Sexism

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Sexism is discrimination against people due to their perceived gender, biological sex, or both. Sexism can take the form of blatant discrimination such as only assuming men are qualified to do particular work, or thinking women are best at home with the children, or far more subtle views about the value of particular genders as friends, co-workers, or simple humans.

History of sexism[edit]

What is labelled today as "sexist" has been "just the way things are" for the majority of history and across the world. Women's roles have been almost universally limited to hearth and home in historical society, even in societies like the Hopi, Jewish, and Okinawan, where women held the family name and property, and were considered an important source for leadership.^[2] In most societies, limits on women's freedoms were common, though those limits could range from not being able to leave the home, to not being able to own property to simply not being accepted as equal in business relationships to men. In many societies - including all of the so-called Western societies - men institutionalized sexism against women. Until the so-called modern era, women in the West received limited education, were not considered acceptable in academic circles, were not considered valuable within business; though they were, of course, important commodities. Women in most Western countries did not have the right to vote until the 20th century. In the most extreme scenarios, women themselves, once they married, became legal property like children, a status known as coverture.^[3] The narrator of Thackeray's 1848-1850 novel Pendennis suggests: "These women were made for our comfort and delectation, gentlemen, —with all the rest of the minor animals." It is these very patterns of institutionalized sexism that are the hardest to break out of.

The concept of actual equality between the sexes begins in the early 20th century, when writers such as Simone de Beauvoir begin to challenge the notion of women's inferiority and non-personhood. Scientists like Marie Curie and Margaret Mead, as well as other figures like Eleanor Roosevelt and Amelia Earhart, made inroads on what it means to be a woman and what limits a woman must face. And Margaret Sanger argued for the right to plan when to have children, and for a woman's right to control her own body. Of course, such equality has not been achieved everywhere and even in more progressive nations it is still opposed by some conservatives, even by those who have benefited from increased equality such as Phyllis Schlafly, Ann Coulter, and the "Roe" in Roe v. Wade, who later became a pro-life protester.

Common conservative views[edit]

Many conservatives constantly make two points: sexism isn't real, and that men are sexually discriminated against too.

People taking this line of argument will generally argue that pay discrimination and glass ceiling are not a factor of sexual discrimination, but are in fact a reflection of women's own choices to work for less, their choices to put family first, as well as their choices to take time off to have those silly babies of theirs. This argument has been fully dispelled,^{[citation needed]} however, by looking at women in legal and medical positions who have chosen not to have children, or have chosen to only take time off for the 2 months of birth and recovery — equivalent to men taking off for a long holiday sabbatical. In the medical field, specifically, female residents are more preferred to joining lower paying specialities, while male residents are more preferred to joining higher paying specialities.^[4] Even when choices exactly the same to their male counter parts are made, women are still making 20% lower salaries, and do not achieve partner as fast if at all. ^[5] Still, conservatives persist in arguing that such discrimination isn't happening.^{[better source needed]}

On the other hand, they do argue that men are constant victims of discrimination. Conservapedia, for example, has an article about sexism and sexual discrimination, which lists only examples of perceived discrimination against men. This includes a rant that women-only spaces are accepted and encouraged, while men-only spaces are almost universally abhorred as sexist. Equally, men's rights groups argue that men do not have a fair shake against women; they are considered rapists and abusers without trial; they are mistreated by the courts; and are forced to pay overquoted sums of child support instead of given the option to care for their own child. Other arguments include skepticism in the perceived gender-pay gap, arguing that the pay-gap is an effect caused by freedom of choice rather than any large factor of discrimination. ^[6]

Sexist discriminations against men[edit]

• According to Pew Research, Americans view men less positively when it comes to most moral traits relating to leadership, with both sexes favoring women and women in particular having a bias towards their own sex. For example, 80% of Americans believe women are more compassionate than men, versus only 5% believing men are more compassionate. However, for unknown reasons this doesn't translate to Americans preferring women as leaders. ^[7]
• In the United States, men are required to register at the Selective Service System (so that they can be called to compulsory military service if the need arise) within their 18th birthdays,^[8] while women are not.^[9] Legally speaking, men who do not register can be punished by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, albeit the last legal prosecution of a non-registrant has been in 1986.^[10] Non-registered men can be ineligible for federal student financial aid, federal job training and federal employment, and - in some states - state employment and driver's licenses.^[11]
• According to a 2012 paper, men receive prison sentences that are on average 60% longer than women's for the same crime^[12] and women are twice as likely to avoid incarceration if convicted.^[13]
• In several European countries (e.g., in Albania,^[14] Austria,^[15][14][16] Belarus,^[17] Bulgaria,^[15] Croatia,^[15] Czechia,^[18] Italy,^[19] Lithuania,^[15][20][21] Macedonia,^[14] Moldova,^[14] Poland, Romania,^[22] Russia,^[23] Serbia,^[14] Slovakia,^[16] Switzerland,^[17] and Ukraine^[14][24]) the retirement age for men is up to 5 years greater than the retirement age for women, despite the life expectancy for men in those same countries being up to 11 years less than that for women.^[25]
• In the United States, breast cancer research receives about twice as much funding as prostate cancer research ($88,348,750 vs $44,185,252 in 2017^[26]), although there is a similar probability that a woman will die of breast cancer and a man will die of prostate cancer (respectively 2.64%^[27] and 2.43%^[28]). This is despite the fact that male cancer researchers are much more likely to receive grants than women (3 times more likely based on one UK study).^[29]
• In the UK, 99.2% of refuge places for victims of domestic violence are reserved for women, although men constitute 40% of domestic violence victims.^[30]
  • On a related note, a 2006 survey conducted in Glasgow found that 60% of women surveyed found domestic violence against men acceptable, while 35% actually admitted abusing their male partners.^[31]
• A 2015 study, conducted on 873 tenure-track faculty at 371 universities/colleges from 50 US states and the District of Columbia, showed that female applicants for assistant professorships in biology, engineering, and psychology are preferred over identically qualified males with matching lifestyles (single, married, divorced) at a rate of 2:1.^[32]
• According to a U.S. court ruling from 1993, a woman in Kansas can sue a man for child support even if the "man" was underage at the time and/or was the victim of a crime the woman perpetrated on him. The ruling extends to all sex offences perpetrated by the woman, essentially meaning that female rapists can sue their victims for child support.
• In India, it is legally impossible for a woman to be charged with rape^[33] or for men to be a victim of it, even if their rapist is a man.^[34] While male-on-male rape is punishable as an "unnatural offence" and carries a hefty prison sentence,^[35] these laws do not cover heterosexual vaginal intercourse.^[36] This seemingly results in a legal loophole where a woman can get away with sexually abusing a man as long as they only have vaginal intercourse with him.

Sexist discriminations against women[edit]

• In some countries whose laws are based on Islamic jurisprudence, women have less rights than men. In Algeria, the sharia-derived family code treats women as minors under the legal guardianship of a husband or male relative.^[37] Under Saudi Arabia's male guardianship system, adult women need permission from a male guardian to travel abroad, marry, or leave prison. Women also face difficulty in renting, filing legal claims, opening a bank account, starting certain businesses, and receiving health care.^[38][39] In Tunisia, inheritance laws entitle female heirs to only half of the share of property of their male peers.^[40]
• In China, a preference for sons has existed for centuries and has resulted in sex-selective abortion, neglect, abandonment and infanticide of female infants.^[41][42]
• Health insurance plans sometimes cover Viagra so older men can still get their penises hard,^{[note 1]} but do not cover birth control or necessary medical procedures such as emergency abortions.^{[note 2]} Accordingly to some feminists this is a big issue.^[43] Of course, this is because this is what the policyholders want rather than what's best for the patient; many plans also cover Supplemental Complementary Alternative Medicine, because it attracts more customers.
• Even in progressive and liberal nations, the average wage of women is less than the average wage of men. In STEM jobs, a study showed that sexism plays a role in explaining the difference in wages of men and women. In the study, two versions of a fictitious resumé were produced and the only difference was the name at the top ("Jennifer" and "John"). Despite having the same qualifications and experience as John, the scientists in the study were less willing to mentor or hire Jennifer, and offered her a salary that was, on average, 13% less than John.^[44] Of course, there are an abundance of apparently biological explanations why the women aren't worth as much as the men in these positions, and thus the man should earn more than the woman, but to be fair, these apologist arguments are typically only presented by the most dedicated of anti-feminists.^{[note 3]}
• Published material by women academics is less frequently cited than comparable publications by male academics.^[45]
• Women have historically not been allowed to serve in combat infantry in the US, a position that has never been considered by the Supreme Court.^{[46][note 4]} The US Military also has different physical fitness standards for males and females, both of which the US Marine Corps is starting to undo. In 2016, the government announced women would be allowed to serve in all roles, including regular combat infantry.^[47]
• For many diseases research and treatment concentrate on male subjects, with women sometimes excluded entirely from studies and treatment guidelines often focusing on men.^[48]
• With about 90%, the predominant victims of domestic violence are women ^[49] and domestic violence against women is typically more severe.^[50]
• When in pain, women are less likely to receive adequate care due to biases against perceived "feminine" traits.^[51]
• A study conducted on the popular development platform GitHub has shown that code from women is considered as less valuable, but only when the gender is disclosed. ^[52]

See also[edit]

• Cognitive differences between sexes
• Homophobia
• Men's rights movement
• Sexists Say The Darndest Things! (SSTDT)

External links[edit]

• Is widespread sexism making hurricanes more deadly than himmicanes?

Notes[edit]

References[edit]