Masculinity vs. Femininity & the link Between Race @wsfvsm-blog - Tumblr Blog

First off that I think about when I saw this is that she is a woman who exudes what is typically sen as "feminine". I also thought that I'm sure a lot of people were listening to her give this speech and a lot of people paused on their tumblr to read what she had to say because she is a beautiful white woman. Then I thought, would this speech have gotten as much attention had a beautiful African American woman given it? Would just as many people had stopped scrolling on their tumblr to read it? I cannot say for sure, but I'm thinking it she would have gotten less attention.

However, I respect this woman immensely because she recognizes the privilege she has as a white woman, and not only is she a white woman, she is a model. She is basically the epitome of what women see as beautiful in our society. She uses this power that she inherently obtained to bring awareness to people of issues at hand. She recognizes the imbalance and lack of diversity within the modeling industry and she seems disturbed by this. It's unfair that although someone may be just as talented just as beautiful as she is, if they are non-white, they are likely to get picked second under another pretty white girl.

So here we see the struggle of not only being thin, pretty, tall, all the things that society tells woman that makes them feminine and beautiful, but they also have to be white. She expressed through her speech that as a woman, you have to strive to be all these things, but coincidentally you have no control over the color of your skin. So, if you are just that much darker you have to try that much harder to excel over everyone else. The pressures society puts on women is incredible.

In the village of Chitera, located in the southern African nation in Malawi, there is a social change in the views of the marriage of young girls. They are told that marriage is necessary, even good for themselves and their families. However, the young girls, usually between the ages of 12-18, experience domestic abuse from her husband and his family. They are raped and impregnated, and sometimes they do not survive the ordeal of childbirth; since these girls are so young, their bodies are biologically underdeveloped and cannot withstand the strain of labor.

One girl talks about her family's disappointment in divorcing her husband. Her mother did not want her to go to school; education has a cost. For many other communities in this area, marriage is used as a tool to bring financial security for the family or protection for the daughter. From the perspective of the parents, selling their daughter would gain money and be one less mouth to feed. These girls are treated as objects and are expected to be mothers while they are still children.

The ability to speak without fear of punishment is a major improvement that contributes to the new marriage policy. It empowers and brings hope for these girls to strive for more in life. New laws enforce age restrictions in marriage to promote girls education.

A critique about this article is that it doesn't mention the lives of young boys growing up in these villages. Patriarchy is the primary practice, but the article focuses on motherhood. This also takes place in a developing country where different occupations are less numerous. These are just a few thoughts to consider.

#underagemarriage

In Laura Noren's discussion about the distinction between race/gender and education, I want to point out several concepts in which I agree and disagree. Firstly, from the first image below, it is clear to see that the number of women graduating in the past years have been increasing compared to the 1970's. And it seems like the ratio of graduating women will continue to increase as the prediction in 2020 shows this clearly. Noren questions whether higher education is "dominated" by women as she states that, "[t]here has been plenty of news coverage recently about the rise of women and the decline of men. While I have always disliked the irrational use of zero-sum language – why do we have to frame this discussion as men who are losing because women are making some gains?" (Noren). This point is surrounded by the idea of women's success as a war against men. Today, many people are seeing this as reverse discrimination of men, where many blame the environment of the classrooms, teacher training, and attentiveness to learning styles, allowing women to "supposedly" have a greater opportunity to achieve in school. Gender stereotyping hurts both men and women, therefore this is certainly not something that is occurring in the higher educational classrooms of today. Men have always been dominant factors in today's patriarchal society and it is something that women are trying to break through. Male's power have placed women in the private sphere where they have been criticized for not belonging in the public. These are normative ideas that were seen as "natural", especially in the 1970s as seen in the graph above where the ratio of men graduating from schools was drastically higher than women. As women slowly, gained more assurance and power to lead in the public sphere, women have been able to continuously show that they are capable of succeeding just like men. How can this success be seen as men losing to women? When women have been oppressed for so long, and now society is complaining that women are "dominating". I believe that men will always be "winning" and in comparison, women will be the ones that are always loosing to men.

This leads into my second discussion where Noren states that the pay gap in earning between men and women is because "...women are more likely to get degrees that lead to positions which are paid less than the positions men are most likely to get following their collegiate specialization" (Noren). I completely disagree with this comment. Firstly, this comment directly stereotypes gender roles. Who said that women don't get jobs in engineering and computer science degrees. The number of women in these fields are increasing. Yes, some majors do tilt towards men, but that is because these are ideas driven by gender stereotypes and Noren is further emphasizing this. Women are constantly being degraded and treated differently than men, and this is something that is not new. There are far more deeper explanations within the pay gap earnings between men and women, and we can't stand here and blame it on women for not choosing the "right" major.

On the other hand, there are even more critical gaps in degrees earned that trend along different race and ethnic factors .In the above graph, women earned more degrees in every racial/ethnic category. On the other hand, as discussed in Priya Shah's Women Studies 50A class, the basement analogy describes that the more inequalities someone has, the lower you will be placed in societies "basement". Therefore white men would be seen as the top-tier. Yes, women of different races are graduating with more degrees, but we have to take into account that these women face even higher pay gap earnings than a "white woman". If women in general are facing inequalities in pay, then for certain women of different races and backgrounds will further be discriminated within the patriarchal system. In conclusion, I want to reiterate that men are not "losing" to women just because ratios prove that more women are earning degrees. I want to emphasize that women are still being discriminated in the work force and that men will always be stereotyped where society norms claim them powerful.

In Louie C.K.’s “Chewed Up,” Louie brings up the topic of white privilege and what that means in the past, present, and the future. Speaking from his point of view, he sees his identity as a white male as a privileged one, both in the past and in the present. However, he does not think the same for the future, as he predicts that white people will “pay hard” for the privileges that they’ve had in the past. An interesting point in the video is when Louis states that “we totally deserve it,” as if all white males are equal in privilege and life chances to the white male identity that he describes in the video. Although it is a comedic routine, and not an in depth analysis of societal privileges, the bit is an interesting portrayal of the modern white man, who is forced (by birth) to take on these stereotypes regardless of their actual quality of life.

White males vary in economic and social status, religion, and other aspects of their identity that do not necessarily present them with the white male privilege that Louis speaks about. At the end of the bit, Louis brings up historical evidence of white male privilege: owning land and slaves. However, this does not apply to many white males of today, especially those that are quite unprivileged in society. Although the history of privilege as well as the presence of it in the present is not unfounded, it would be inaccurate to place these stereotypes on all white males. Generalizations coupled with contempt for white privilege can often times direct that contempt towards people who do not deserve it.

In the show ‘Maury’, which started in 1991 and is currently still on air today, shows the host Maury Povich dealing with a number of controversial topics. One of the more well-known segments of this show is the “paternity test” in which a man is usually accused by a woman of being the father of her child that he does not want. In the above clip, a “10 best” montage of reactions to the results of the paternity tests are shown. It is worth noting that a majority of the people involved are African American. Their reactions are generally over the top, filled with profanity and yelling. All the while, Maury, an aged white male, remains emotionally uninvolved.

The racial gender roles portrayed in the show are clear: Black males are seen as “dead-beat” fathers that would rather evade paternal responsibility, while black females are seen as overly emotional and resentful. Usually the only white male on stage, Maury is portrayed as a mediator between black males and females, acting rationally and without being over the top. The ramifications of this nationally televised shows existence is the spreading of generalizations regarding black males and females. The show has been accused in the past for fabricating the stories that are presented in the show. However, the issue goes deeper than that. Being a show that is televised for profit, there must be, at the very least some sort of screening process that allows certain people to be on the show. It is not possible for anyone outside the production side of the show to know for sure what goes on in the screening process, but it seems almost too coincidental that most of these paternity tests involve those of color or lower social status. It seems as though, during the screening process, those responsible for the show choose to allow mainly black males and black females to participate. Even looking at the audience, most are colored men and women.

Now even assuming that none of the stories are fabricated and that the screening process was unbiased, the choices of what the “top 10” reactions were give an insight into how society views the issue of evading paternal responsibility. Even if participants of these tests were evenly split among people of different races, the fact remains clear that the one who compiled the clips together chose to show the reactions of black males and females. This exemplifies the generalizations of the gender roles that black men and women that are subjected to in society. Shows like ‘Maury’ presents a dangerous obstacle that disenfranchised people face when dealing with individuality, because it is hard to live as you please when society is constantly forming generalizations based on your race, gender, and other markers.

alexandradal

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This comic strip highlights the racial biases and assumptions between two women of different "races." In all of the panels, the questions are asked by white people. The white girl has a happier expression compared to the black girl. This illustrates the body language of marked versus unmarked bodies moving through space. Each panel shows the women at different ages, demonstrating the similarities of stereotypes over a period of time. The people asking the white women questions assume that she's been raised in a well-family, has general success and wellbeing, is not judged if she doesn't have children, and is in a stable, heterosexual relationship with a child. However, the black woman is asked questions that assume that she is more likely to have children at an earlier age, will generally have more children, grew up in the lower class, and has poor relationships. These assumptions are found to be normal for a woman of color. Even if this cartoon wasn't intentional being racist, it shows that racism still exists in our society by the questions and judgments we impose on different people.

British singer Lily Allen has sparked a wave of debate with the exploitative and racially questionable aspects from her new music video, “Hard Out Here”. As an artists who’s career has encapsulated the notion of white priveledge, she jumps back into the industry with a fascination of black culture. In the opening scene Allen glances over and rolls her eyes as she sees a group of colored women dancing in a music video during her liposuction surgery. But ironically, she gets up from the surgery table and joins them. The camera zooms into the black women licking their hands and grabbing their crotches. There is a scene where champagne is being poured all over the women’s ass as she is twerking and being slapped in the butt by another colored woman. Her and her manager in the video are mimicking the black women by trying to twerk just like the dancers. And while this is all happening, Allen is singing, “Don’t need to shake my ass for you ‘cause I’ve got a brain”. Which ideally is meant to backlash Miley Cyrus, on the other hand, Allen does not take into account that this often generally found in the urban music industry. Which in turn is throwing these black women under the bus

In a Twitter post, Allen states:

“The video is meant to be a lighthearted satirical video that deals with objectification of women within modern pop culture. It has nothing to do with race, at all…If I was a little braver, I would have been wearing a bikini too…What I’m trying to say is that me being covered up has nothing to do with me wanting to disassociate myself from the girls, it has more to do with my own insecurities and I just wanted to feel as comfortable as possible on the shoot day.”

Allen’s ability to ignore race hinders the intersectionality of gender and race, and this is a problem. She fails to acknowledge that these two components come hand in hand. These things do not impede men from starring and it certainly does net help the patriarchal conditions that still exist today in society and in the music industry. By using rap music’s most visible members, these non-white women are denied full social acceptance. The lines within this highlighted institutional patriarchy possess no empowerment for these black women who are racially and genderly seen lower in society.

So Allen’s goal was to “satirically critisize” the sexist music industry by degrading black women?

In Japan, contemporary femininity’s clash with traditional femininity has led to an extremely troublesome set of age dynamics. Not only does japan have the highest proportion of elderly citizens, it also has more deaths in a year than it has births. Moreover, the Japanese Health Ministry estimates that the nation’s total population will fall by 25% in 2050.

One of the main reasons for the lowered birth rate has to do with the lowered rate of marriage. As Abigail Hayworth from The Guardian so eloquently states, “Marriage has become a minefield of unattractive choices.” One of the main culprits is the country’s adherence to traditional expectations of femininity. Simply put, women who marry are under extreme social pressures to quit work, and the forced decision between a career and a family has led to many women choosing the former over the latter. Until Japan as a state confronts the traditional expectations of femininity and embraces contemporary femininity (i.e. women as equals in both the workplace and in home), it will be on a track where it will literally die out due to adherence to tradition.

This table shows the BSRI (Bem Sex Role Inventory) on ~250 Japanese students. According to the test, both Japanese men and women are more "feminine" than "masculine" and that results above are very unlikely to occur in random trial. "Masculinity and Femininity in Japanese Culture: A Pilot Study" by Yoko Sugihara and Emiko Katsurada, the paper from which this table originates, postulates that Japanese gender roles and gendered personality traits differ from those in the United States, where the BSRI originated. The authors also mention that the ideal Japanese woman and the ideal Japanese man possesses inner strength (as opposed to physical strength). The difference in ideals provides insight that may explain the results of the test. Additionally, the differences show that Japanese masculinity and femininity consist of different personality traits than the traits that make up American masculinity and femininity.

The use of rape as a weapon of war is not a new invention. In conflict zones, war rape is used as a method of displaying dominance over others. Pictured above is Alain Kabenga, a victim of war rape. Alain Kabenga, president of a Kampala-based group of Congolese rape victims, helps other rape victims confront the physical and mental trauma that occurs after rape. However, he has also feels the shame associated with being a victim of rape, specifically male rape.

In addition to being a victim to the atrocities of rape, Alain Kabenga and other male victims of rape face the risk of excommunication from their respective communities for "coming out". This is because male rape is associated with homosexuality in Africa. As African masculinity is extremely heteronormative, homosexuality in any shape or form is punishable by law in over 2/3 of African countries. With the social pressures mimicking the legal ones, male victims of rape cannot easily discuss their trauma with family or doctors. Unless traditional African masculinity can change to accompany the many emerging masculinities in modern society, the double-jeopardy faced by male victims of rape will be just one of many groups that feel the consequences.

Machismo. Etymologically, this word is derived from Spanish and Portuguese. It represents the belief in the supremacy of men over women and the assumption that masculinity is superior to femininity. This image represents a traditional sense of machismo in which conjugal tasks are disproportionately assigned to the female partner. Although the contemporary interpretation of machismo is constantly in flux, all the definitions share similar characteristics: the focus on hypermasculinity (i.e. the exaggeration of stereotypically male behavior) and implicit assertion of its traditional roots.

In traditional Latin American culture, the concept of machismo lies at the foundation of masculinity. In all definitions of machismo, masculinity is intended to be superior to femininity whether through traits of responsibility and leadership as a head of household in a patriarchal society, or through the sexual objectification of women. In contemporary society, traditional masculinity and in turn, machismo, is still being transferred from one generation to the next. One often cited example of the impacts of machismo in contemporary society is the percentage of latino males with a college degree. While many factors influence this statistic, latino male gender roles are often cited as a core factor. The pressure for latino males to become a provider at an early age provides one possible reason as to why latino males are less likely to have a college education than latino females.

Constant confrontation with the state has led to the introduction of a very unique form of masculinity in Africa that idolizes the leaders of protests, independence movements, and other manifestation of group politics. The medium through which “struggle masculinity” manifested is incredibly popular for African male youth as protest is the only readily available medium available to confront the rampant oppression, inequality, corruption they face in their everyday lives. These youth are drawn towards political struggles that present the seductive ideologies of the pursuit of freedom, or the protection of privilege, and as such, the ideation of struggle masculinity spreads through the African youth.

Conejo by Conejo highlights the focus on violence that was fundamental to masculinity for Chicano youth in the US in the late 90’s and early 00’s. The song starts off by depicting Los Angeles as a battlezone, where “enemies got shot up” and introducing the friend who was destined to get shot, stabbed, or suffer a variety of possible deaths. The protagonist in the rap is depicted as a warrior and a hunter who manages to save the friend by acting preemptively and killing the man responsible for threatening his friend.

To understand why Chicano masculinity emphasizes violence requires an examination into the sociopolitical context at the time. In the 1980s, the economic restructuring spearheaded by Ronald Reagan led to abject poverty in communities that were often made up of colored individuals including Chicano Americans. Instead of providing additional aid in order to minimize the horrors of poverty – the insecurity, mental and physical deterioration, and the stripping of dignity, the government utilized a containment approach and militarized the police. High-tech weaponry and logistics previously used to combat America’s enemies were now being turned on its impoverished. Combined with gangs that often permeate impoverished districts, violence was simply omnipresent for Chicano youth and simply permeated into their collective identity. In this case, the actions of the state molded the identity of Chicano youth.

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