The Way We Were

by Emma Holden

Today, in England, gender inequality is still obvious. We like to think that we live in an equal country; with the rights of women prioritised. But wherever we go, we still see forms of discrimination. A woman earns 66 pence for every £1 a man earns in the same job. How is this fair? The onus of childcare is still very much on women, although through the recent recession, we have seen an increase in fathers staying at home, taking the role of a ‘yummy daddy’ whist the wife goes out to work. This has also caused a problem, with many mothers regarding fathers in the playground as suspicious, because it is so different from the traditional norm. There is the misconception; because of media attention of paedophilia, that men looking after children is not ‘PC’. It’s the tradition that women should look after the children. We need to stop thinking one gender is superior to the other. But it’s not as simple as that. Much of Europe has come a long way in changing chauvinist delusion, but this has taken time. We cannot change cultures and traditions by just snapping our fingers. It takes time and knowledge.

We challenge the way Britain views women, but we challenge a situation that has improved dramatically over past generations. We fail to remember that our society is so developed. Maybe our expectations are too high. But everyone should demand and receive equal rights. Nowhere should it be practiced that men have rights over women. We English…We’re the lucky ones, aren’t we? Those conscientious of us worried about the inequalities within gender relations should look abroad to the unlucky ones, where to give birth to a baby girl is viewed as distasteful and is a hindrance. Many mothers choose to end the life of her daughter in sex selective abortions, particularly common in India, so the unborn baby girl would not have to suffer a life of coercion, physical abuse and confinement.

Instead of growing up with their parents telling them “they can be who they want to be”, young girls in many developing countries fight the continual battle of servitude and are subjected to physical and mental abuse from a very early age of 9 or 10.

It is accepted in Britain that woman should have the liberty to divorce an abusive husband, publicly flirt or choose her own husband. But why is it that in some cultures the opposite is the case? Women bear most of the responsibility for her family and produce half of the world’s food, yet are denied access to resources they need to satisfy this burden. Two thirds of the world’s illiterate and the vast majority of the world’s poor are women. In many developing countries, if the actions of a woman should dishonour her family she would be disciplined to honour her family’s reputation. This often means the execution of an innocent woman for standing out against chauvinist traditions. In Pakistan, three of these ‘honour killings’ take place a day, including victims of rape.

Tradition calls for women to eat last, and are often reduced to picking over the leftovers from the men and boys. The current world food price crisis has caused devastating problems with malnutrition of women and children. Women are often denying themselves their one meal a day to ensure their children are fed. As long as girls and women are treated as inferior and less valuable than boys, malnutrition will remain high and countries such as Bangladesh will suffer impaired economic growth as a result.

The core of poverty and chauvinism rises from the misuse of power within countries and communities. Women who have an education are more likely to survive a child’s birth, get married later and have a better job, as well as protect themselves from HIV/AIDS. All over the world girls are denied an education, and are destined to a life of serfdom. In some parts of India, it is traditional to greet a family with a newborn girl by saying, "The servant of your household has been born." We need to change this. With an education a woman can gain a higher status within her community. This status translates as power to influence families and friends. Women can only speak out against their livelihoods if they have the education and thus confidence to do so. In England in 1918, the Representation of the People’s Act was passed which marked the beginning of female suffrage in Britain. The educated suffragettes had a large part in this. With more education the future of the world will change, and it will change for the better. An educated woman is a confident woman. When we women come together we can work miracles. Let’s stop gender inequality. Let’s educate the masses.