Gender Inequality

Whoever said men and women are equal must be blind. Women have always taken a back seat to men in American society. This occurrence is not only found in the United States, but in other countries as well. It's safe to say that the Declaration of Independence started it, and it has continued to the present. There is one set of standards that apply to men, and another set of standards that apply to women. This is evident in the home, workplace, and society in general.

The problem of men and women not being equal can be traced back to the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration of Independence proclaimed that all men are created equal. There was no mention of women being equal, only men. At the time of the drafting of the document, the men had all the power. The document was even drafted by a man. Women were confined to the home to take care of the domestic housekeeping duties.

Look no further than the home to see the first sign that men and women are not equal. The traditional role of the man was to work, and the money he made would be used by all in the household. The traditional role of the woman was to stay home, take care of the children, clean the house, and cook. Because society has always associated money with power, the person bringing home the money had the power. The man often makes the final decision on all household matters because he has the money.

In early American Culture it was common for a women's job to be a submissive homemaker in clear contrast to the male's tough breadwinner role. The Seventies marked the beginning of the Woman's Movement and the end of the ideals we held on to, of what it is to be a "woman". Women were no longer like the stereotypical homemaker, but were instead out protesting inequality. One of the Women's Movements primary goals was to crush gender roles in the sense that women were secondary to men. Girls are encouraged to play with dolls and playhouse type of toys while boys will often play with trucks and army toys. Boys are played with in a rough manner and told to "tough it out" when they get hurt. Girls are taught to be more passive and expressive their feelings. Whether or not these gender roles are fair, this is where the argument beings.

The fact that we are treate...

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...n s capabilities and self-esteem due to the constant degradation and manipulation in the labor force. The distribution of men and women strongly affects their psychological and economic rewards. Women today are expected to work what sociologists call the second shift besides their day job. The second shift includes the daily chores of being a mother, wife and maid. Men provide many barriers for women to cross, in order to move up in life. (5, 6) Inequality has kept in place because of beliefs and practices that have been drilled into people s minds for so long. When will women be treated as equals to men in the work place? I don't see a change happening in the near future. Women are slowly being treated more as equals to men but the gap will never narrow to complete equality. Women should, not only be treated as equal in the work place, but also in everything else as well. Whether it is a computer scientist, an athlete, or a president of the United States, women should be treated as equal to men. Gender discrimination has gone too far and we, as a society, have to draw the line. We can’t change the past issues, but we can certainly change the future.