Critical Response Journal #1

Have women achieved equality? Do men still create the “sticky floor?” Can women achieve the goals they strive for? Women have come a long way since Elizabeth Cady Stanton first started pushing for women’s rights. We can go to college, vote, choose who we decide to marry, and have the right to abortion. However, as stated in the book “things are worse for many women than they ever have been” in areas such as “poverty, violence, pornography, and HIV/AIDS” (14). Furthermore, although America may have achieved some sort of equality for women, it is our duty as women of today’s world to help out our sisters all around the world.
Domestic abuse is a common problem of today. As a volunteer at the free clinic, I have seen many women come in with signs of abuse. Many of these women take no stand against the abuse they receive because they are submissive to their husbands. They do not know where to turn to. Although there are a lot more than the two centers for women now, I believe that women’s shelters are not as accessible as they should be. Some of these women probably see abuse as a norm in society. There needs to be an emphasis to educate women on their rights and responsibilities of being a woman.
Although domestic abuse is a great misfortune in present society, I believe that pornography should be a greater focus. Pornography is defined as obscene drawings, writings, etc, especially those with no artistic merit. It comes from the French word that means prostitute or more specifically, female slave sold for prostitution. The reason why this should be a greater focus is because women, not men, are the reason prostitution is such a problem. Why would a woman choose to display herself in obscene ways? Why would a woman associate herself with prostitution? Many women are not forced into pornography; however, they still choose to participate in it. One example is the well known collection of the “Girls Gone Wild” series. Although the girls on the series may not realize it, they are lowering women’s status in society. By displaying themselves to the world, men take women as a whole less seriously. They view them as sexual objects, not equals. Women need to be aware of the harm they are causing to not only themselves, but our gender as a whole.
Finally, we need to help women all around the world choose equality. I really enjoyed the reading “A Day Without Feminism.” It helped me to understand that everything I take for granted is available to me because of the hard work of women. I never knew some o these things were true, such as the fact if a woman had a baby and the father was not present, the birth certificate would read “illegitimate.” I also did not know that women were not told the risks of contraception pills when they were given to them. Nor did I know about the role of “stewardess” or “divorcees.” I was shocked by the terms of child birth and mastectomies. If all of these things were true only 35 years ago in the United States, I can only begin to imagine the status of women in other third world countries. I traveled to Guatemala this summer on a medical mission trip. Although within the cities women seemed to be respected, the remote villages we traveled to were a totally different story. Many women were scared to come out of their homes because they were afraid of rape. Our leader also told our group about the problem of prostitution that is widespread in the country. One scene that shocked me was two young girls, probably only thirteen years old, getting into a truck with a couple of older men. It was obvious that these young girls, barely teenagers, were prostitutes. This problem most likely comes as a symptom of the poverty in the country. However, it can also be reduced if women from all over the world help each other in their struggle for equality.

Interview

I received a wide array of responses from the people that I interviewed. The first interview was with my roommate from New Jersey. She said that women’s studies sounded interesting; however, she did associate a feminist with lesbian – a common misperception of only one category of feminist. Next, I interviewed my other roommate, who I knew would have a very different attitude about the subject. She believes that women’s studies is just a way women try to think they are equal to men while actually they are putting a radical stamp on themselves. Although radical feminist may have put a stamp on themselves, I believe it was necessary for them to do so. Without their rallying for women’s rights, the lives of everyday women would be totally different than they are today. Furthermore, I believe these radical feminist that my roommate referred to were only one piece of the pie in the world of feminism. She was not supportive when I told her that I was thinking about becoming a feminist.
The last interview that I had was with my mother. She has always encouraged my sister and I to achieve; furthermore, as a woman controlled at work by a male boss, she pushed us to strive for a professional career instead of an office one. When she found out that I was taking a women’s studies class she said, “Power to the women!” She views feminist as strong women and believes that I am already a feminist.
I believe there are a wide variety of feminists. True, the feminist that stand out are those who are radical and unite to change women’s lives. However, if you are a woman who believes in equal opportunity between sexes and enjoys the privileges that woman have earned in the present day, I believe you are a feminist. As a pre-professional college student, I would consider myself a feminist. However, I would also say that I am not a radical one, nor do I try to make a stand against discrimination against women. I am happy with the state of women’s rights in America, I believe that we have come a long way and I feel that I can achieve anything that I wish to without restrictions. Although I have not entered “the real world,” as a future doctor I believe that I will have power to make my own decisions without being held down by males.

The picture on the top of the blog represents the different types of feminist that exist. There are some who are represented by the "dont call me girl" button. They are extreme feminist who are extreme and will not take any form of "discrimination" from society. However, there are people, like myself, who are represented by the "failure is impossible button." Although I am not radical, I believe that anything I want to achieve should be a possibility. I also like this image because it reminds us of everything that has been achieved for women from the right to vote to earning an equal standing in the workplace.