Despite the significant advancement of modern society in matters of morality and ethics, some complexities may arise even today in a world that is seemingly completely free from cultural prejudices. In particular, it is about gender inequality and the problems that accompany this issue. Caliendo mentions this social phenomenon in the book and clarifies that persistent gender inequality was typical of American history for some time (161).
It allows concluding that society does not stand still and is constantly evolving. In connection with the fact that the manifestations of such historical relics are rarely observed today, it can be assumed that the problem of gender inequality has almost lost the acuteness that was relevant for an ancient society. Therefore, the described question is uniquely useful for study and comparison from the point of view of sociology.
However, despite quite reasonable arguments, the author did not pay enough attention to the prerequisites for the development of this issue, as a result of which it remained insufficiently disclosed. Caliendo mentions gender inequality as a phenomenon that has evolved throughout human history but does not specify why the problem has become global and has become a morally reprehensible issue (161). Accordingly, a rather logical question can arise, the answer to which is very important: why did gender inequality become widespread in the world, and how did it happen that humanity divided societies in accordance with rights and obligations? Given that some echoes of inequality can manifest themselves even today, it is significant to understand what caused this social relic.
A more detailed description of such a problem can be found in another manual. Thus, Wacquant not only mentions the problem of gender inequality but also stresses that this issue has a rather long history of development, which is rooted in the past (226).
Moreover, the author claims that there is inequality not only in terms of gender but also regarding the accessibility of medical services (226). Perhaps, it is essential to consider not only one type of disparity but several ones in order to make the complete picture of the current state of the society. Inequalities in access to health services are largely due to the same prejudices that are relevant to gender disparity. It is about, for example, the social status of people, their origin, etc. Quite many attendant issues also deserve particular attention. Therefore, additional ideas can be considered to describe the entire scope of existing problems and disclose their prerequisites.
Works Cited
Caliendo, Stephen M. Inequality in America: Race, Poverty, and Fulfilling Democracy’s Promise. 2nd ed., Westview Press, 2017.
Wacquant, Loïc. Punishing the Poor: The Neoliberal Government of Social Insecurity. Oxford University Press, 1990.
One or another form of gender-based discrimination has constantly existed throughout the history of mankind. At the same time, military service may be regarded as a particular area of human activities where this discrimination may be observed distinctly due to the presence of a highly masculinized culture. In general, women still represent the minority in the majority of armies across the globe. Despite the fact that their integration currently deserves equality and the same opportunities across all levels and branches of the military service, women’s expansion to combat roles and permanent positions with related benefits remain a considerable challenge to policymakers and military authorities. Although this issue is frequently covered by mass media, authors express different attitudes towards it both directly and indirectly.
In his article, Soutik Biswas refers to the intention of India’s Supreme Court to influence the government and give women commanding roles in the army. Despite the participation of female soldiers in air and marine forces for several decades, ground combat forces remained an exception. Women worked there as nurses, doctors, engineers, administrators, lawyers, and signalers (Biswas). They handled explosives, treated injured soldiers on battlefields, laid communication lines, and detected mines for subsequent removal. In other words, they did «almost everything except combat roles” (Biswas). At the same time, according to various experts, women deserve to serve as commanders if qualitative standards and physical ability allow them to do it.
Based on the article’s analysis, it is possible to conclude that the author supports the participation of Indian women in ground combat forces, especially in commanding roles. According to him, “patriarchy should not come in the way of equality and common sense” (Biswas). However, his argument in support of this position cannot be regarded as fully efficient due to its inability to achieve its communication goal and induce readers.
In general, the author advocates his position through the provision of other people’s arguments and counterarguments related to the issue. For instance, he initially cited the words of the government’s lawyers who stated that women are not suitable for ground combat roles, their service will create challenges for motherhood, childcare, and confinement, and male soldiers are not “yet mentally schooled to accept women officers in command” (Biswas). However, he subsequently provides the comment of Srinath Raghavan, a military historian, who believes that “military training is about fundamentally reshaping norms and attitudes that soldiers bring from their social backgrounds” (Biswas).
Thus, the author aims to show that any argument against the permission for women to serve in the army cannot be regarded as reliable as it every time has its counterargument. In addition, he supports his position by the examples of the United States, the United Kingdom, and other countries where women are allowed to take combat roles. However, this article may be defined as informative rather than persuasive.
Another article that addresses the issue of gender inequality in Indian army is written by Romita Saluja. Inferior pension rights and career opportunities remain limited for female officers in comparison with their male counterparts regardless of all court battles. Women receive a chance to get a permanent job in the army or retire with a pension only after 14 years of service (Saluja). However, even after this period, they are frequently decided as unfit for a permanent commission intentionally to reduce the number of female soldiers. In general, women in the army have no financial security and are forced to work at the same level as men regardless of pregnancy or postpartum period.
The author of this article supports the inclusion of women in the military service on equal terms with men, and her argument is quite persuasive due to its ability to trigger readers’ emotions. The main technique used for the material is direct speech from the interviews of women explicitly connected with the subject of the article. Through the provision of women’s real stories, the author allows readers to imagine their situations and feel the challenges these women went through (Saluja). In addition, Saluja uses the technique of asking crucial rhetorical questions to force readers to reflect on the issue and answer these questions by themselves.
The last article connected with the issue of gender inequality in the context of the military service was prepared by Shreshtha Das. The author does not support the decision of India’s Supreme Court that has allowed women to serve as military force commanders and states that “giving women commanding roles in the armed forces does not erase the harm done by militarized masculinity” (Das). From a personal perspective, this article contains the most efficient and persuasive arguments that support a particular position.
First of all, the author being a woman offers an unbiased point of view. Every argument she provides against women’s expansion (the existence of sexual harassment, stereotyped thinking of male soldiers, hidden motives of the government covered by the ideas of feminism) is illustrated by direct speech, statistics, or an example. In general, this material has a strong persuasive power that may form or change readers’ opinions.
In recent years, few areas of sociology have achieved such development or are central to this discipline as the study of gender relations. To a greater extent, this reflects changes in society itself. Modern social research in psychology does not talk about biological differences between genders but explains the social and situational causes of inequality. By identifying and explaining the reasons, there is an opportunity to overcome this problem and achieve gender equality. Women are usually the driving force in this process, but society can accept changes more quickly. It is necessary to recognize the injustice of traditional attitudes and understand that restrictions exist for women, men, and other genders.
With the current COVID-19 epidemic and unprecedented lockdown measures worldwide, economists are thinking about changes in the gender component in the labor market as well. Limitations in the effort to stop the spread of the virus could cause domestic violence to become more frequent, severe, and dangerous (Taub, 2020). In addition, it is known that a large proportion of health workers, especially nurses, are women, which enhances the risk of women becoming ill and can lead to increased economic instability or even mortality (How are women uniquely, 2020). The pandemic threatens to back the progress made in women’s economic empowerment, which will widen the gender gap that persists.
To date, the role of women in society has increased many times over, both in the economic, social, and political spheres of public life. However, all this is the result of a long and stubborn struggle that women have waged for several centuries. Thus, the fight against inequality should be based on women’s access to leading positions, ridding society of violence everywhere (Guterres, 2020). In addition, unpaid care and domestic work should be recognized and valued through the provision of public services.
Gender inequality is not an isolated problem that appears end exist separately in society. Personal understanding, as well as group instincts and reactions, are built gradually through various means of perception. Historically, several stereotypes and behavioral patterns of gender education directly impacted the current situation of inequality in the world. There are interdependent relations between the male educational model and female discrimination. Objectification and culture of suppressed emotions of the male gender lead to the further sexual objectification of the females resulting in unequal social positions.
Influence of objectification and the concept of masculinity
Modern stereotypical masculinity patterns support the concept of male objectification, creating additional layers of unfair treatment. The social norms were formed through many generations by fathers passing the beliefs and moral lessons to their sons. Among the unifying context of masculinity, Kimmel defines the rules of “never showing emotions or admitting to weakness” (Kimmel, 609). He highlights the concept of “being a man,” which is closely connected with all types of power, financial, social, gender, physical and mental (Kimmel, 611). The early influence of the gender police as a father figure firmly holds the impression of a constant need to prove the worthiness of being a man. Otherwise, there is a risk of being labeled as a “mama’s boy” or homosexual. The men’s need for social and self-approval frequently reflects on their relationship with women and the urge to place themselves higher than females who did not pass the power criteria. Such an approach to masculinity objectifies a man as exclusively physical power, and without any interference, it will be passed to future generations.
Social spread of a sexual image of girls and women
While the concept of masculinity and power are introduced mainly through the surrounding of a young boy, the social perception of a woman as a sexual object became a generally known phenomenon. The discussed idea of a “powerful man” largely impacted the formation of the image of a woman. Most media depicted men as not only powerful but also dominant; consequently, the other sex was chosen as an opposite element of submission (Kilbourne, 422). Various violent and sexual acts towards girls were shown through advertising, exposing perceivers of the information to the dangerous culture of normalization of such behavior. Kilbourne emphasizes that “Ads don’t directly cause violence. But the violent images contribute to the state of terror. Moreover, objectification and disconnection create a climate in which there is widespread and increasing violence” (431). And how can a man raised in this media field perceive a woman as a boss, equal co-worker, the president, or scientist? Thus, the established image of a sexual or submissive woman increases the gender gap in every social sphere.
Progress in gender equality and solutions to the problem
Even though there are severe problems with social perception of the female sex by men, it does not mean that the situation remains the same. Scientists detected a substantial reduction in gender inequality on social indicators. According to P. England, the employment ratio, for instance, rose dramatically from 0.53 in 1970 to 0.85 in 1995 (6993). Additionally, the segregation of professions has reduced since 1970, moving from 0.60 to 0.42. (England, 6994). However, the main issue is that progress has stalled since 1990, so there is a lot of work for the future generation to overcome stereotypical gender perceptions. It can be achieved first by the shift in narrative about masculinity and rejection of the submissive sexual image of a woman.
Conclusion
Therefore, the problem of inequality is a complex concept that includes objectification and stereotyping of both genders. While men do not allow to be weak and show emotions since childhood, women become a vision of the reflection of male domination. Regardless of the progress made in the last decades in gender equality, there is still much work to be done to erase harmful ideas.
Kilbourne, Jean. “Two Ways a Woman Can Get Hurt.” Rereading America, edited by Gary Colombo, Robert Cullen, Bonnie Lisle. Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2013, pp. 420-444.
Kimmel, Michael. “Bros Before Hos”: The Guy Code.” Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men. HarperCollins, 2008, pp. 608-616.
Even though modern society tends to think that all people are equal and free today, the situation in some regions, like Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, Canada, proves the worst things. The Canadian government has already made several attempts to improve the status of Aboriginal women, but discrimination is still a problem in the country. As a result, multiple disappearances of indigenous women from the Downtown Eastside had no formal investigation and were explained as the outcomes of the chosen risky lifestyle. The inability to investigate disappearance cases is not only a legal problem but a social one, rooted in prejudiced blames and gender-related inequalities in Canada.
Main body
One of the main questions that bother many people around the whole world is the identification of the conditions under which the citizens of the Downtown Eastside disappeared. No formal investigations were conducted because of several reasons, including the absence of a definite suspect and the characteristics of victims (indigenous women in the sex trade). In my opinion, the Canadian police, as well as the major part of Canadians, did not find it necessary to break the already established norms and attitudes and build their opinions. Gender discrimination has deeply rooted in the style of life of the region under analysis, and people are not bothered with the necessity to change something and discover some new perspectives of the case.
The styles of life and the choices made by indigenous women are defined as excuses for their missing. Instead of providing new opportunities to improve the quality of life, the government and the police neglect evident problems and misunderstand their roles in society. I consider such an attitude as one of the worst examples of how power can be used. The years of discrimination have negatively shaped social and political spheres, which resulted in low education opportunities, childhood labor increase, and the promotion of high-risk lifestyles. Indigenous women become involved in the sex trade, not because of their desire, weakness, or mistakes. This decision turns out to be the only option for them to survive and earn a miserable living.
Taking into consideration the fact that disappearances still emerge in the Downtown Eastside, the problem of discrimination and gender inequality remains open. To improve the status of no formal investigation, it is not enough to find enough evidence on a victim and choose a suspect. I believe that significant social and political changes are required. It is critical for the police to stay unbiased and evaluate every missing person not as a woman but as a citizen of the country with his or her rights to justice and protection. It is easy to blame women for their misfortune and explain their disappearance and deaths due to drug overdose, disputes, or suicides. However, it is high time to recognize that such bad luck is the responsibility of the government and society.
Conclusion
Gender discrimination and social inequality are common problems for the citizens of the Downtown Eastside. When an indigenous woman is missing and murdered, her lifestyle or misfortune can be mentioned as the main reason for death. The police or governmental actions can hardly be defined as right or wrong because of the already existing attitudes and norms. Therefore, instead of searching for a person or an organization to blame for what is happening in the country, one should think about the steps to be taken to change the situation. I think that Canada has enough chances to eradicate injustice and create equal living conditions for all the citizens, indigenous women included.
It is important to note that gender inequality is a deeply embedded phenomenon that stems from unequal access to resources, rights, and opportunities based on societal expectations from each gender. The assigned course readings and materials from this week raised many critical points for reflection and analysis, some of which make logical sense, whereas others invoke more questions. I agree that gender inequality is a result of exacerbating sexual differences between males and females, but my reflection reveals that the ‘elephant in the room’ of motherhood was not addressed sufficiently.
Discussion
Firstly, I am fully convinced that the vast majority of issues about gender are overinflated notions based on rather insignificant differences between sexes. For example, women are biologically and physically weaker than men by some margin, but it becomes exacerbated in society to conclude that women embody weakness. In other words, this difference is “amplified by social contexts that promote behaviors that are consistent with gendered stereotypes and expectations” (Giddens et al., 2021, p. 10). It is evident that the difference is so insignificant to the point where some women can be athletically stronger than men, and there is a vast difference in strength among men themselves. The latter does not become inflated into one category of men creating an exaggerated social context similar to the gender construct. Therefore, why does society not create the same level of stereotyping between young and old men since the former tend to be biologically stronger than the latter?
Secondly, however, I would like to debate that biological differences might be the contributing factor to gender inequality, such as the gender pay gap. My argument is that humans are sexually dimorphic creatures, which cannot be ignored fully. Evidence suggests that after age 65, men have “higher innate and pro-inflammatory activity and lower adaptive activity” (Marquez et al., 2020). In other words, sexual changes exist not only among the visible part of the human body, such as sex organs or musculoskeletal constituents, but in all other areas, such as immunity, psychology, physiology, and even biochemistry. The market is dictated by demand and supply forces, which is true in the labor market as well. A job that requires no experience, training, or unique skills is likely to be paid low compared to an occupation with the strictest of requirements. Men might have a small physical advantage, a slightly higher risk tolerance, and a little more drive to compete purely due to biology, which cumulatively creates a rather significant difference.
Thirdly, the burden of motherhood cannot be ignored when discussing gender inequity since sexual differences between men and women are ultimately and evolutionarily about procreation and reproduction. Breasts, sex organs, and hormones serve a reproductive purpose, and the most significant one is pregnancy and motherhood. The latter clearly should be addressed since it is invisible and unlimited work imposing a heavy burden on women (Hogenboom, 2022). From a purely biological perspective and gender constructs aside, a woman needs to spend nine months in pregnancy before she can become a parent. It can be considered as a clear biological difference unrelated to gender. Nine months is a long enough period for her male counterpart to gain more experience at work, make more connections, and focus on contributing to his employer to create a wage gap difference.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the point made in writing is that it might be better to dissect the implications of exaggerated gender constructs of society from real biological differences. It might be fairer to recognize that such inequalities unrelated to gender exist to properly address them. The current system does have some measures to ensure that women are not discriminated against due to their pregnancy, but it is important to advance it to ensure that the ‘invisible work’ of parenting by both men and women is economically rewarded.
References
Giddens, A., Duneier, M., Appelbaum, R. P., & Carr, D. (2021). Introduction to sociology (12th ed.). W. W. Norton & Company.
Marquez, E. J., Chung, C. H., Marches, R., Rossi, R. J., Nehar-Belaid, D., Eroglu, A., Mellert, D. J., Kuchel, G. A., Banchereau, J., & Ucar, D. (2020). Sexual-dimorphism in human immune system aging.Nature Communications, 11(751), 1-12.
Women do not necessarily fare worse than males when looking for work. In France, the Netherlands, Spain, and Great Britain, men are disadvantaged throughout the employment process for professions where women predominate (WZB, 2021). The situation for women applying for traditional “male” jobs is not the opposite (WZB, 2021). In either Norway or the US, there is no gender discrimination. These are the conclusions of a study conducted by the University of Amsterdam, the University of Oslo, the University of Carlos III of Spain, and the WZB Berlin Social Science Center. The survey included the United States and five European nations.
Still, women make less money than males and are less likely to work in management roles. Women are frequently viewed as handicapped in the work market due to discrimination in hiring practices (Birkelund et al., 2021, p. 338). Nevertheless, comparing levels of discrimination across nations is challenging, and prior research has produced inconsistent findings for various nations. This vacuum is filled by the study published in the scholarly journal European Sociological Review. The first field study on gender inequality in the workforce spans multiple countries. In six nations, 4,300 applications for bogus job openings were reviewed for the study (Birkelund et al., 2021, p. 340). Young men and women (aged 22 to 26) applied for positions as a chef, payroll accountant, secretary, salesperson, computer programmer, and store assistant, among other occupations.
The researchers discovered no evidence of prejudice against young women in any analyzed nations or professions, including those with a male preponderance like software development. For occupations where women predominate, men were viewed as less suitable than women (Birkelund et al., 2021, p. 349). In contrast, discrimination against male candidates was observed in Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Men in these nations were 5–9% less likely than women to obtain application feedback (Birkelund et al., 2021, p. 350). Men who applied for traditional “female” positions were much less prone to be invited for interviews or requested additional information about themselves, according to researcher Bram Lancee of the University of Amsterdam (Lancee, 2019). In comparison, the researchers in Norway and the United States did not uncover any bias towards male candidates.
References
Birkelund, G. E., Lancee, B., Larsen, E. N., Polavieja, J. G., Radl, J., & Yemane, R. (2021). Gender discrimination in hiring: Evidence from a cross-national harmonized field experiment. European Sociological Review, 38(3), 337–354.
Lancee, B. (2019). Ethnic discrimination in hiring: Comparing groups across contexts. results from a cross-national field experiment. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 47(6), 1181–1200.
In the context of UAE demographics, the population of Dubai has been rightfully considered the most diverse in terms of age, income, and socio-ethnic background, as this city is a conglomerate for tourists, business visitors, and migrants from the Asian region. Thus, the current population of Dubai constitutes nearly 3.5 million people, with men accounting for nearly 66% of the demographic (Dubai Statistics Center, 2021). Out of the population, as many as 3 million residents are expatriates, and only nearly 400 thousand people are native Dubai residents (Dubai Statistics Center, 2021). The expatriate community is mostly comprised of Asian residents from developing or underdeveloped countries, including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, the Philippines, Iran, Nepal, and China (“Population,” 2019). Undeniably, there are also visitors from developed countries who come to Dubai for professional and business purposes.
Being the most populous region in the UAE, Dubai is mostly populated by middle-aged residents from the 25-39 age group, constituting nearly 1.5 million people (Statista, 2019). The majority of the population has an intermediate or a university degree, with illiteracy rates being as low as 2% (Dubai Statistics Center, 2021). Such a statistic may contribute to promising employment rates and income, as according to Statista (2021), the GDP per capita in the UAE is currently nearly $40,000. The unemployment rates are reported to be less than 1% in Dubai, constituting nearly non-existent poverty rates in the region (Dubai Statistics Center, 2021). Thus, Dubai has seemingly no explicit issues related to social well-being of the population.
However, according to some primary sources, the poverty in Dubai, although disclaimed economically, manifests itself in various ways. For example, there is a problem of poor and discriminatory living conditions for migrant workers who constitute the majority of the labor force (Mirandette, 2017). The health status of the population is gradually improving, but the “aging” trend of the population can be traced due to increasing life expectancy and decreasing fertility rates (Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation [IHME], 2020). Primary resources for health costs coverage come from public initiatives. The most common death causes for the population include diabetes, stroke, and ischemic heart disease (IHME, 2020). Hence, nowadays, Dubai is a rapidly developing area in terms of social welfare that still requires a series of interventions to the socio-demographic trends to secure income equality for Dubai residents, business owners, and migrant labor force.
Social Needs in Dubai
The statistics above demonstrate that currently, there are no explicit issues in the access to such social needs as health or education, as the UAE is capable of covering basic needs for the population. However, a fundamental and alarming issue existing in the area is the lack of social mobility, equality, and respect for basic human rights. While the government of the UAE allocates the majority of its funds to business, manufacturing, and telecommunications, the local population does not have access to such social needs as freedom of expression. Apart from the latter, according to Amnesty International (2020), the social issues also tackle involuntary detention, the death penalty, unfair trial, gender and sex discrimination, and sexual and reproductive rights violation.
The issue of women’s rights in this context may be rightfully considered as one of the most alarming and ethically inappropriate. Although Dubai and the UAE, in particular, are considered the most progressive in Western Asia in terms of human rights, where women are legally allowed to gain education, drive, and work, women still struggle with a series of dehumanizing rights limitations. Thus, the actions of women in Dubai still have to be supervised by their legal “guardians” represented by a male family member or husband (Human Rights Watch, 2021). Moreover, the UAE laws still condone legal responsibility for premarital and same-sex sexual intercourse (Amnesty International, 2020).
The situation has drawn much attention after the precedent took place in Dubai this year. Princess Latifa, the Dubai ruler’s daughter, reached out to BBC to inform them she was held hostage by her father in a “jail villa” after a failed free attempt in 2018 (Nagesh, 2021). Furthermore, along with the evidence on severe human rights violations, the research demonstrates that the UAE educational system implicitly discriminates the image of women in school textbooks, portraying men as more powerful and intelligent (Al-Qatawneh & Rawashdeh, 2019). Hence, it is reasonable to assume that the issue of women’s rights has been central to the socio-economic and cultural context of Dubai.
Currently, this issue has been addressed by a series of new legal regulations that enhance the freedom of women’s self-expression, safety, autonomy. Thus, over the past years, the local court has initiated the criminalization of domestic abuse, which was legally permitted previously (Nagesh, 2021). Moreover, the sphere of a “guardian’s” approval has been limited to the permission to officially justify a marriage. As far as businesses are concerned, the most recently adopted policy addressed by the management boards is the introduction of “gender quotas” to employment. Thus, according to Elbahrawy et al. (2021), out of more than eighty board members of large Dubai enterprises, only three were women. Hence, according to the newly introduced regulation, the board of every large enterprise in Dubai is now to have at least one woman as a legitimate board representative.
Apart from the public policies, there are other examples of women’s empowerment in business. For example, according to Holleis (2021), the Mars space program located in the UAE accounts for nearly 80% of women on the science team, with Noura al-Matroushi being the first female astronaut from the Middle East. However, while the UAE laws encourage gender equality by means of quotas, there is no legislation to explicitly promote gender and ethnic equality in the workplace. According to Omar & Pacheco (2021), even when allowed to apply for corporate jobs, many women are discouraged by both the cultural stigma and the mal employers’ expectations for women to perform equally regardless of supporting children. Such a decision, in this case, is a shortcoming rather than a long-term solution to the alarming problem of social inequality and injustice. Indeed, women are accepted on boards not because of their expertise but due to the quota requirements.
Another major indicator that the issue is not resolved correctly is the existence of the so-called achievement gap. According to recent studies, the majority of the future workforce based on the graduation indicators are women, as they comprise nearly 70% of university graduates (Ashour, 2020). Hence, the number of female business leaders does not correspond to the number of female graduates on an annual basis.
For this reason, a social enterprise, Aurora 50, was established. It serves to address this issue and create a community of female leaders in the Middle East and Dubai, in particular, who would support young women to become the advocates of change (“Out impact,” n.d.). There are several initiatives pursued by the enterprise to secure gender equality in business, namely Manarat and Pathway 20 programs.
Their sphere of competence includes empowering, training, and educating women under the mentorship of other successful women. The social enterprise also presents companies who have Aurora 50 membership with a pool of female applicants ready to embrace leading positions in the companies (“Our impact,” n.d.). One of the remarkable benefits of this initiative, unlike the aforementioned legislations in enhancing gender quotas, is that the organization aims at working simultaneously with women willing to become board members and companies hesitant about how gender equality may affect performance.
Conclusion
By establishing a dialogue between the two parties, the process of inviting women to board positions across the Middle East enterprises can be accelerated dramatically. For example, compared to 28 out of 112 UAE’s listed companies, nearly 50% of the companies have met the gender equality requirement in 2021 after using Aurora 50’s professional assistance (“Insights,” n.d.). Undeniably, the social enterprise has the drawback of focusing solely on the leadership positions for women, so there is a need to create a similar business initiative for all the types of employment. Hence, considering these facts, it becomes evident that Aurora 50 is a social enterprise capable of securing change in the women’s representation on the board and in the business segment in general.
Summary of the Research
Having closely investigated the demographics of Dubai, I have reached a conclusion that the progress and economic prosperity still do not affect the social issue of representing women in the workforce. Although it is a goal outlined in the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, the number of female business leaders remains unprecedentedly low. When speaking of Dubai, it becomes evident that while some public policies try to force the companies into engaging with women by implementing gender quotas on the boards, little is done to empower women to eliminate the social stigma and strive for career achievements instead of the guardian’s service. For this reason, the support of such enterprises as Aurora 50 is essential to motivate women and fight for equality in all aspects of social and professional life.
References
Al-Qatawneh, S., & Al Rawashdeh, A. (2019). Gender representation in the Arabic language textbook for the ninth grade approved by the Ministry of Education for use in schools in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Studies in Educational Evaluation, 60, 90-98. Web.
Amnesty International. United Arab Emirates 2020. Web.
Currently, there are a number of modern problems that concern many. In addition to the global challenges that include climate change, hunger, poverty, war, and unemployment, there are a few more. Gender inequality may not seem like such a serious challenge compared to those listed above, but it still plays an important role in the modern world. Many girls and women face some form of gender-based discrimination on a daily basis. Gender inequality can manifest itself in different ways: some are not hired; others are denied education. However, many girls and women are forced to face so-called domestic sexism. This type of sexism manifests itself in insults of classmates or in the disparaging attitude of colleagues. Thus, to eliminate sexism and gender inequality, a non-standard solution is required.
Every girl and woman has experienced some form of discrimination at least once in their life. During their school years, girls are often taunted by their classmates. Boys, due to their young age, often bully and laugh at girls. Often it is possible to find a case when a girl who presents a report to the class is interrupted or laughed at by her classmates. Teachers may also be dismissive of female students. Unfortunately, many teachers believe that girls do not need education because they can successfully marry a rich men. In this vein, the belief that girls are only good enough to make a good wife is also sexist. In order for girls to stop facing gender inequality and discrimination, it is necessary to teach them from childhood to deal with it effectively.
Moreover, in adulthood, many women are also forced to face various forms of sexism on a daily basis. Often, when applying for a job, the employer prefers a man over a woman. Among other things, male colleagues may also be dismissive of their female colleagues. Moreover, it is important not to exclude frequent cases of harassment in the workplace. In this regard, the problem of gender inequality is particularly acute since women workers are not treated properly. For proper communication with such male colleagues in the workplace, a woman must have a certain level of self-confidence. Thus, when addressing inequality and sexism in the workplace, it is necessary to help women become more confident and stronger in order to fight back against men.
Thus, to solve this problem, it is important to find a suitable method and approach. In this regard, it is necessary to teach young girls special telekinetic techniques from an early age. Thanks to this approach, girls will be able to block the insults of boys as the most famous superheroes. Moreover, it is believed that the human brain, in theory, is able to operate at one hundred percent. Thus, with the help of mind power training, girls will be able to keep boys silent while telling presentations. Among other things, with the help of this training, grown-up women will be able to increase the power of their minds. It is believed that telekinesis can make any person silent and even paralyze. If a woman is interrupted at work during the presentation of a project, she can use her mind to silence the offender and make him listen to the end. This method will teach girls and women not to tolerate sexism and discrimination but to give a strong and convincing response with their outstanding mind power.
In conclusion, the problem of gender inequality is indeed particularly acute in modern society. Many girls and women are forced to face different forms of inequality and discrimination every day. Thus, in order to combat gender inequality in the best possible way, it is necessary to use the power of the mind and the brain. Regular training of the mind will help women and girls to silence their abusers and offenders. It is thanks to this approach that humanity will be able to successfully cope with the problem of gender inequality, sexism, and discrimination.
The subject of preference between males and females is covered in the interdisciplinary field of gender studies. Most sociologists agree that the concept of maleness and femaleness is ingrained within the social structures of society. However, according to Hideg and Wilson (2020), gender inequality is common in the community. Researchers have explored the issue of gender inequality through four different interdisciplinary lenses: historical, humanity, social and applied sciences, and social sciences.
History Lens
The historical perspective is crucial for gaining a greater knowledge of gender inequality since it reveals its roots and tracks patterns. Women’s changing status in the workforce is closely related to how they view themselves as independent. Before the 1960s, it was rare for women to provide for a household, but with time, it became commonplace for both couples to work (Hideg and Wilson 2020). Throughout history, it is clear how over the years, the perception of women in society changed.
Humanities Lens
Gender stereotypes are present in society because of how teachers treat their students. According to Trusz (2020), most teachers think boys should study specific sciences while girls should do better in the humanities. Teachers thereby promote these biases in their daily classroom interactions. It seems unjust that women have trouble finding work since they could become parents or caretakers. However, from the company’s perspective, providing a position to a woman who could take maternity leave at some point is not advantageous.
Natural and Applied Sciences Lens
In the scientific and applied sciences, the subject of women in the workforce is significant. Greider et al. (2019) estimate that men make up 76% of professionals in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math). This imbalance is caused by several factors, including the widespread prevalence of gender-based abuse. Women typically do not report instances of workplace harassment; therefore, institutions should take more proactive measures to punish sexually harassing men.
Social Science Lens
Both sociologists and legal experts concur that a gender bias ingrained in society is the primary factor contributing to the issue of women in the workforce. The sociologists Hideg and Wilson’s (2020) research demonstrates that having a child reduces a woman’s work prospects, even with similar or greater qualifications as a male. This suggests that regardless of a company’s area of expertise, the employing staff is still motivated by the misconception that it would be preferable to hire a male employee.
Conclusion
The fact that the issue of women in the workforce has persisted over the years is quite crucial. It is important to note that women in some fields encounter various obstacles related to their working environments rather than the activities they complete. Nevertheless, it is evident that gender inequality has become less prevalent as years pass due to more societal understanding and representations.
Greider, C. W., Sheltzer, J. M., Cantalupo, N. C., Copeland, W. B., Dasgupta, N., Hopkins, N., Jansen, J. M., Joshua-Tor, L., McDowell, G. S., Metcalf, J. L., McLaughlin, B. A., Olivarius, A., O’Shea, E. K., Raymond, J. L., Ruebain, D., Steitz, J. A., Stillman, B., Tilghman, S. M., Valian, V., … Wong, J. Y. (2019). Increasing gender diversity in the STEM research workforce. Science, 366(6466), 692–695. Web.
Trusz, S. (2020). Why do females choose to study humanities or social sciences, while males prefer technology or science? Some intrapersonal and interpersonal predictors. Social Psychology of Education, 23(3), 615-639. Web.