Simply me

#rapeculture

It’s sad to think that they’re men like this in the world. They think they have the right to have whatever they want whenever they want and no one else has a say. When we glorify this kind of toxic behavior in the media instead of exposing how disgusting it truly is we are part of the problem. There is no place in society for the blatant disrespect of women we are supposed to be past that. In the 21st century you would think that we have grown past this type of mentality but we haven’t. Men are just slightly more quiet about their heinous thoughts. We need to stop making everything okay or just a joke. It’s not a joke anymore, it’s not funny no woman deserves to feel inferior to anyone.

Need I say it again this girl was DRUGGED and then raped in the video she is unresponsive and her eyes are open she look almost comatose. But this is what was said basically that it was her fault for even going to the party in the first place. But hey I mean I heard teaching these little boys consent and respect sometimes works too.

For years women have been fighting for their rights and to be equal to their male counterparts but for years those rights have been denied. Women are constantly under attack in America but it is considered the norm, its okay to be treated that way. The wage gap is a side effect of a much larger problem but it shouldn't be ignored. The wage gap is a prime example of just how biased society really is. Essentially if you're a woman and you outperform any man in your place of work your salary will not be equal to his. The wage gap is even seen in different race and ethnicities according to the “Institute for Women’s Policy Research” hispanic women earn a lot less than white women would. Although people of power have noticed the issue it still goes on, former President Obama spoke out on the issue with the wage gap however, women employed in the White House made less than men. It has become the norm for women to earn less than men and as we know it makes people uncomfortable to change what they are used to. Not only do women need to push for change against the wage gap but men need to. The complaints of a woman sometimes falls upon deaf ears men need to use their privilege and speak up against some of the issues that women face such as the wage gap. 

Men don’t realize they have the freedom to do what they please and can get away with so much in this country. It’s hard to be a woman in America people are always trying to tell us what to do, what to wear, how to act it never stops. Men have the power to change minds some people simply won’t listen to a woman because she is a woman. More men need to use their privilege to fight for the rights of their mother and daughters. There is no reason a woman should be harassed walking down the street or not being taken seriously at a job interview. There is no reason for a bunch of men to dictate what a woman can or cannot do with her body. Women shouldn’t have to fight to prove that they are just as capable as men this shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone but for some reason it does. The world is male dominated even though their very existence goes back to a woman. Women are not above men that’s never been what the movement was about. Women want to be regarded as equal to men and they want men to join that movement.

As we grow up society does not teach us to be better people it teaches us to be divided. It’s a given that boys and girls have very different experiences growing up but that is due to societies ideas of normal. According to societies norms women should be delicate and pretty at all times. Men should be brave and stoic at all times. When people keep all their emotions bottled and put on a face for the world how is that healthy? When do they have time to just be themselves and let go? In my own personal experience bottling emotions is never a good thing and it expels when I have finally had enough. Now how would men feel? For women it’s okay to express how you feel because that’s what girls do but what about boys? Their friends tell him to man up, his family tells him to man up so where do those feelings go? In some cases they manifest into low self esteem in others they will take that negative energy and portray it onto other people both of which aren’t okay. We need to create a safe space for men to feel like its okay to cry and be sad. Those are human emotions that they are entitled to feel.

These quotes from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichies “We Should all be Feminists” impacted me the most, they made me think, they made me feel. This class alone has made me question a lot of things that were normal to me but this short made me see it. I’m not entirely comfortable speaking out about things and when I sat back and thought about why I felt this way I said “Well who cares what you have to say?” and I know a lot of boys who don't share in this type of anxiety. Everyone deserves respect, everyone deserves to be heard those basic rights shouldn’t be denied due to gender. Adichie wants us to understand that beneath it all we are all human and we should be fighting these social injustices together. One group should not stand idly by while the other watches from the sidelines because they aren't suffering. If one group suffers we all suffer, I’ll put it this way for the men (and some women) that believe feminism is “cancerous” to society. Feminists are fighting so that your mother, father, son and daughter don’t have to face the “Don’t show emotion your a boy”, “You will never find a husband like that”, “Only girls wear pink” and “Only boys can play with cars.” Beyond that they are fighting so that your mother isn’t being underpaid compared to her male peers and your daughter won't be told she can’t take that position because its a “mans” job. So maybe we should all be feminists.

Gender isn't meant to be uniform, two boxes, two words can't describe the complexity of the psychological characteristics that is gender. The reading touched on how engrained it is in society, the power dynamic between genders.  Its almost painful to recognize that most of the time nobody notices because it is the norm. The reading made me realize just how many times the people around me or I myself have been subjected to unfair gender norms. I received math tutoring from a peer who was a male and I was open and expressed how much trouble I was having with the subject. Instead of helping me understand he used it as an opportunity to show off how much he knew and how much better he was. He would talk about his “complicated and advanced” method of solving equations and teach me the “basic” method so that I would be able to get by. In his mind I was incapable of understanding the far to advanced equations that he had learned. Thinking back I began to realize how much I allowed things to slide, verbal harassment on the street, unwanted attention from male peers even gender discriminatory statements made within my own family. At some point enough is enough society needs to be retaught this is the 21st century and that behavior towards gender isn't acceptable anymore.

Science. It has put the human race at the top of the food chain, increasing life expectancy and helping us understand what makes the world go around. However, this same advancement might be the kink of our being, it has taught us ignorance and has desensitized us. People are so willing to believe the “experts” even if what they are saying doesn’t make logical sense. The human brain is constantly looking for an explanation, everything must be investigated so when something doesn’t make sense and an answer is provided our brains are more than happy to accept it. That is exactly what is happening in “The Seductive Allure of Neuroscience” people are being fed information with “scientific research” to back it up and now they are reflecting behavior to match this newfound knowledge. The idea that a man must be better at math and science because his brain is wired that way and a woman’s just isn’t is ridiculous. There are more than enough stereotypes being placed on women, now they are being told that they must be inferior to men for neurological reasons beyond their control. When it comes to human emotions and capabilities science should not be part of the equation, acceptance and understanding should be.