Women's Rights

This blog has fallen largely silent because it seems to me there is no longer much need for it. I used to feel that if I did not make a point, nobody else might. But there are now many voices making the same points. I suspect the culture wars have been won.

I recall Gandhi's analysis of the progress of an intellectual revolution:

First they ignore you;
then they laugh at you;
then they fight you;
then you've won.

As all the lawsuits flying around the Canadian blogosphere attest, we are now at the fight stage. It's only a matter of time.

For example, here are various lists of “feminine privileges” floating around the net currently:

As a woman …
1.I have a much lower chance of being murdered than a man.
2. I have a much lower chance of being driven to commit suicide than a man.
3. I have a lower chance of being a victim of a violent assault than a man.
4. It is acceptable for me to cry.
5. I will probably live longer than the average man.
6. Most people in society probably will not see my overall worthiness as a person being exclusively tied to how high up in the hierarchy I rise.
7. I have a much better chance of being considered to be a worthy mate for someone, even if I’m unemployed with little money, than a man.
8. I am given much greater latitude to form close, intimate friendships than a man is.
9. My chance of suffering a work-related injury or illness is significantly lower than a man’s.
10. My chance of being killed on the job is a tiny fraction of a man’s.
11. If I shy away from fights, it is unlikely that this will damage my standing in my peer group or call into question my worthiness as a sex partner.
12. I am not generally considered to be capable of violence.
13. Conversely, if I lack this capacity, this will generally not be seen as a damning personal deficiency.
14. Even if born in North America since WWII, I can be almost certain that my genitals were not mutilated soon after birth, without anesthesia.
15. If I attempt to hug a friend in joy, it’s much less likely that my friend will wonder about my sexuality or pull away in unease.
16. If I seek a hug in solace from a close friend, I’ll have much less concern about how my friend will interpret the gesture or whether my worthiness as a member of my sex will be called into question.
17. I am not compelled to wear emotional armor in interactions with most people. I need not suppress my emotions in public.
18. I am generally the emotional center of my family.
19. I am allowed to wear clothes that signify ‘vulnerability’, ‘playful openness’, and ’softness’.
20. I am allowed to BE vulnerable, playful, and soft without calling my worthiness as a human being into question.
21. If I interact with other people’s children — particularly people I don’t know very well — I do not have to worry about the interaction being misinterpreted.
22. If I have trouble accommodating to some demands of my traditional sex role, I can be applauded for publicly denouncing the unreasonableness of the demand, instead of being condemned. This failure to accommodate or adjust will not be seen as signifying fundamental inadequacy as a member of my sex.
23. I am less likely to be shamed for being sexually inactive than a man.
24. From my late teens through menopause, it is easier for me to find a sex partner, and an attractive sex partner, than it is for a man.
25. My role in my child’s life is seen as infinitely more important than the child’s father’s role, by society and by the law.

- Modified from http://www.feministcritics.org/blog/2008/06/08/female-privilege/

1. I’m under less pressure than men to engage in risky, dangerous and unhealthy behaviors.
2. I can choose professions that are less lucrative, and not be called a loser.
3. If I don’t rise to the top of my profession, it’s OK – people won’t think the less of me for it.
4. I’m entitled to the benefits of a safe, orderly society, but no one expects me to risk my own neck to maintain it.
5. I have the right to have the overwhelming majority of personal risk suffered in defense of my country handled by men.
6. I’m allowed to avoid violence, and even run from it, without being ridiculed.
7. If I see someone else in danger, I’m allowed to stop and think carefully about my personal risk before saving them, without having my courage called into question.
8. I have the right to avoid risky, dangerous challenges, and not be called a coward.
9. As a child, I’m allowed to cry and tell my parents I’m scared of something - my parents won't be disappointed with me.
10. I have the right to have most of the really dangerous professions handled by men.
11. If I commit a crime, I am less likely to be charged, less likely to be convicted, and, if convicted, will get less jail time than men would get for the exact same crime.
12. When I find myself with others in a terrifying, life-threatening situation, I have the right to be evacuated first, once the children are safe. Men must wait.
13. If I get slaughtered as part of some atrocity, people will be especially outraged and will call particular attention to the fact I was slaughtered. When men are slaughtered, who cares?
14. I have the right to give my child up for adoption, and thus totally repudiate any personal and financial responsibilities I might otherwise have. If this strikes me as too much trouble, I can unilaterally choose to have an abortion. The father of the same child can do neither.
15. I can choose whether I want to be a parent or not, knowing that society will support me and compel the other parent to meet their financial responsibilities - whether they want to or not.
16. If I am personally attacked, I can expect otherwise safe, otherwise uninvolved people to come to my defense.
17. If I see someone else being attacked, I’m not expected to risk my own safety to defend them. It's OK for me to wait for others to intervene, and it’s also OK for me to criticize others if they don’t.
18. In any dispute involving custody, I’m granted the absolute presumption that I am the better parent.
19. If I choose to become a parent, people understand if I want to focus entirely on the personal, day-to-day care and nurturing of my children. Society expects my spouse to make enough money to make this choice possible.
20. Conversely, if I choose to work outside the home, my spouse is obliged to make the necessary accommodations. It's my choice, not his.
21. The money I earn doing this is mine. The money he earns from his job is ours.
22. I can get real nasty when someone makes me mad, and call them ugly, a loser, a nerd, a geek, a disgusting creep, a revolting little worm, a worthless piece of garbage, a scum bag, a wimp, a pervert, a jerk-off, an old fart, or a fat slob.
23. Nobody has the right to call me anything I don't like. That's harassment. I have the right not to be treated meanly at work, and the right not to hear harsh things that might make me uncomfortable. I have legal recourse if that right is not respected, and I have the right to make this perfectly clear in my job interview.
24. I’m allowed to embrace and cultivate my spiritual qualities, and adopt a more elevated and more refined view of life - because other people handle all the "dirty work": yard work, garbage hauling, construction, fishing, mining, sewage disposal, street cleaning, long distance trucking, baggage handling, painting, sandblasting, and cement work.
25. If I fail at something, I can go to college and study the historical forces and social constructs that make it harder for people like me. If others fail, it’s because they don’t have what it takes.
26. If I fail at almost everything, I can always teach college courses that explain why people like me fail a lot.

- from http://sweatingthroughfog.blogspot.com/2007/10/mens-privilages-vs-womans-privilage.html


1.If I marry, I will be given the option to quit my job and live off my partner's income without having my femininity questioned.
2. I can be certain that I will never be held financially responsible for a child I didn’t want to have, and that I will never have my unborn child aborted without my consent.
3.Most large employers, including the government, have policies specifically designed to discriminate in my favour and against males in hiring and promotion.
4.If my husband is unfaithful to me or abuses me, I will receive sympathy instead of derision.
5.I am significantly more likely to graduate from college than I would be if I were a man.
6.Moderately impaired social skills are not a serious impediment to my ability to achieve romantic and sexual fulfillment.
7.Although I am every bit as likely as a man to allow my sex drive to compromise my judgment, I will never be accused of thinking with my clitoris.
8.I can expect to pay a significantly lower premium for car insurance than a man with a similar driving record.
9.Men are expected to buy me drinks, meals, flowers, and jewelry in exchange for a chance to spend time with me.
10. I have the privilege of being unaware of my female privilege.

- Adapted slightly from http://distributedrepublic.net/archives/2008/06/24/female-privilege

1. If I do not put myself in danger to save another person, even my own child, I will not be though of as unfeminine or cowardly, nor will I be thought a coward if I ask someone else to do so on my behalf.
2. I can choose combat assignments in the military, but cannot be forced to accept one.
3. I have the right to judge a man's masculinity, but woe unto him if he dares judge me.
4. I have a much larger set of clothing and grooming choices, and as a bonus I can complain about how easy men have it because their choices are so constrained.

5. If I find myself in a crowd, I will never be expected to give my seat to a man.
6. If I am married and am allergic to certain furry creatures, I will never be expected to "live with it."
7. Since I'm never expected to get really filthy building, repairing, or installing anything, I never have to hear, "OMG, what a mess. Who's going to clean this up?Can't you be a little more careful? Who do you think I am, your cleaning lady?"

8. If I wish to alter my partner's behaviour, I am not required to put my case rationally and my partner must respect my "feelings". My friends, magazines, television personalities, newspapers will agree that I am right to do so.
9. If my partner wishes to alter my behaviour, no matter how rationally he puts his case, he is attempting to control me and I am under no obligation to acquiesce. My friends, magazines, television personalities, newspapers will agree that I am right not to do so.

- adapted from the comments section of the same blog.

And here are the few that I can add, offhand:

1. I can take jobs that involve interacting with kids without fear of losing my career and reputation suddenly to spurious accusations of “child abuse.”
2. I can take any job without fear of losing my career and reputation to spurious accusations of “sexual harassment.”
3. I am virtually unrestricted by any sort of dress code in what I wear, socially or in business.
4. If someone sees me nude, he is guilty of being a Peeping Tom. But if I see him nude—he is guilty of exposing himself.
5. For the first twelve years or so of my life, as I attend school, I will see virtually no role models in figures of authority who are not the same sex as I am. This may continue to be true through high school.
6. I am free if I so choose to spend as much time as I want in groups limited to members of my own sex. At the same time, I can insist on being included in any and all meetings of members of the other sex.
7. I get to spend all my time with the children, if I so choose. If I find it to my advantage, there is nothing to stop me from using them against or turning them against their other parent.
8. If I am crossed by a man, I can bring him down at any time by going to the legal system with false charges. If the charges are proven to be false, I am unlikely to face any consequences.
9. I can get a Bachelor's, Master's, and Ph.D. just by talking about myself and my own experiences.
10. I can afford to get a Ph.D. Most men cannot afford not to work full time.
11. I am automatically treated as being one social class above my male siblings.
12. I am automatically awarded the honourary title "lady." Men must earn the rarer male equivalent, "gentleman."
13. I can change my name at will; nobody thinks this suspicious.
14. I can marry for money; nobody thinks this caddish of me.
15. I can complain endlessly about my situation in life; nobody thinks me a "whiner" if I do.
16. I can say I wish I had been born a man, that men have it better, without being thought to be a lesbian.

And that's the way the deck is really stacked.

Readers: what have we missed?