Gender discrimination

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DOING WHAT COMES NATURAL?

Sexism and gender discrimination




But‌



Write down three primary reasons why these inequalities might happen ?


Our Purpose 

Despite educational success, women are disadvantaged in a number of areas of public life

We ask: Are these inequalities a result of biological differences?  Is gender discrimination reproduced through social structures?  To what extent is gender discrimination a result of unconscious everyday practices?  Or is it direct discrimination against women by men? 


Today 

Consider the distinction between sex and gender

Discuss the construction of gender

Examine the institutional ‘limits’ to gender equality

Explore the notion of everyday sexism


In context 

Biological sex (or gender?) is perhaps the most noticeable social difference

It is readily apparent that this difference is a division

The primary debate is whether these divisions are biologically determined or socially constructed

We will examine difference approaches for understanding this debate, predominately functionalism and feminism(s)


The illusion of progress? 

Whilst divisions exist, there appears to be some progress in relation to gender and sexual equality

This progress contrasts with both economic and ethnic inequalities

Nonetheless, gender and sexuality remain one of the only areas in which active discrimination is socially and legally accepted in some areas

Biological assumptions, particularly in relation to masculinity and power, remain extremely common


Why?

?


Basics Sex: Biological differences, male vs. female

Gender: Cultural differences, masculinity vs. femininity


The importance of understanding How society understands the links between sex and gender significantly affects social and political responses to differences and divisions

Biology

Social constructions

• Functional cohesion

• Gender discrimination


The logic of traditional Sex 

Humans are just another animal species…

…the animal kingdom is marked by significant distinctions in ‘gender roles’.

These biological distinctions are reflected in social gender roles.

This concept helps to naturalise divisions between genders…

…and stigmatise ‘unnatural’ sexual practices

But has an intuitive grip on our understandings?


It’s all natural Differences between men and women are often considered to be natural


Between Biology and Culture? Biology

Society

We may be born into a ‘sex’, but this is expressed in a social context

Moreover, certain aspects of our ‘sex category’ are socially favoured – there is no natural political privileging of gendered characteristics


Birthing Social Life 

Biological women are uniquely positioned to give birth to children

For many, this biological fact leads to natural social consequences

Alternatively, the social inequalities that are supposed to result from the ‘mothering role’ can be attributed to the social norms through which we respond to biology


Does the potential to give birth result in ‘naturally’ nurturing social roles for women? ?


Functionalism and Patriarchy 

Biologically defined gender roles allow an ‘organic’ solidarity and social cohesion

Men and women might have different positions within society, but this is a reflection of natural differences

Emile Durkheim (1897): “Further, we have seen that in all the countries of the world women commit suicide much less than men. They are also much less educated. Fundamentally traditionalist by nature, they govern their conduct by fixed beliefs and have no great intellectual needs”. Suicide, p.121


Family stability 

Talcott Parsons argued that family’s played a key role in socialising children

Family’s work best through a strong, sexual, division of labour Women hold ‘expressive roles’  Men ‘instrumental’ roles 

David Cameron: families are "the building blocks of a strong, cohesive society"


Classical Sex 

Humans are just another animal species

The animal kingdom is marked by significant distinctions in ‘gender roles’

These biological distinctions are reflected in social gender roles 

Men and women are ‘separate but equal’

This concept helps to naturalise divisions between genders…

…and stigmatise ‘unnatural’ sexual practices

But has an intuitive grip on our understandings?


U.S Republican Primary Candidate Rick Santorum: On stay-at-home mothers “Respect for stay-at-home mothers has been poisoned by a toxic combination of the village elders’ war on the traditional family and radical feminism’s misogynistic crusade to make working outside the home the only marker of social value and self-respect.’’ — From “It Takes a Family”

On Marriage “Marriage is not about affirming somebody’s love for somebody else. It’s about uniting together to be open to children, to further civilization in our society.” -“Fox News Sunday”, Fox News Channel, August 3, 2003.


Beyond Nature 

Gender had not been considered a social category until introduced in the 1950s by controversial psychologist John Money

The social construction of gender did not come into widespread use in sociology until the 1970s 

Masculinity vs. Femininity rather than Male vs. Female

This framework suggested that divides between the masculine and the feminine were socially determined and fluid


Constructing Gender 

Biology does not ‘determine’ gender – it is an ‘inadequate explanation’

Humans are social and culture creatures; our biology is not simply expressed but constructed through social norms and institutional structures

Gender is performed everyday through socially defined roles and displays


Doing Gender 

Conversely, gender is not completely divorced from biology

Candace West and Don Zimmerman (1987, p.126) argue that gender appears to be fixed from around age five, much like sex, through social productions

Individuals ‘do’ gender, but within a strongly defined social context and psychological attachment


Sex and Sex Categories 

Sex may occur biologically, but requires the social selection of the appropriate biological criteria – a ‘sex category’

Through our symbolic gender displays and role we claim inclusion within these categories, thus it is possible to claim membership whilst not meeting the biological criteria

While we display our gender, this staging occurs within a defined social situation


Gender Inequalities 

Gender is a performed act within social structures based upon a claim to belong to a sex category defined by sex criteria

Any sexual inequality is constructed within social structures

Attempts to essentialise gendering (reduce gender to sex) naturalise those inequalities

Feminism is the primary explanatory device in the critique of these assumptions


Feminism 

Feminism, and feminist theory, seeks to understand and contest gender inequality

Feminist sociologist’s suggest ‘that it is necessary to re-conceptualise sociology, not just add women, but to develop adequate theories for explaining the exploitation and subordination of women’ (Abbott, 2006: 71)

By arguing that distinctions between men and women are socially constructed rather than biologically given, feminist theory provided resources to challenge social divisions

This challenge – an attempt to explain social inequalities – has primarily occurred at three levels


Explaining Gender Divisions 

Direct discrimination: Women are inferior to men

Institutionalised discrimination: Macro social structures are loaded in favour of men and masculinity

Everyday practices: Our understanding of gender is naturalised and we don’t see certain behaviours are discriminatory


From feminism to feminisms

Liberal feminism

Radical feminism

Marxist feminism


Liberal Feminism 

Liberal feminism, most commonly send as a cultural and political practice, has focused on ensuring formal and cultural equality between men and women



This can be limited to ensuring equal pay for equal jobs or equal opportunities through progressive reforms



Alternatively, liberal feminists have attempted to tackle more institutional forms of gendered discrimination


Fair Pay Laws 

The ‘Equal Pay Act’ was passed in 1970

Yet, in 2010, research by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) suggested that the gender pay gap in the UK would not be bridged until 2067

How can we explain this discrepancy?


Everyday Sexism 

Gender biases pervade our everyday life, to the point they go unnoticed

Masculine ways to do things are the ‘right ways’

Sexism is experienced on a personal level


Do you experience sexism as an everyday experience?


Institutional Discrimination 

It is argued that there exists a cultural bias towards masculine characteristics within public life

Both gender roles and the social norms that determine successful gender display prevent women from achieving power

Women are often expected to take on domestic ‘responsibilities’ as well as paid employment

Moreover, the biological and social demands of childcare often coincide with normalised periods of career progression


Why does the gender pay gap rise with age?


Public and Private 

Gendered behavioural and social divisions have tended to represent an extension of private roles

Feminist’s have argued both that ‘women’s work’ in the home is undervalued and that certain tasks are considered to be women’s work

The idea of ‘women’s work’ has been extended in public roles


Feminine Occupations 

In 2010 the Equality and Human Rights Commission reported that: 

Women do 77% of all administrative and secretarial jobs in Britain and 83% of ‘personal service’ roles

58% of unpaid carers are women and 87% of married women reported doing more housework than their husbands

Moreover, university subject areas with a high proportion of women: Medicine (80%), veterinary science (76%), education (76%) and languages (68%).

Subject areas with a high proportion of men included: Engineering and technology (84%), computer science (81%) and architecture, building and planning (69%).


Feminine Occupations ‘Feminine’ occupations tend to follow wife/mother nurturing roles Wife/receptionist

Mother/Teacher


Why are women overrepresented in these roles? Is it possible to be powerful and feminine?


Radical Feminism 

Radical feminists such as Simone de Beauviour argue that a ‘patriarchal’ system of power ensures male supremacy

Masculine positions are normative, forcing women take on these roles

Sexism and gender inequalities aren’t a result of biology or direct discrimination, but widespread systematic domination by men


Patriarchy 

Patriarchy is the ‘rule (or law) of the father’

Originally understand as the dominant role of the father in the family relations through which we are socialised

Sociologists have conceptualised patriarchy as a structural system that maintains male, or masculine, dominance


Feminism and Patriarchy 

Shulamith Firestone (1971) argued that it is men who control women’s reproductive roles and thus both control the private lives of women and prevent them from entering into public life

Further, central ideals about femininity circulated in the public domain – both about social roles and physical appearance – oppress women.

The key distinction here is between ‘public’ and ‘private’


Politicising the private 

Carol Hanisch: ‘The personal is political’

Ann Oakely (1974): Women work a ‘double shift’ in the home

These responsibilities prevent women’s full participation in the public sphere


Violence and public space 

According to the Equality and Human Rights Commission, in 2008/9: 

Domestic violence (including by partners, ex-partners and family members) accounted for 68% of female homicides and 15% of male homicides in England and Wales, and 53% of female homicides and 20% of male homicides in Scotland.

27% of women and 15% of men have experienced some form of domestic abuse since reaching the age of 16 in England and Wales

Women were the victims of just under three-quarters (73%) of the domestic violence recorded in the 2009/10 British Crime Survey.

This violence is often suggested to be part of men’s sense of entitlement to occupy and dominate public space


Masculine Femininity? 

Against these systematic limitations, it is argued that women have been reduced to a shadow of masculinity

In order to compete, women have to ‘act’ like men, taking on the negative connotations of masculinity


Capitalist Feminism 

It has argued that feminism and gender equality have been limited by their commodification

That is, what it means to be feminine is defined by advertising and consumerism

Moreover, through the rise of service industries, production is becoming more feminised

These changes produce a façade of feminine dominance whilst leaving patriarchal structures intact


To what extent is public ‘culture’ feminine?


Marxist Feminism 

Marxist feminists have argued that men control women’s domestic labour, much as the bourgeois control the proletariat within capitalism.

Conversely, capitalism has encouraged the entry of women into the job market, increasing the supply of labour

However, capitalist dynamics continue to determine the value of this labour e.g. Finance capitalists are more valuable than hospice nurses


Threatening Masculinity 

The rise of feminine perspectives and reduction in working class status has challenged ‘what it means to be a man’

There has been considerable fretting about systematic biases in the education system…

…and ‘discrimination’ against (white) men through progressive programmes


10 Steps to being a man No.10 Learn to talk the talk No.9 Get the news No.8 Develop your voice

No.7 Hit the gym No.6 Foot the bill

No.5 Forget the past No.4 Don't write anything No.3 Drink hard No.2 Shake with authority No.1 Look 'em in the eye


Limits to Gendering? 

Part of the ‘crisis’ of masculinity is the notion that society has moved away from its ‘natural’ state by encouraging more relativist conceptions

This concern returns us to question of socialised biology


Why do gender inequalities occur?


Summary 

Whilst significant progress has been made in the West, persistent divisions remain

These divisions are often reproduced through biological assumptions

Sociological and political feminism(s) have challenged biological essentialism

These assumptions and subsequent discriminations continue to have resonant strongly


Next Week CAN’T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG? UNDERSTANDING RACISM AND ETHNICITY READING Mason, D. (2006) Ethnicity. In G. Payne (Ed.) Social Divisions (2nd Ed.), Basingstoke: Macmillan.


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