Tag: #gender #discrimination #workplace #inequality

Inequality

            We all are living in 2021, do you think the society treats men and women in a equal manner? No, many of us answer would be no. Don’t you think why? Take your house as an example, does everyone in house do the household chores? No, only the girls especially the mothers.

            It is totally not fair at all to make the women to getup in the middle of the meal to serve you. How cruel it is? She is also a human, she to have her own choices and she have all rights to enjoy her life.

            We all are hearing different stories each day about how the society treats the girl in the worst manner, the dowry cases, inter caste marriage, acid attack, rape, harassment, abuse these are all the evidence that how the women are struggling to live the common life in this world. As the world is modern the problems are modern, I’m saying about the social media platforms, where most of the women feels insecure,

            She is not your servant to fulfill your needs but a living human to fulfill her own needs. As the years passed there stood many peoples raising the voice for the equality of women but still we are fighting for the equality. A good point about that is the situation is not bad as that time but it is not ok to accept that.

            Fighting all these things we can see women in the higher points, think about the road she travelled to reach the goal it is not at all the easier one. It says how determine the women should be reach it.

            We should teach everyone in the society that men and women are equal, this should be done in the childhood itself so that it would create the better society in the future. This is not only with the men and women but with every human in this world should be treated equally, we all are a fellow human being who are responsible for the society, so it’s our responsibility to make the awareness, and make people understand about the equality.

            “Equality is the soul of liberty; there is, in fact, no liberty without it.” – Frances Wright

            “The word ‘equality’ shows up too much in our founding documents for anyone to pretend it’s not the American way.” – Martha Plimpton

“There’s nothing complicated about equality.” – Alice Paul

 “I would like to be known as a person who is concerned about freedom and justice and prosperity for all people.” – Rosa Parks

Gender inequality

Gender inequality is the social process by which Mens, LGBTQ community and womens are not treated equally.

Gender equality is a human fight not a female fight.

Due to patriarchy many girls are hold back from striving for their dreams, receiving a quality education, medical facilities and overall awareness for their well being.

Everyday girls and boys see gender inequality in their homes, community, in textbooks, in media and among the adult.

Society assume an unequal responsibility for household work with mothers bearing the brunt of caregiving.

In schools, many girls receive less support than boys to pursue the studies they choose.

Rashida khatun says I realised the harm I would be causing myself if I agreed to get married. She in is enrolled in UNICEF supported program that provides out of school girls with basic numeracy, literacy and life skills.

Whenever we talk about gender inequality we always seems to focus on women but have anyone ever thought that what it’s like for men or LGBTQ community.

Gender equality, historically has been predominantly a women’s movement for women but I think the impact of gender inequality and how its affecting man hasn’t really been addressed.

– Emma Watson

  • Generally we see in our families that boys told to pursue maths in higher studies and girls were told to pursue Biology so that the male became engineer for female can be a doctor.
  • Whenever a boy wants to be a cook, singer, dancer he is being discouraged by society or his parent by saying that these are for girls.
  • It’s a perception in our patriarchal society that boys do not cry that the crime is only for girls.
    • Mens are stronger than women and they will never bow in front of anyone
    • That’s why mens will never admit their faults because they are meant to be dominant in this patriarchal society.
  • When a girl wanted to be an officer then she is being discouraged by the family by saying that this is the job for Boys.
  • The perception of our societies that the household works are made for womens .
  • If people see a girl with short hair, the peoples in society tends to point at her and think of her as a freak.
  • If a girl is not interested in cooking but she still has to do it and she is pressurized by the family and Society by saying that you have to go to someone’s home and you have to do it because it is made for you.

Let’s talk about LGBTQ community. It is is the second of three issues focused on social inequalities.

  • LGBTQ community faces gender inequality in their everyday life.
  • They face inequalities in employment, education, health, survival and political empowerment.
  • It is not the only way by which they faces social inequalities.
  • Lgbtq people faces housing discrimination and workplace discrimination.
  • They faces basic human right such as – marriage and family adoption.
  • They have been discarded from their homes at their birth. The only reason of this is that they are not a male or female.
  • Peoples doesn’t behave properly with them.

Is this what we called Gender Equality??

We blame society for gender inequalities and for everything but why we forget that society is because of us. we are the part of society and to change this society we have to change our own mentality.

Feminism: A Myth

All over the world people are misguided about the word feminism. According to you what does feminism mean? Is it to put men down and rule the world or is it to enjoy everything a man can? Let’s discuss about various myths and the actual meaning of feminism and the significance of it in a women’s life.

According to the Oxford dictionary feminism means “the belief that women should have the same rights and opportunities as men“. In more simpler words feminism is all about the equality between men and women and have the freedom of everything that they wish to do. Some people argue that they believe in ‘equality’ but they have no belief in feminism. Feminism has been made critical despite of it being a very simple concept.

From ancient times women are pointed out for the way they dress and for their aspirations. They have been constantly told to dress in a certain way and to live their life according to the norms of the society. Women are fighting for their equal rights from centuries for there right to vote, right to speech and freedom. People in the society have framed a woman according to their needs and expect them to fulfill their expectations. A married woman taking care of her husband, her in-laws and looking after their children is considered to be the ideal one whereas if she wants to work and be dependent, she is criticised and often being questioned on her motherhood. Similar type of Criticism she faces at her work place. These are the basic yet essential inequality that a women regularly faces.

Women-Women Conflict regarding feminism

Sometimes women also take feminism in a wrong way. They think that being a feminist means to humiliate men and they often misuse their power of being a women by falsely accusing a men in a crime. This is basically pseudo feminism. Women around the world debates for the real meaning of feminism which sometimes leads to conflicts. Some women of old generation are also against feminism and consider it as uncultural.

Myths

  • Feminists hate men.
  • Feminists are angry.
  • Feminists are unattractive and not feminine.
  • All feminists are lesbians.
  • Feminists are all pro-choice.
  • If you are a feminist, you cannot be religious.
  • All feminists are career women and do not support stay-at-home moms.
  • Feminists are Bra- Burners who hate sex.
  • Feminists can only be women.
  • Feminists don’t believe in marriage.

If you have ever found yourself saying “I’m not a feminist, but I am for equality,” then ask yourself why you do not claim the title? If it is because of the misconceptions of what a feminist truly is then empower yourself to raise awareness about what feminism is really all about. 

Feminists are all about equality between genders– which means feminists don’t want women to be more powerful than men any more than we want men more powerful than women. What may seem like a discriminatory act against men is actually an attempt to level the playing field between men and women.

While huge strides have been made towards complete gender equality, a great deal of work remains to be done, both in India and abroad, including the gender pay gap, access to reproductive healthcare, protection against sexual assault and violence and gender representation in media, among other issues.

How a Guy Can Be a Feminist?

Basically feminism is not only committed to changing negative stereotypes about being a woman. A large facet of feminism is understanding streotypes about masculinity and its effects on society and what it means to be a man. If you care about equality for your mother, daughter, grandmother, girlfriend, a friend, who is female then feminism should be important to you. Additionally, feminism is about equality for all marginalized groups- equality for those who are LGBTQIA, disabled, and ethnic and racial minorities. Caring about feminism means caring about people who fit into these categories.

Being a feminist is not something to be ashamed of. It is the right of every person who believes in equality for all.

Thank you for reading!

GENDER INEQUALITY

Gender is one of the major sources of inequality in the world today. Girls are usually deprived of their rights and are likely to suffer from abuse and violence.

Discrimination based on gender gives rise to food insecurity, health risks, and exclusion from several opportunities. The United Nations (UN) estimates that 70% of the 1.3 billion people in poverty globally are women. According to World Food Program USA, more than 60% of the world’s hungry are women and girls, in nearly 2/3rd of countries, women are more likely than men to report food insecurity and one in three women with anemia are left untreated.

In a lot of countries women are not allowed to pursue higher education and they are married off early. In addition, domestic violence is a major problem in many countries including India. The women get beaten up by their husbands as men think they are superior to their wife and many women stay in abusive relationships and don’t speak up because of the fear of society.

Sometimes women face discrimation even at work, women who do actually work get paid less than their male counterparts and are disproportionately impacted by poverty. It is just unfair to pay someone less for the same work because of their sex. Therefore, we see how women empowerment is the need of the hour. We need women empowerment so that these women can speak up for their rights and never be a victim of injustice.

Women have suffered a lot at the hands of men. In earlier times, women were treated as non-existent and as if all the rights belonged to men. With the passage of time, women realised their power and began the revolution for women empowerment. Women’s empowerment can be defined as empowering the women to make their own choices, to instil a sense of self-worth and to influence social change for themselves and others.

Promoting women’s empowerment has emerged as a major global movement and has been continuously gaining momentum. While the western countries are still making progress, third world countries still fall behind in empowering the women.  While there has been progress with the passage of time, even then women continue to face discrimination and exploitation in every part of the world.

Women can be empowered through government schemes as well as on an individual basis. The people of the society and government must both come together to make it happen.  At the societal level, we should start respecting women and encourage them to take up jobs, higher education,etc. Women should get equal opportunity in every field, irrespective of their gender. Various programs or schemes must be made available for women so they can be learn skills to fend for themselves in case they face financial crisis.

Today, more than ever, women enjoy their rights. However, there are many women who are still fighting to come out of the cluthes of patriarchy and there is a long way to go.

A single touch amounts to sexual harrassmet ? POSH 2013 ( in brief )

What did this POSH Act refer to ? So it commonly referred to, an Indian law enactment with the objective of making workplaces safer for women by preventing, prohibiting and redressing acts of sexual harassment against them in the workplace.

Why this act was needed ?The need for such legislation was observed first time by the Supreme Court, in Vishaka v State of Rajasthan. Sexual harassment at a workplace is considered violation of women’s right to equality( article 14 and 15) , life ( article 21) and liberty ( article 19(1)g) . It creates an insecure and hostile work environment, which discourage women’s participation in work, thereby adversely affecting their social and economic empowerment and the goal of inclusive growth. So there was much need for legislation against this sexual harassment at working place.

What is the objective behind POSH 2013 ? The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013 (“the Act”) was enacted with the objective to provide protection against sexual harassment of women at workplace and for the prevention and redressal of complaints of sexual harassment and for matter connected therewith or incidental thereto , that was mentioned under section 2(o) of the act .

What is sexual harrassment? Section 2(n) discribe a sexual harassment as unwelcome acts or behavior (whether directly or by implication) namely, physical contact and advances, a demand or request for sexual favors, making sexually colored remarks, showing pornography, any other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of sexual nature .

Can a touch to women amount to sexual harrament ?

a women can commit sexual harrassment on another women ?

So both the question were answered in Shanta Kumar vs CSIR , where Delhi high court held that “undoubtedly, physical contact or advances would constitute sexual harassment provided such physical contact is a part of the sexually determined behaviour. a physical contact which has no undertone of a sexual nature and is not occasioned by the gender of the complainant may not necessarily amount to sexual harassment.

What are the offensive circumstances in which sexual harassment is done ?

The Act also provides the circumstances under which an act may amount to sexual harassment under section 6(2) . These are:

(i) implied or explicit promise of preferential treatment in her employment; or

(ii) implied or explicit threat of detrimental treatment in her employment ; or

(iii) implied or explicit threat about her present or future employment status; or environment for her; or

(iv) interference with her work or creating an intimidating or offensive or hostile work

(v) humiliating treatment likely to affect her health or safety.

Where the problem would be redressed under POSH : so section 4 provides for setting up of Internal Complaints Committee at every office of the organisation or institution, having more than 10 employees, to hear and redress complaints pertaining to sexual harassment. Section 11 reads that , The committee has to complete the inquiry within a period of 90 days. As per section 12, The committee can give certain interim reliefs to the aggrieved woman during the pendency of the inquiry.

What if the complaint by said victim is Mala fide ? case of filing of false or malicious complaint or false evidence the committee may recommend to the employer or District Officer to take action in accordance with the provisions of service rules or where no such service rules exist, in such manner as prescribed in Rule 10 of the Rules

Is identity of a women victim disclose ? No according to section 16 of posh 2013 , There is a prohibition on publication of identity of the aggrieved woman, respondent, witnesses, contents of the complaint, inquiry proceedings or recommendations of the committee, except information regarding the justice secured to any victim of sexual harassment.

In last what would be the punishment for accused ? When the employer fails to constitute an Internal Committee or breaches provisions of this Act or any rules made thereunder, they shall be punishable with fine of fifty thousand rupees (INR 50,000).

Gender Equality

Equal rights and opportunities for all.

Opportunities and right should be equal for all. In our society the work is divided into two parts according to our gender, where a women’s appropriate job is cooking for her family and taking care of her children, in our Marathi language it’s called “Chul ani Mul”. Gender equality means that men and women have equal power and opportunities for financial, educational and personal development including own decision making power like a man has full power to take decisions for his own life, in same way a women should also have an equal power to control her own life and making her own decisions inside or outside the home. Dr B. R. Ambedkar the Father of Indian Constitution said “I measure the progress of a community by the degree of progress which women have achieved”, but if we don’t give them equal rights and opportunities then how can we say that world is going towards progress.

We are living in 21 century now but still globally, women have fewer opportunities than men , less access health and safety risks. Yet gender issues are not only about decision making or safety but also the relationship between men and women in society. Girls and boys faces gender inequality in their homes, communities and societies every day. Families who are not financially stable and can not afford school fees for all their children will prioritize education for their sons only. An educated girl is more likely to say “NO” to the young marriage, taking smarter decisions and raising her family and children alone. The action, behavior and attitude of boys and men towards girls and women’s is really plays an important role in gender equality, like a women can do a her dream job and take care of her children at a same time then why can’t men, atleast men can help them, can support them. Life of a women or a girl is filled with full of restrictions than men and after all this restrictions if something wrong happens first of all our society assumes that a women is responsible for this even without knowing the truth. Either taking girls and womens responsible for what happened we can tell our boys to respect girls and women’s , can tell boys to treat girls equally so one day we can make a better and safer world for women’s with equal rights and opportunities where “Gender Inequality” word never exist and genuinely we can say that the world is heading towards progress.

THE RIGHT TO BE PRIDE

It takes no compromise to give people their rights ... it takes no money to respect the individual. It takes no political deal to give people freedom. It takes no survey to remove repression.

Pride is the stand for dignity, equality and justice for the people who are in relationship or prefer same gender .

Pride has lent its name to LGBT-themed organizations, institutes, foundations, book titles, periodicals, a cable TV station, and the Pride Library.

Pride Month

THE HISTORY OF PRIDE MONTH

During the time of 1950s and 60s the LGBTQ community in United State of America . The initiative to Fight against the odds was taken by two homophile organizations Daughter of Bilitis and Mattachine Society. These two pioneered in carrying out pickets called Annual Reminders. These two organization woke up people to inform and reminded that LGBTQ community didn’t receive civil rights protection.

Gay Is Good
The anti-LGBT discourse of these times equated both male and female homosexuality with mental illness. Inspired by Carmichael’s “Black is Beautiful“, gay civil rights pioneer and participant in the Annual Reminders “Gay is Good” a slogan Originated by Frank Kameny in 1968 to counter social stigma and personal feelings of guilt and shame.

CRITICISM FACED BY LGBTQ COMMUNITY.

The criticism faced by the community outside And inside is against the movement of Pride Events. In Many countries the initiative to promote LGBTQ community was taken by the Government officials. Brazil In August 2011, Carlos Apolinário the Aldernman of Sao Paulo City the right-wing Democrats Party sponsored a bill to organize and sponsor “Heterosexual Pride Day” on the third Sunday of December. Apolinário, an Evangelical Protestant, stated that the intent of the parade was a “struggle … against excesses and privileges“. Members of Grupo Gay da Bahia and the Workers’ Party opposed the bill as enhancing “the possibility of discrimination and prejudice”. The bill was nevertheless passed by the city council, but never received the signature of mayor . Turkey. In 2015 police dispersed the LGBT Pride Parade using tear gas and rubber bullets.

In 2016 and 2017, the Istanbul Governor’s Office did not allow the LGBT Pride Parade to take place, citing security concerns and public order.

The Pride March

CONCLUSION.

• people are marginalized and suffer a lot for their human rights. •Their are several Anti-Gay bills passed by some States and some states fought against the odds and help the LGBTQ community to attain their human rights.The issues, challenges and the opportunity experienced by this group in the labor force will draw the attention towards the issues.

DISABILITY ETIQUETTES

Disability Etiquette - United Spinal Association

Disability etiquette is a set of guidelines dealing specifically with how to approach persons with disabilities . Before knowing about disability etiquettes , it is essential to understand certain basic things such as if someone has a disability don’t assume he/she needs help . In fact , adults with disabilities wants to be treated as an independent persons , So offer help only if the person with disability seems to need it . Physical contact should be avoided . Always speak directly to the person with a disability , not to his/her friend . Persons with disabilities are the best judge of what they can or can’t do .

General Disability Etiquettes

Disability Etiquette | OSU TOPS Program

The general disability etiquettes are stated below :

  • Always put the person first , i.e., say ‘person with disability ‘ rather than ‘disabled person’ . Always avoid the outdated words like handicapped , retarded , physically challenged or differently – abled . For example , refer to ‘person who are blind ‘ rather than ‘ blind person ‘.
  • In case of introduction to a person with a disability , it is appropriate to shake hands .
  • When you meet a person with a visual impairment , always identify yourself and others who may be with you .
  • Leaning or hanging on a person ‘s wheelchair should always be avoided because such act is generally considered annoying . In fact , the chair is the part of the personal body space of the person who uses it.
  • Always listen carefully as well as attentively when you are having conversations with a person who has difficulty in speaking . Have patience and wait for the person to finish rather than correcting or speaking for that person . Generally , ask short questions that require short time .
  • When talking with a person who is on a wheelchair or person who uses crutches , keep yourself at eye level in front of the person to facilitate the talk .
  • To get the attention of a person who is deaf or having hearing impairment , tap the person on the shoulder or wave your hand . You should look directly at the person and speak clearly .
  • Never patronize person who use wheelchairs by patting them on the head or shoulder .
  • Always introduce yourself to persons who are blind using your name .
  • Always avoid asking personal questions to an individual who is differently-abled .
  • Always give additional time to a person with any disability to do or to say something .
  • Always have conversation at a normal tone of voice . Don’t talk in high pitch to such individuals .
  • Don’t pretend to understand if you are facing problem in doing so .
  • If you need to leave a person who is blind , inform him that you are leaving and ask him if he needs anything before you leave .

|Gender Discrimination at the Workplace |

Hiliary Clinton has rightly said,”Women are the largest untapped reservoir of talent in the world.”

Today we see more and more women coming out of the four walls of their home and participating in public activities. They are doing the jobs which were earlier believed to be reserved for men. Now women are engineers,doctors, advocates, astronauts etc. 

Recently they have been granted permanent commission in the Indian Army enabling them to be deployed at the borders and fight equally as their male counterparts. 

In Spite of this there is still a long way to go ,women still face discrimination at workplace, they are sexually harassed and time and again forced to prove their worth and prove that they have got this job on their merit and not because they are women.

Forms of gender-based discrimination at workplace:

Direct forms- These direct forms of discrimination are the visible ones. They involve unequal pay where female employees are paid less than the male employees. Then there is the case of restrooms, women especially in the unorganised sector face sanitation problems making them work for long hours without relieving themselves. Women are stereotypically offered positions like HR, receptionists and very rarely they are given the position of a team lead. Most common of this the termination of the women when they speak up against or complain about the sexual harassment. 

Indirect forms- These may not be visible but they takes place more than the direct forms of discrimination. We hear a lot of cases where sexist questions are asked from women in the interview. They are often questioned about how they would manage their personal and professional lives, if they are married and have children then they may not even be offered the job. These same questions are however asked from men in the interview. Women also become the victims of sexist jokes,comments on their dressing , obscene statements that show how their dressing affects their productivity.

Some reasons identified behind this discrimination is the patriarchal attitude of people that the only work a women can do is the taking care of her family.Also there is this attitude of seeing women as an object of male satisfaction rather than an equal participant in the economy.

Hence the need of the hour is to change the patriarchal mindset of people. The successful women leaders like Mrs.Indira Gandhi the 1st woman PM of India, Indira Nooyi CEO of Pepsico , Jacinda Arden PM of New Zealand among others have proved the spokespersons of patriarchy wrong.

Swami Vivekanand has rightly said,”it is impossible to think of the welfare of a nation , without improving the condition of its women.It is impossible for a bird to fly with one wing.”