Boys will be boys is a
common phrase. But I have never heard girls will be girls. The suffrage
movement of the early 1900’s and the women’s rights, alongside the Civil Rights
movement of the 1960’s and it’s revival in the 1980’s are commonly believed to
be dead. But feminism is still alive and well today, still fighting tooth and
nail for equality between the sexes. No, feminists are not bra burning, men
hating women with unshaven bodies; that, my dear readers, is called a
stereotype. It is true, as with all stereotypes, there are some bra burning,
men hating women who don’t shave, but that does not mean it is true of all
feminists. Because, here’s a juicy little secret, if you believe in or support
equality between men and women, you are in fact a feminist. Simple as that. Despite
the advance and great strides women’s rights movements and organizations have
achieved, there are still many double standards between the sexs. Of course, the
biggest double standard is in the department of sexuality. However, pay gaps
and the glass ceiling still exist and most insurance companies pay for erectile
dysfunction medication but not for the majority of reproductive or
contraceptive medication available.
Sex. It’s often a taboo
in American society. Especially if you are a woman, unless that is, when it
comes to advertising. Another common phrase is sex sells. Yes, you do see a few
men in ads wearing nothing but boxers with an undeniable bulge. But this is
much rarer than a woman in her underwear or sexily clad, showing off a new
product or rolling around on a beach eating a sandwich larger than her mouth..
Of course, the media with its high standards and equal representation of every
body type, these women look like the models of Victoria’s Secret.
When it comes to sex and
women, women just can’t win. If a woman likes sex and has a lot of sex, she is
seen as a whore or a slut. Yet men who like sex and have a lot of sex are
placed on a pedestal and seen as a stud. But if a woman doesn’t like or want
sex she is considered frigid. Men are encouraged to lose their virginity as
soon as possible, while women are supposed to be “pure” and hold on to their
virginity for as long as possible. Often, women are shunned into silence about
their sexual lives, their body and what they do with it in bed is a huge taboo.
With age difference,
women can’t win either. If a woman is with a man that is younger than her, she
is a “cougar”, while this isn’t exactly an insult, there are certain
connotations with the term that puts it in a negative light. On the other hand,
if a woman is with a man that is older, especially as the age difference
increases, she is a gold digger.
Boys will be boys is an
excuse for boys and men alike. The phrase has never been used in order to
justify the actions and thoughts of women. Recently the boys will be boys
excuse was used in the Steubenville, Ohio rape case. Due to the fact that high
school boys were members of a beloved football team, they were held to a
different standard and protected by the community after gang raping and assaulting
an intoxicated teenage girl.
There is a saying that
has recently been appearing on feminist websites and blogs to bring attention
to the double standards between men and women. The best thing a woman can ever
be is a woman; the worst thing a man can ever be called is a woman.
What we need to do is to
teach our boys and girls that women and men are equal and should be treated as
such. We need them to understand that having a certain body part doesn’t make
you any less or any greater of a person. We need to teach our boys and men not
to rape instead of teach our girls and women not to get raped. Feminism is not
a dirty word. Everyone should be a feminist. To the men who say they are not a
feminist, explain to your mothers, sisters, wives, daughters, and every woman
in your life why you do not support equal rights for them. And to the women who
say they are not feminist, do you not like equal pay, or the right to vote, or
hold property, or not be treated as property? Because if a woman says she is not
a feminist, that is exactly what she is saying.
Just like racism, there
will never be no sexism, but we can take steps to become closer to an equal sex
world. Banishing and abolishing double standards that are still prevalent in
today’s society would be a large step in the right direction.
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