LAST CRJ!

Women have always been struggling with the ideas the constitution portrays. They fought for their right to vote, set up the Equal Rights Amendment, and are still fighting for positions in political office. Opponents argue with them that the ERA is anti-family, and it took almost fifty years to convince the state that women should have the right to vote. However, in other countries women have fewer rights and must fight harder to keep them. In Mali, Sudan, and Yemen women are not allowed to marry, divorce, or remarry, it is up to their husband who controls them (638). Women in Kuwait are not allowed to vote and in Saudi Arabia women are not allowed to drive (639). Just recently in Nepal, daughters were given the same family property as sons, but they must return it when they are married (639). In Pakistan, four Muslim adult males must testify that a woman was raped and female witnesses serve no purpose. Marital rape is also not defined as rape in countries such as India, Malaysia, and Tonga. Laws in these countries are changing and women’s rights are become more frequent. However, the rate at which this change is coming is slow. The women in the world who do have rights need to stand up for those who don’t so that women all over the world can become truly equal to men.
Susan B. Anthony, an activist for women’s rights, was one of the most influential women of her time. She was fined for voting and refused to pay (617). In her speech she argues that the constitution refers to people as white males and does not represent the entire population of the United States. She states that our government is “based on the idea of the natural right of every individual member” (637) which would stand for men and women both. Both men and women formed the union of the United States and therefore both should be represented in our government. Women were tried with a jury containing no women and custody was usually always given to the men. Women now have the right to vote, however, their voice is still not totally represented. Women are underrepresented in the national government; therefore the ideas of men are overpowering those of women (622).
Women in prison are mostly black women, a percentage that is an overrepresentation. This might be due to the fact that blacks and males are considered to be more violent. Many women may get out of going to prison because women are perceived as harmless and innocent. The number of crimes committed by women has been increasing in recent years mostly due to drug crimes. Many of these crimes were committed before the age of 18 (631). This could be due to the insecurity young women feel caused by society’s expectations. Most homicide committed by women is done in self defense. Although women are more likely now than they were in previous years to commit a crime, the number of women who are victims is also a problem. Women must learn to educate themselves and defend themselves in the case of an attack.