In recognition of the 31st Women’s History Month, the National Women’s History Project has designated this year’s theme: “Nevertheless, She Persisted: Honoring Women Who Fight All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.” Typically, when we think of sexism or discrimination against women, our minds go straight to equal pay and positions in the workplace -- so what does “all forms of discrimination against women” actually mean? Let’s take a deep dive into two more prominent forms of discrimination against women -- and the amazing leaders who work(ed) tirelessly to level the playing field.
Discrimination in Rural Communities
Women living in rural communities face numerous forms of discrimination -- the kind which we couldn’t even fathom. According to the UN, women living in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa perform some 60% of the agricultural labor. What’s more, less than 13% of agricultural landholders are women; meaning that, while women are performing the majority of the work, they can’t own the properties they work on. The facts are staggering. Rural women are met with discrimination in the forms of reproductive health, access to safe drinking water, access to education, and humane living conditions, to name a few. Take a look at some of the graphics below to understand the consequences of discrimination in rural communities:
( images obtained from: http://www.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/multimedia/2018/2/infographic-rural-women)
The People Fighting for Women in Rural Communities
Asma Jahangir - Asma grew up in Lahore, Pakistan: a privileged and cultured community in the country. Instead of moving Westward to continue her education, she went to law school in her home country and fought for the voiceless. Asma and her sister, Hina Jilani, founded the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan which advocated for equal rights not only for women, but all people throughout Pakistan. Asma passed away this past February 11, 2018.
Jaha Dukureh - Jaha lived in The Gambia until she was 15, when she was forced to get married to a man in New York. Experiencing underaged marriage and Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) at just one week old, Jaha now speaks out against the two horrific, and sadly common, practices. Jaha is the UN Women Regional Goodwill Ambassador for Africa - and, for good measure, left her husband after two months of marriage to live with her aunt and uncle in the Bronx where she individually visited high schools asking to be enrolled (since her aunt and uncle wouldn’t help her). She graduated high school, moved to Atlanta, remarried, started a blog where she spoke about her experiences, started a support group, and started a petition on change.org asking President Obama to investigate FGM in the United States.
Discrimination in Access to Education
While in the United States, women are more likely to have a bachelor’s degree than men, it’s important to realize that this is not a global trend - and that there’s more to this fact than meets the eye.
Let’s start in the United States. According to the 2017 Census, about 21.6% of all females ages 25+ had earned their bachelor’s degree; but the breakdown is eye-opening. About 17% of those females were white, compared to about 1.98% being black, 2% being Asian, and 1.89% being Hispanic.
Clearly, educational achievement disproportionately favors white females. The unfortunate reality is that, by being both a female and an ethnic minority, the odds seems to be stacked against you purely by institutional and individual racism and sexism.
What’s more, 60% of illiterate people globally are females; and the breakdown based on poverty levels is also jarring. Take a look at the graphic below to better understand educational discrimination:
The People Fighting for Equal Access to Education
Margaret Dunkle - In 1972, Margaret joined the Association of American College’s Project on the Status and Education of Women; and three years later served as the first Chair of the National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education. In 1992, she commissioned the study, How Schools Shortchange Girls, and worked on legislation to ensure that low-income women who received student aid would not lose health insurance for their children. Her work laid the foundation for Title IX, which states: “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.”
Malala Yousafzai - When Malala was just 15 years old, the Taliban boarded her school bus and shot her in the head because she and her father spoke out against the Taliban and their treatment of women. She miraculously survived the attack and shortly after moved to the U.K. so she could safely go to school; and just one year later established the Malala Fund, an organization dedicated to give all girls access to education. In 2015, Malala won the Nobel Peace Prize; and in 2015 Malala opened a secondary school for Syrian refugee girls in Lebanon. Currently, Malala is enrolled at the University of Oxford studying philosophy, politics, and economics.
I truly hope that the information from this post motivates you to take action and do what you can to help the voiceless. Let these and the many women working to end discrimination globally inspire you in your personal journey for equality. As Nelson Mandela aptly put it,
“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
Keep persisting!
Here are just a few resources to help you get started in your quest; and if you have any more, please share below!
Safe Hands for Girls - Organization established by Jaha Dukureh that works to end FGM and all forms of gender-based violence.
The Malala Fund - Organization established by Malala Yousafzai that works to ensure girls have equal access to education.
Equality Now - Organization that partners with other activist organizations to bring gender equality to all communities across the globe.
UN Women - Sector of the UN that works to increase gender equality in all forms by developing legislature and educating people through the UN.
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