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10 Ways Gender Inequality May Be Effecting Your Daily Life

By Saige Caldwell

Gender inequality is defined as “the unequal treatment or perceptions of somebody based on their gender.”  (GenderWiki) Gender inequality can take many shapes and forms. Some examples of issues involving gender inequality include the gender pay gap, gender stereotyping, and gender differences in leadership positions. I actually think that this picture represents the issue very well. If you notice that “gender in” and the word “equality” are in two different sides on this picture, meaning there are two different sides to this issue.

So if gender inequality is the end goal, then have we in the US reached total equality yet? According to the Huffington post, there is still economic empowerment issues, and leadership empowerment issues that still exist with in United States Society today.  However a professor from Harvard and a writer from the Washington examiner stated that “the gap (gender pay) is due mostly to choices women make and not discrimination.” So there is an overall disagreement if the US has reached total equality.  (Ashe Schow)

Georgia Italic is a delicate font and takes inspiration from calligraphy. Use it to emphasize small sections of text in paragraphs.

“According to the National Committee on Pay Equity, the dollar difference between men and women in the United States has hovered over 70% for over a decade.” (gender,techdiveristy) So like means for every dollar a man makes, woman makes about 79 or so cents. In just about every state in the country, millennial women are more likely than millennial men to have a college degree, yet millennial women also have higher poverty rates and lower earnings than Millennial men. (Smilowitz)

However there are people who believe the 1 to 75% ratio is a myth. According to Forbibs “That statistic doesn’t take into account a lot of choices that women and men make—education, years of experience and hours worked—that influence earnings.” The article goes on to explain that the statistic is based off of MEDIAN earnings and not the same work for the pay. It also goes on to say that “We could be comparing men working 40 hours to women working 35.” (Agness, Karin)

“In terms of women in leadership positions, in 2009 only 24 percent of CEOs in the US were women and they only earned 74.5 percent as much as male CEOs” “The U.S. population is 51 percent female, yet their representation in U.S. Congress is only 16.6 percent” “the United States about 78th worldwide in female political representation” So not only is there a pay gap, but it is also leadership inequality as well. (gender inequality)

So how does the US compare to the rest of the world in terms of Equality in leadership roles? According to American Progress Fact Sheet “The United States currently ranks 60th in women’s political empowerment on the Gender Gap Index.” “The world average for the percentage of women in national parliaments is 21 percent—slightly above the 18 percent in the U.S. House of Representatives.”  The above picture is Jeannette Rankin she was the “first woman to serve in the U.S. Congress. She helped pass the 19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote.” ( Jeannette Rankin)

 Gender stereotypes are a huge part of gender inequality, it’s believed that gender stereotypes are the root of gender inequality. Gender stereotypes are over-generalizations about the characteristics of an entire group based on gender. Gender bias happens all the time, one example of many that I wanted to add happens to men in custody battles. Nearly all attorneys (94% of male attorneys and 84% of female attorneys) said that all judges exhibited prejudice against fathers at least some of the time. “I believe young children belong with their mother.” -56% of judges in Minnesota said. So men get an unfair treatment in custody cases, because of gender stereotypes that society has made. The picture above shows some general gender stereotypes. (Franklin, Robert

Gender stereotyping starts being taught at a young age. When you go to the toy store, there is a lot of pink in the Barbie isle and a lot of blue in the trucks isle.  If you think about it Gender stereotypes start as soon as the baby is born (pink and blue). Thinking back to the statement of “That statistic  (gender pay gap)  doesn’t take into account a lot of choices that women and men make” Some people do not think they have a “choice” career wise, because gender stereotypes are noticeable so young, and some just grew up with an impression of what they need to be.

Although gender inequality in still an issue we are facing today, the United States had made major strides, even just from the 70’s, especially in attitudes. This chart represents a survey done since 1977, where people were asked four questions.

•Do you agree that it’s better if the man works and the woman takes care of home and family?

•Do you agree men are better suited emotionally for politics?

•Do you agree working moms can have a warm relationship with their kids?
•Do you agree preschoolers suffer if their moms work? (Vagianos, Alanna.)

In 2015 the United States fell 28th on the gender equality list. Why is this? A survey showed that women’s careers are more likely to have interruptions due to having children and families. The report also noticed that nations that offer government supported child care and generous time off to care for the family see less economic damage to women’s earnings due to have a child.  Catherine Hill (director of research for the American Association of University Women) stated "We're a wonderful democracy that provides great opportunities, yet we don't have the family leave or child care support that other countries have." (usa)  

Many people may argue that gender inequality does not exist in the Unites States today; that in our society women and men have the same opportunities. I believe that this belief is false. Gender inequality does exist in the United States today. In some instances Men have the unfair advantage, and in others women have the unfair advantage; all these advantages are based on gender. As a society we need to educate our children, and ourselves with information about gender inequality, so that one day we can reach complete equality.

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  • Agness, Karin. "Don't Buy Into The Gender Pay Gap Myth." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 12 Apr. 2016. Web. 26 Mar. 2017.

 

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