Paper Example on Gender Discrimination

Prompt 1: US Law and Gender Inequality

The United States has undoubtedly made a lot of progress towards achieving gender equality. The married women's property act that was enacted in the late nineteenth century is perhaps one of the most significant of these steps. Heretofore, women lost ownership of their property to their husbands once they got married. However, with the marriage property act, women were able to maintain some degree of control of their property even after getting married (Shammas, 1). This act also went a long way in elevating women to a level that was almost equal to their male counterparts.

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Although significant gains have been made in addressing the gender inequality issue, it is sometimes very challenging for women to use the law as their defender in the fight for gender equality. Reproductive rights are very fundamental in the quest for gender equality (Chapter 5, 443). It is because, when a woman has control of her reproductive health, she can be able to plan the course of her life independently. Infringement of her reproductive rights can be therefore be seen as controlling, and a means to which a woman is subjected to gender inequality.

The United States law on reproductive health creates a situation where it is challenging for a woman to have total control over her reproductive health. For instance, the contraception laws of the twentieth century were drafted in a manner that they prohibited the use of any medicinal instrument, or article or even drug for contraception. It denied the woman her right to have control over her reproductive health (Chapter 5, 419). The law also infringed on her right to privacy because it even allowed law enforcers to search marital homes for evidence in a situation where they suspected that a married couple was using contraceptives.

Abortion is also one of the most challenging issues when it comes to the application of reproductive health laws in the united states. Several states in the united states have over the years made laws which have sought to criminalize abortion. During the 19th century, there existed a distinction between the abortion of an unquickened pregnancy and that of a quickened pregnancy. The former was seen as a misdemeanor while the later was generally regarded as a second-degree murder (Chapter 5, 433). However, as time gradually passed, American lawmakers continued denying women their right to determine whether they eventuality of their pregnancy. During the twentieth century, the laws were even more stringent making abortion of any kind to be regarded as murder. The law only allowed abortion to be carried out if the life of the mother was at risk and conducting an abortion is necessary to save her life (Chapter 5, 433).

Abortion remains a very contentious issue today. Most women in many states in the United States do not have the freedom to carry out an abortion if they so wished. It is because abortion is still illegal in most states. Even when women have moved to court to challenge these laws they have always been disappointed. For instance, Roe went to the Supreme Court of the United States in 1971 seeking to bar her home state of Texas from implementing laws that illegalized abortion. In presenting her case, she argued that the state of Texas had denied her the right to undergo a safe abortion performed by a competent health professional because she had failed to prove that her pregnancy threatened her life. She desired to terminate it because she did not wish to bear a child while she was still not married. The supreme court, however, denied her prayers and upheld the laws that only allowed pregnancy in situations where the life of the mother is threatened.

The law that says that abortion is only legal if the life of the mother is threatened therefore seems to be in contradiction with the ninth amendment which if used would have given Roe the right to terminate her pregnancy. Women who are thus barred from terminating their pregnancies are therefore not fully granted their liberty rights. They are also subjected to various problems which may affect the quality of life that they lead. Maternity and childcare, for example, may be stressful especially for a mother who is not psychologically prepared to carry her pregnancy to full term. Unmarried women who are forced to take their pregnancies to full time are also forced to bear the stigma which arises when a woman is pregnant or has a child out of wedlock (Chapter 5, 434).

Lastly, from the above discussion, it has been demonstrated that although the United States has undoubtedly made significant progress in addressing the issue of gender inequality, still women have a long way to go before they can regard them as truly equal to men. The united states law has also posed a lot of challenges to women especially on issues of gender inequality. The rules on reproductive health are perhaps the most challenging in their application. For women to feel equal to the male counterparts, they need to be given full control of their reproductive health. The law as currently constituted still limits the rights of women in this area especially when it comes to the right to either carry the pregnancy to full term or terminate it. A paradigm change in the way abortion is perceived is, therefore, necessary to grant women their right to choose whether to carry out abortion or not.

Prompt 2: Gender-Based Violence

Gender-based violence refers to the subjection of an individual to abuse because he or she belongs to a particular gender. Forms of violence which are leveled against individuals because of the type of gender which they choose to express or identify with can also be categorized under gender-based violence. Ladies are the most susceptible to these form of violence in the world. Violence leveled against them can vary wife abuse, female genital mutilations, sexual assault and even marital rape (Heise, Ellsberg and Gott Moeller, 1).

Violence against people because of their gender is a wide-spread problem in the world. A recent review revealed of studies carried out in over thirty-six countries revealed that between ten and sixty percent of married women had been experienced some form of gender-based violence. Gender-based violence always results in several adverse outcomes which include unwanted pregnancies, increased risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases and also a higher chance of developing reproductive system complications (Heise, Ellsberg and Gott Moeller, 7). Victims also tend to become emotionally disturbed and stressed.

Many governments in the world have used criminalization of gender-based violence as a deterrence to such forms of abuse. This strategy has however not been successful. Even with the threat of facing jail terms, people continue to commit several atrocities against women and other vulnerable groups. A paradigm shift in the way gender-based violence cases is, therefore, necessary to address the issue of violence against women.

One of the alternative methods that the governments to combat gender-based violence is through the administration of grants. These grants can be used to set up environments where the children especially girls who are most vulnerable to gender-based violence can be able to live without the fear of being abused (Sacco, 10). Grants can also be used to come up with programmes which are specially tailored for the youth. These programmes tailored for the young population can be used to protect the young people from all cases of abuse which include sexual harassment, rape, stalking and even dating violence (Sacco, 10).

Community awareness campaigns is also another strategy that governments and other stakeholders can use to combat gender-based violence. Significant reductions in the incidences of violence that are gender-motivated could be realized if the public was not only made aware of the existence of such forms of violence and its detrimental effects but also educated on alternative methods of solving the underlying issues which lead to the occurrence of such regrettable incidences (Sacco, 10).

Perhaps gender equality is the most successful way of dealing with gender-based violence. Traditionally the society was structured in a way that promoted gender inequality. Men were always seen as the absolute leaders of the family who were responsible for all the decisions which were made at home. The society glorified the male gender and males were seen as people who were aggressive, robust, and risk takers. One was even adored when he had multiple sexual partners. This culture male superiority often increased the risk of gender-based violence especially against women and girls because the males felt superior and therefore they could do what they pleased them at the expense of the women (Sacco, 16).

Creating a culture of gender equality would, therefore, go a long way in ensuring that the number of cases where their male counterparts abuse women reduce drastically. When the community is made to do away with the detrimental cultures which make the male gender superior to the female gender, men will start seeing the women as their equals. When ladies are seen as equal to men, chances of them being taken advantage of will reduce, and they will be even respected and given an opportunity to participate fully in community matters. The net result of such an environment of equality is a reduction in gender-based violence because such forms of abuse will be condemned by the community and as a result cease to exist (Hampel, 5).

There are several ways which can be used to promote gender equality among communities where gender-based violence is common. One of the methods which can be used is the administration of interventions at the school level. The ministries of education in both state governments can come up with several programmes for students and pupils which can be used to demystify the myths of male superiority that is deeply engraved in many societies. The plans can also address issues which are common in gender-based violence cases. These include dating violence, sexual abuse, and stalking which is most common among teenagers (Hampel, 8). When the young children and teenagers are taught the importance of respecting people from the other gender, cases of gender violence have been proven to reduce among the younger generation significantly.

Community-based interventions which work towards changing the attitudes of men towards the women and vice versa can also go a long way in reducing the cases of gender-based violence. When men and women are brought on the same platform and encouraged to work together, they get to realize that they are not significantly different from each other. Men get to appreciate women as their equal and women get to believe that they can be as good as men. It will reduce the cases of gender-based violence which stem from the fact that one gender sees the other as inferior (Hampel, 4). Lastly, the media can also play a role in the promotion of gender equality. Most people tend to be influenced by the media. The press can, therefore, leverage on this advantage to teach the idea of gender equality. They can also help reduce cases of gender-based violence by packaging it in a way that it is no longer fashionable to the audience (Heise, Ellsberg and Gott Moeller, 7).

Prompt 3: Intersectionality

Intersectionality is a term which is used to describe a situation whereby an individual is instantaneously exposed to several forms of discrimination. (Crenshaw, 139) Uses the analogy of a road intersection to describe how intersectionality arises candidly. In the analogy, Kimberly describes a situation whereby an accident occurs at the intersection. The individual who is hit by the cars may be hit by a car from either of the directions approaching the intersection. Two vehicles approaching from differ...