Gender equality, concept and evolution
Gender equality is a constitutional right that says that all people must have the same opportunities, responsibilities and rights without exception giving the sex with which you were born. It is important to differentiate equality from equity, two concepts with a tendency to confuse. Equity is that the treatment to which men and women are subject is impartial. This treatment can be the same for both or unequal but balanced, here is the difference, in compensating the inequalities between men and women. We talk about gender equality because it has been proven that there is structural discrimination by gender.
To combat this situation, measures have been implemented and there are numerous regulation today. These measures are given both in the international areThe Organic Law of Gender Violence in 2004. One of the measures to achieve gender equality is the concept of transversality. This is born at the end of the 20th century and aims to integrate women and their values in all areas of life, focusing on state areas, which depend on public authorities. There is the explanation of why they focus on this area, because it is sought that women have a presence in public authorities. It is important to know that the objective of gender equality is to grant power to women and girls. This empowerment is something necessary because it helps us with social progress, since women represent half of the population.
We are talking about half the world potential. In September 2015, the 17 sustainable development objectives were approved and none has achieved or achieve the main objective, which was absolute equality in every way before 2030 (Denmark is the country that is closest to achieve it and Spain is inthe 23rd position). Despite the efforts of governments, the number of women and girls living in countries in which they suspend gender equality are 40% of the population, around 1.400 women and girls. These are countries such as Sierra Leone, Liberia, Nigeria, Mali, Yemen, etc. In addition, governments seek to achieve this goal because they know that gender equality and economic development will be promoted mutually, because if growth is shared equally, the progress of a country benefits.
At present, many are the girls who suffer from gender inequality, in fact in some countries they are not allowed to access an adequate health or nutrition. In addition, child marriage is very common, about 15 million girls get married before being of legal age. Cases of girls who suffer from mutilation or genital ablation are also often given, it is said that about 133 million. All these examples lead to an increase in the mortality rate. But although this occurs in third world countries, there is also gender inequality in developed countries. This is the case of physical and/or sexual violence, which has been suffered by 35% of women around. This is still one of the clearest cases of gender inequality and one of the most obvious expressions that demonstrate the empowerment of men about women.
Evolution and history
Throughout history, the evolution of gender inequality has been positive, thanks to women precursors of equality that since the French Revolution have defended the rights and freedoms of women. This fight begins by Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-1797), thanks to which the feminist movement begins. It was an Englishman who grew up in a middle class family, frequently seeing how his father attacked his mother and that is why what he wanted to achieve was women were educated in the same way that men were educated and thus obtain powerAbout themselves. His movement seeks to infect women of their time and serve as an example to the coming generations. She was a writer and reflected in her works all these ideas that she supported, being one of her most important works the "vindication of women’s rights", in which he claims the equality of civil, political, labor and educational rights between man andwomen, like the right to divorce freely. It is one of the first feminist works that was published in 1792, an era of political and social excitation. Another precursor of feminism to highlight was Marie Gouze, known as Olympe de Gouges. She was a writer of French origin who was the first to position himself publicly against slavery and in creating a work that was against this.
Between the second half of the 19th century and the second half of the twentieth century, there is another new feminist struggle with the motto of "Without political rights for women there is no peace or democracy". A Congress takes place in New York in which men and women participate and where the declaration of feelings is created, expressing in this the equality of civil rights and universal suffrage. This continuous series of feminist events cause women to begin to have a greater presence in Spanish society. Some showed their freedom cutting their skirts or hair, which had the symbolic meaning that women could decide for themselves and that they would end the empowerment of man over them. Little by little, this movement obtains benefits such as access to higher education, to be able to drive, to think for themselves and freely, to publish books, articles, … It is also achieved that in the 20s and 30s the concept of women emergesemancipated and the rights of widows.
It is worth highlighting at that time the figure of feminist Clara Zetkin;She was one of the most relevant women of the time and she was very interested in women’s policy. She was a editor in the newspaper "Die Gleicheit" for 26 years (1891-1917), in 1907 the new SPD Women’s Office became a leader and was one of the engines to get the celebration of March 8 (International Day ofthe woman). Another precursor of the time was Rosa Luxembourg, a Jewish woman imprisoned several times for a life dedicated to an intense policy and for her struggle in favor of the right to women’s vote. During the 60s, many other feminist movements arise and with them the first progressive thoughts with the motto of “Without social rights for women there are no human rights or justice”. The problem of patriarchy and gender inequalities is analyzed. The fashion begins that women watch pants, extend mixed education and get the woman to be present in secondary and higher education and in professional jobs. Regarding the issues related to marriage, the creation of contraceptives is achieved, the divorce is begun and the abortion is legalized.
Types of feminism
Within feminism two great historical moments can be highlighted. The first is between the end of the nineteenth and mid -twentieth century, which we can call "modern feminism", and the second, from the 60s to the present, called "contemporary feminism".
Modern feminism
Arising from the female movements participating in the French Revolution of 1789, and continuing subsequently in the shadow of great social movements of the nineteenth century such as socialism or anarchism.
Modern feminism talks about natural law, justice and democracy, in connection with liberal individualism, leading to liberal feminism, with the objective of expanding legal, political and labor rights of women belonging to the middle class. They managed to improve the legislation on marriage property, access to education, employment opportunities and women’s participation in government.
The women participating in this movement understand that without access to egalitarian education, there is no equal opportunities between sexes, and therefore could never eliminate that structural discrimination against which they fought. They also believed that all people regardless of sex must have the freedom to decide their functions in society and must abolish all the traditions, laws and activities that prevent the exercise of rights in equality and have the same opportunities.
Contemporary feminism
This movement within feminism had highly revolutionary beginnings. It was born about 1960 in the United States, with the WLM or Women’s Liberation Movement movement that, based on Marxist theory, understands society as a system of sexes and social classes. This way of understanding society guides them to the study of the role of women in politics and launching a great movement of women’s liberation. From this era highlights "radical feminism".
From 1980 a great diversity of currents within feminism arise, these being: being:
- Lesbian feminism, affirms that lesbian homosexuality is not only chosen or is a right, but it is a way of life. They proposed the creation of the reception centers and were a pioneer in the denunciation of the seriousness of violence against women.
- Psychoanalytic feminism, formed by scholars on how to affect the oppression suffered by women to their sexuality and emotions. They are partisans of the revolution from within, since oppression is at the psychological level.
- Postmodernist feminism, seeks fundamentals for the demonstration that philosophy and its branches are not unitary.
- Post -structural feminism, analyzes the performance of patriarchy in all its manifestations.
- Feminism of difference, with the aim of creating a women’s release program to achieve their true identity, based on sexual difference. They are aware of the difference between women and men and therefore criticize the feminism of equality.
- Institutional feminism, created from the moment that feminism is no longer only a movement, but has welcomed by international and national institutions. The first moment in which feminism has international recognition was after the World Report on WomenUN on women in various countries, among other examples.
Bibliography
- UNESCO CULTURE INDICATORS FOR DEVELOPMENT: Gender Equality. UNESCO.org. https: // is.UNESCO.org/creativity/sites/creativity/files/digital-library/cdis/Ipdf. Posted 2014. Accessed Dec 2., 2019.
- Álvarez P, acute to. 40% of women and girls live in countries that suspend in gender equality. THE COUNTRY. https: // elpais.com/elpais/2019/06/03/planet_futuro/published 2019. Accessed Dec 2., 2019.
- Definition of gender violence. Immujer.Gob.it is. http: // www.Immujer.Gob.es/servrecursos/formation/SMEs/docs/introduction/02_definition_de_violence_de_genero.PDF. Posted 2019. Accessed Dec 2., 2019.
Leave feedback