nhlema, and Sally Theobald. "Meeting Millennium Development Goals 3 And 5: Gender Equality Needs To Be Put On The African Agenda." BMJ: British Medical Journal 331, no. 7519 (2005): 708-09. Accessed October 14, 2014.
Reischauer, Edwin O., and Edwin O. Reischauer. The Japanese Today: Change and Continuity. Cambridge, Mass.: Belknap Press, 1988.
Yousafzai, Malala. I Am Malala. New York: Hachette Book Group, 2013.
