AND STILL I RISE: A Look at Woman's Progress

Happy International Woman's Day!

Today more than ever, I think it is important that we all take a look at the progress women have made through out history. I think it is important to all women to look at how things have grown in our society and realize that this all came with hard work.

 In our current society, we still face many issues and many battles against women. It seems more recently women's issues have really become the center focus of society. This  has all happened because of the great work of many strong women and men who are not letting things slide by now. I know at times it may seem hard to keep going,but today should be a reminder of the great work we should be working towards.

The reason I say all of this is because I have experienced doubts and questions about what I'm standing for and what I'm doing. I know many people struggle with this, as well. While I can not offer the solution to these personal battles and struggles, and can say that as a group if we continue to work towards equality it will come. It took time, stregnth, and plenty of people to achieve the great strides we have already made, so just remember that when you start to feel low and forget what you stand for.

I hope the poem and the following facts provide you with inspiration!

By the Numbers
Here you'll find some amazing stats about women in the world today.

1. Today, 71% of moms with kids under 18 work. In 1975, fewer than 47% did. Once upon a time, the idea of women working outside of the home was frowned upon and most women who did so worked as maids, seamstresses, took in laundry or worked in one of the traditionally female fields. Today, more women not only work outside the home, but hold a wider variety of jobs, with some even making it to the top of business, technology and science fields.
2. Women currently hold 17% of Congressional and Senate seats and 18% of gubernatorial positions in the U.S. While women are still underrepresented in political life, the current state of things is a far cry from a time when women weren't even allowed to vote — a mere 90 years ago.
3. In almost every country in the world, the life expectancy for women is higher than men. For virtually all causes of death at all ages, mortality rates are higher for men. Scientists aren't entirely sure why this is the case, but believe it might have to do with the presence of estrogen in the body improving immune function.
4. Approximately 14% of active members in the U.S. armed forces today are women. In 1950, women comprised less than 2% of the U.S. military. Today, women play an active role in serving their country through military service, but many in years past would simply disguise themselves as men in order to gain access to the battlefield, including well-known examples like Frances Clayton in the American Civil War.
5. Over 60 percent of college degrees awarded in the U.S. every year are earned by women. In fact, women are more likely than men to get a high school diploma as well, and the numbers are only expected to rise in the coming years.
6. The two highest IQs ever recorded, through standardized testing, both belong to women. One of these high IQ women is the columnist and author Marilyn vos Savant. Of course, these numbers should be taken with a grain of salt, as IQ tests aren't perfect in measuring intelligence, but it does help show that women aren't inferior to men in intelligence – as was claimed for centuries.
7. More American women work in the education, health services, and social assistance industries than any other. It seems that while women are moving into the workforce in large numbers, they're still taking on traditionally female positions like teaching, nursing and social services. These three industries employ nearly one-third of all female workers.

Soure:http://www.mastersdegree.net/50-fascinating-facts-for-womens-history-month/


Super Bowl Commercial Bingo

As I write these words the Super Bowl halftime show has just finished, along with my third glass of Sunkist and a packet of chocolate covered cookie dough bites. The floor is littered with chips, dip, copious amounts of soda, a half finished bowl of macaroni and cheese and an almost blacked out game of bingo. The game of bingo is why I’ve invaded my neighbor’s room. Since moving into a single I’ve learned the importance of saving space and a television doesn’t save much space. At least not the monster my dad’s been trying to find a home for. But the Super Bowl is about socializing, I think. Or at least it’s about the ads.

I haven’t properly watched the Super Bowl since I was a kid, and even then I was only sitting through the first half, as was the requirement if I wanted a bowl of ice cream at halftime. That was the true excitement of Super Bowl Sunday. A bowl of ice cream, maybe some slices of a banana, or cherries, or even whip cream when Dad was actually excited about whoever was playing. Otherwise there wasn’t much to hold my attention on that particular Sunday.

As I got older I started to notice something else about the Super Bowl. I started to notice the commercials. I noticed the funny commercials with talking animals, and outlandish situations, and cartoonish violence. And later I started noticing the more raunchy ads. Women in swimsuits that looked painted on. Dripping wet women with heaps of makeup. Women bending over. Women winking and blowing kisses and doing anything to sell their product.

To this day I don’t remember an actual commercial. Just the blur of overly sexualized women.

It wasn’t just women who were the victim of the Super Bowl ads. Men were usually reduced to grunting apes, only concerned with beer and sex. Oh, and being manly. One commercial that stuck out while I was preparing for this post was the Snickers commercial which, because I’m that awesome, I’ve included for you.

For those reading this on the run the commercial features two men working on a car, the most noble of manly hobbies, when one whips out a Snickers bar. In a “Lady and the Tramp” moment the other man begins to eat the free end of the bar until their lips touch for all of three seconds. Obviously they must do something manly to reclaim their…manliness, I guess. They opt for ripping out a chunk of chest hair.

Awesome.

Actually when I was younger I remember really liking that commercial. I thought it was funny that two guys would overreact to an accidental kiss and then I went on with my life. Some people complained. A lot of people complained, some of them straight and some of them gay. I don’t remember all the complaints, but I do remember there weren’t as many gay jokes in ads after that. At least slightly less.

The only company I remember as being a repeat offender in terms of offensive or just stupid would be GoDaddy, a company which relies so heavily on hyper sexualized women that I don’t even know what they sell. No, honestly. I didn’t know what they sold until I looked it up. Lately they’ve improved as far as having their actresses talk about what the company does between ripping off their clothes. So, it’s a start?

But really, they’re some of the worst. And because I don’t like suffering alone I’ve included some for you.

GoDaddy, your one stop shop for objectifying women. At least they’ve toned down on fetishizing lesbianism. Slightly.  

So what’s this about bingo I mentioned forever ago? Our lovely Graci (she who can make anything possible and is too awesome for shoes) sent out bingo cards in which Super Bowl commercials were used in areas like “violence,” “portraying women as stupid,” “bad parenting,” “sexualized lyrics,” and a whole host of other categories. For the record I got a blackout.

But here’s my good news. I only got a blackout near the very end of the game. It was actually kind of hard. So while this may be a case of premature celebration, I’d like to think advertisers are starting to realize stereotyping, sexism, and homophobia are cheap marketing tools. Which means we may be returning to a more simple time. A better time. A time in which all products are sold by cute animals doing silly things.

And I for one am excited for that day.

Also before I go I’ve got two commercials from this Super Bowl. My personal two favorites, if only because A) I love the song “Sexy and I Know It” and B) because time traveling babies are awesome. Though the second one does make me think twice about this whole "we're moving forward" thing. 

Your snack loving Intercultural Educator,
Izzy

Child Prostitution, Culture, and America

Being members of a Western culture, we find child prostitution an instant violation of human rights and detestable.  Recently, I read an article detailing a particular case of child prostitution in Thailand that is accepted by the children's parents and the children themselves.  Now, as most of you would probably guess, my first response to the first few paragraphs of the article were that of disgust toward the parents who allow this to happen. I thought to myself, "These people are terrible! How could someone allow their children to be paid for having sex with these old, rich men!" After clearly having this mindset of disgust toward the topic, I proceeded to read the article.  As I read on, I was better able to understand why this culture permitted what we consider atrocious, to occur.  In order to understand why parents allowed this, one must first understand that family, and therefore, parents are extremely important in this society.  They place high value on the concepts of obedience and gratitude, especially toward their parents.  Children are expected to "repay" their parents, and see this as an obligation.  A child's main responsibility is that toward their parents.  Therefore, children engage in prostitution because of the factors in their environment and their culture.  Prostitution as a means to "repay" their parents becomes extremely appealing for various reasons.  First, it is a fast way to get a lot of money, and is more appealing than begging or working in under sweatshop conditions in factories.  Second, the children don't see it as prostitution or exploitation because they build relationships with the men that request their services.  They typically keep in contact with the children, and therefore, the families see these men as friends.  Despite these cultural facts, it became very difficult to understand the inner workings of how this prostitution continues to occur.

My Overall Reflections:

Primarily, I reflected on how much work it took my mind to think in terms of tolerance and respect for this culture that accepts child prostitution.  Even though I feel that something needs to be done so that children can fulfill their perceived obligation toward their parents without needing to engage in prostitution, after pondering on the cultural values, it became apparent to me HOW this prostitution can be acceptable.

Secondly, this article made me think about issues closer to home, ever present in our Western culture.  The child-prostitution that occurs in Thailand is rooted in the need for money in order to relieve poverty.  In America, poverty is also very real and can lead people to doing some surreal things.  From committing crimes to falling into a downward spiral of substance abuse or depression, our Western people suffer from not having enough to live off of.  Pondering on this made me realize that we don't often think of what leads people to their actions...and we just judge them on what they do.  Can we/should we judge someone for committing a crime when their environment has lead them to it without any other way out?  when society itself doesn't lead them any other alternative?  OR Are there alternatives other than breaking the law for people in these situations?  ....Kind of reminds me of that movie "PRECIOUS" and the struggles the protagonist goes through.  Keep in mind that movie's setting is in America.

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY

Martin Luther King Jr. day is not only a day to commemorate the memory of a strong leader, but it is also a day to lend ourselves towards helping others.  Monday, January 16^th at 4:00 PM in Graham there will be an opportunity to address the needs of others.  As part of a global humanitarian effort, Central College is partnering with The Care Bags Foundation to make receiving blankets for children in need.  If you would like to get involved, please email: martschingc@central.edu.  For more information on The Care Bags Foundation check out their website: www.carebags4kids.org

With the holidays coming close, we are now starting to make lots of goodies! Sugar cookies, pies, candy, chocolate, you name it. It's all for the holidays! When this starts to happen a lot of women who already struggle with their body begin to worry more. Some women just fret around the holidays. The big to do that women are told through magazines is how to keep a rocking bod through the holidays. Eat this and you'll stay thin. Oh stay away from that kind of food. Work out a little bit more and you'll be fine. Honestly, with all these messages coming at us, I feel kinda bombarded. I have this overwhelming urge to watch what I eat during the holidays. I find myself worrying more over a cookie than my homework. With all the worrying, it begins to get hard. Soon you become so stressed with the whole what to eat and not to eat thing that you are just overwhelmed. This is not what the holidays are about though. Its about coming together with people and enjoying life. Not stressing over how many calories are in grandma's mash potatoes. So what I wanted to say to everyone, is that maybe we should take a step back. Re-analyze the messages we are sending women during the holidays. Is it really a big deal if you stuff your face full of turkey for Christmas? Hey, its not every day, so it doesn't matter as much as we think it does. The important thing to remember is eat what you feel comfortable eating. Enjoy those cookies!! Stop worrying about where it's going to go. You are allowed to enjoy yourself. Yeah...maybe you will gain a pound or two. Maybe you won't. The important thing to note is that at the end of the day, it's not a big deal. You are still beautiful inside and out! My challenge to everyone who suffers like I do is to love and cherish your body as much as you cherish and love the moments you share during the Holidays. Also remember, you aren't alone in this boat. Plenty of women and men feel this pressure. Don't hesitate to talk to someone about it! Ultimately, the lesson learned here is to Love your BODY! Enjoy the holidays and be safe!!!

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