Blog 10

Today One out of three women has been beaten, coerced into sex, or abused in another way at least once in her life. The abuser is usually a member of the family, introducing the difficult problem in that the abuse usually happens behind closed doors, and is often viewed by cultural norms and legal systems as a family matter rather than a crime. I believe domestic violence arrests have skyrocketed in the past decade, making this crime the leading violent felony arrest locally and nation-wide and placing it at the top of law enforcement’s priority list. Battering women occurs at all levels of society. However, a large number of convicted batterers are from poor income areas. Too often a hidden crime, domestic violence has been splashed across front pages from Los Angeles to Toronto over the past year. Battering is seen as a basic means of intimidation. The violence is inflicted to maintain power and control. Domestic violence now represents the leading cause of injury for women between the ages of 15-44. The Federal Bureau of Investigation estimates that every fifteen seconds, a woman is beaten by her husband. The abuse escalates over time and it gets harder for the woman to get away from the situation. Despite a dramatic change in attitudes toward domestic violence and a sustained crackdown by authorities, a Mercury News investigation shows that many batterers spend little time in jail and are shuffled through a criminal justice system that lacks the resources to keep victims in jail. I feel that Batterers are convicted are not always put in jail and usual violate their restraining orders. Just recently laws have changed stating that police must arrest men suspected of domestic violence, even if the women denies the event occurred. On the contrary, there is a common pattern in spouse-abuse cases involving violent actions in the course of a domestic argument, perhaps leading to police intervention. The man is arrested but later after things calm down, the women will refuse to press charges. This leads police to loath the laws and not wants to intervene in domestic matters.

 

Blog 9

I think the media, which is somewhat reflective of society, has become a powerful tool in shaping our culture. Advertisements are the foundation for mass media; they sell images, values, success, normalcy, and romance. Daily, we are exposed to advertisements whether they are written or commercial. Advertisements have social consequences that give them the ability to reinforce objectification of women’s bodies, and display images that may cause male violence against women, sexualize young girls, infantile grown women. After watching television and flipping though ads and articles in several magazines, the stereotyping of men and women is so apparent but at the same time society is so blind to it. In society parents teach their children gender role at a very early age. Gender role refers to the attitudes, behavior, and activities that are socially defined as appropriate for each sex learned through the socialization process. Males are traditionally expected to show aggressiveness and toughness, and females are expected to be passive and nurturing. For example, little girls play with baby dolls and play “house” and little boys play with toy guns and play “cops and robbers.” I believe the Mass media are powerful factors that influence society’s beliefs, attitudes, and the values they have of themselves and others as well as the world. If a women who are seen doing “masculine” things such as car repair and management positions she is seen as callous and cruel. Even though media still pretends that men and women in society are equal, it isn’t the case.

Blog 8

A woman in the Work Force Working in a factory which is similar to living in a third world country is difficult. Horrible, intolerable conditions haunt workers at home and in the working environment. Women lead tough lives because they are dictated orders, by men, in and out of the house. Many women have families to support, so making little salaries is a strain on the family. The main issue with conditions in the work force is that management does not have a clear understanding of what the women and the children working are going through. Working conditions in third world countries are similar to some working conditions in America. In third world countries, a woman in the family has expected roles as a wife and a mother.The mother of the family must keep everyone in order and on tack with their duties. There are women in the world who are never permitted to leave the house. The mother of the house takes care of the children, takes care of her husband, an a woman’s work is never done more and more women work outside and inside the home. The double demands shouldered by these women pose a threat to their physical health. Whether you are an overworked housewife or an exhausted working mother the chances are that you are always one step behind your schedule. No matter how hard women worked, they never ended up with clean homes. Housewives in these miserable circumstances often became hysterical cleaners. They wore their lives away in an endless round of scouring, scrubbing, and polishing.

Blog 7

 I think today we look at women’s and their roles in the last fifty years and realize that depending on our culture or how we were molded as children, women can have many different roles. The most common for women is attending to men, the house and bearing their children, this role is called the housewife. We have always been expected to be weaker and maternal; some women have shown that they can be stronger than men by taking on their roles as well as their own but sometimes not by choice for example: single parenting, poverty (where no work for men and women work the streets etc), illness and even maybe religion. Since equal rights and opportunities came into force, more couples are both working, more mums have help to go back to work, men are doing their fair share of the house work and also couples are making equal decisions. Women by now were also able to use contraception to prevent having a high quantity of children, which gave them a bit more freedom. Since 1970 families have become more equal and privatized, it wasn’t a big change for men as from 1950 families started to slowly progress towards being symmetrical. There are many benefits when families become more equal, it can take pressure off one another due to sharing roles and even if the wife takes up a part time or full time work this can help them financially but a vast majority of women prefer to remain as housewife’s this due to high maternal instinct.  These days both genders can get an education and its quite normal for children to go to crèche as young as 1 year old, this helps them to interact and to learn social skills. I feel that in 1970 women’s rights were recognized, they were now able to make independent choices. This gave women the freedom they wanted i.e. choice of using contraception and the choice to work. I think this change was for the better as women are now treated equally and there is more of an understanding between families.

Blog 6

Sex Education in Public School- For two decades, policymaker have debated the relative merits of sexuality education that promotes abstinence as the only acceptable form of behavior outside of marriage and more comprehensive approaches that discuss contraception as well. The results of several new students

Show that these debated may have had a considerable impact on what is being

Taught in the classroom; moreover, they strongly indicate that politicians- in

Their drive to promote morality-based abstinence-only education-are out of touch

With what teachers, parents and teens think should be taught. In 1981 Congress

Passed, and President Reagan signed into law, the Adolescent Family Life Act

(AFLA). Through ALFA, the federal government for the first time invested on a

Small scale in local programs designed to prevent teenage pregnancy by encouraging “chastity and self-discipline” among teenagers. AFLA helped usher in 20 years of debate at the federal state and local level over whether sexuality education should exclusively

Promote abstinence or should take a more comprehensive approach. In the late 1990s,

Federal investment in this area increased significantly after congress, as part of the 1996

Welfare reform law, created a federal-state program funded at $440 million over five

Years to support local sexuality educational program that condemn all sex outside of

Marriage-for people of any age-and prohibit any positive discussion of contraception.

Four years later, conservative lawmakers secured an additional victory when Congress

Approved a third abstinence-only education program funded at 50 million over two

Years through a set-side in the maternal and child health block grant. Yet this major increased in federal funding occurred despite evidence that shows that more comp

Rehensive sexuality education, rather than abstinence-only education, help teenager to delay sexual activity. It also occurred without clear pictures of either local sexuality education policies or the content of classroom instruction. Several studies published

Within the past year fill in these gaps, highlighting a significant disparity between the

Inclinations of policymakers and the needs and desires of both students and parents.

Also suggests that there is a large gap between what teachers believe should be taught

Regarding sexuality education and what is actually taught in the classroom. More than

Two out of three public school districts have a policy mandating sexuality education,

According to research published in 1999 by The Alan Guttmacher Institute (AGI). Many

State government’s local communities over whether sexuality education curricula should include information about contraception as well the promotion of abstinence. In addition to that are routinely covered in sexuality education classes- such as the basics of reproduction, HIV and STDs. Parent want schools to cover topics often perceived to be controversial by school administrators and teachers. Least three-quarter of parents say that sexuality education classes should cover how to use condoms and other forms birth control, abortion, sexual orientation, pressures to have sex and the emotional consequences of having sex. Three in four parents believe that these topics should be

Discussed in a way that provides a fair and balanced presentation of the facts and different views in society. Sex and Pregnancy among Teenagers, by their 18^th birthday,

6 in 10 teenage woman and nearly 7 in 10 teenage men have had sexual intercourse. A

Sexually active teenager who does not use contraception has a 90% chance of becoming pregnant within a year. Approximately 950,000 teenage pregnancies that occur each year, more than 3 in 4 are unintended. ¼ of these pregnancies end in abortion. The

Pregnancy rate among U.S. women aged 15-19 has declined. Despite the decline, the United State continues to have one of the highest teenage pregnancy rates in the developed world-twice as high as those in England, Wales or Canada and nine times as high as rates in the Netherlands and Japan. Sex education seeks both to reduce the risks of potentially negative outcomes from sexual behavior like unwanted or unplanned pregnancies and infection with sexually transmitted diseases, and to enhance the quality of relationships. When should sex education start? Sex education that works starts early, before young people reach puberty, and before they have developed established pattern of behavior. The precise age at which information should be provided depends on the physical, emotional and intellectual development of the young people as well as their level of understanding. What is covered and also how, depend on who is providing the sex education, when they are providing it, and in what context, as well as what the individual young person wants to know about. I agree sex education that works starts early. It is important not to delay providing information to young people but to begin when they are young. Providing basic information provides the foundation on which more complex knowledge is built up over time.

Blog 5

Sexuality

“Sexuality is a term that means different things to different people. The same can be stated for sexuality in politics, religion, and social relations. This paper discusses the articles of “Sexuality” and “The Sexual Revolution.” How is sexuality a political issue? How does sexuality affect the way people live? How has sexuality changed through the years? These questions are important in helping a person develop their own sexual identity and understand why a person believes the way he/she does about social politics or the social issues of sexuality. The authors show how sexuality is affected by both religion and politically. Sexuality has changed over the years in many different ways. “Throughout the course of U.S. history, the meaning of sexuality has been continuously reshaped by changing economic and social institutions”. At one time the word “sex” would get the attention of people because sexuality was not discussed in public.”

 

Anthropologists, sociologists, psychologists and biologists all see the reasoning for different human behavior to be caused by different factors. Sexuality is just one of the many of these human aspects that have been studied resulting in, of course, conflicting theories. There is the essentialist point of view on sexuality, which is mainly the view that our sexual behaviors come from our biological make-up alone. The opposing view of sociologists is the social constructionist one, which believes that reality, is constructed from the social world, which includes sexuality.
Many experts agree that homosexuality has existed as long as human beings themselves, although the attitude towards them has undergone dramatic changes in some countries. Accepted by many societies during Greek and Roman era, most of the time homosexuals were considered to be sinners against nature and even criminals. In Medieval and modern periods homosexuals were prosecuted. Enlightenment brought some liberation, substituting death penalty by imprisonment. In Nazi Germany so-called “doctors” tried to “cure” gays by the ways of castration and extreme intimidation. Until 1973 attempts to find a cure against homosexuality, what by majority was viewed as a disease, were continued. Today, when research on twins suggests that, sexual orientation is not a choice, but our genetic predisposition, homosexual acts are still considered to be immoral and even illegal in majority of countries and in the eyes of most religious group’s homosexuals, probably, always will be the subjects of anathema. As much as the future may look gloomy for many gays and lesbians all over the world, there are remarkable changes in public opinion and officials’ attitudes toward homosexuals in some countries. For example, in 1989, Denmark was the first to allow the

I hope that people are becoming smarter not only in developing sophisticated methods, producing and operating complex devices, but also in understanding other human beings. As for disapproval of different religions of homosexuality, everyone should have the “freedom to go to hell as one wants”, as Udo Schuklenk and Tony Riley put it quoting Enlgelhardt (602). Why should not society find it possible to share the same maturity? Thus, despite our own preference we have neither moral nor legal right to discriminate against them. In addition, if there is no other way we can provide gays and lesbians with those rights without making them a privileged group this is not their fault. Some will argue that one of the family’s function is it conceive and raise children. Finally, they want to get married and have children, but those basic human choices cause the main disagreement among heterosexuals. The next question is: Do we have the right to discriminate against homosexuals? Until recently homosexuals were invisible minority. Unlike pedophilia, a homosexual act is consent between two adults, no harm to others is done and with our bodies we are free to do whatever we please. It is hard to dismiss this point, but by denying homosexuals their rights one cannot stop violence. Most homosexuals prefer not to engage themselves in such procedures for fear of losing more.

Blog 4

Philanthropy Project, celebrating the foundation of America’s Generosity.Facebook Fundraiser help student  stay in school. On Sept. 21 a North Carolina student facing a deadline to make $5,100 tuition payment or leave school received the full amount in less than a day-thanks to an online campaign led by a campus minister. Demorris Davis, 22 is entering his senior year at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee. N. C., thanks largely to the intervention of Jason Speier, who until recently oversaw THRIVE, a campus ministry for nearby Webster Baptist Church. Speier met Davis two years ago through outreach activities and maintained a friendship with the Charlotte native. However, it wasn’t until the evening of Sept. 3 that the minister learned his friend owed the university $5,100 due to  mix-up involvinf his financial aid information. Davis had to pay the money by the following day or head home. “Nobody knew,” Speier said. “He didn’t tell anybody.” Immediately, the minister turned to the elaborate online network that he uses to support and disseminate information concerning his ministry. He made a passionate appeal for help through Facebook and his own blog. He urged friends to make donations either through his PayPal  account or direct payments to the school’s registrar’s office on Davis behalf. Donors were asked to post their giving amounts on the THRIVE Facebook page. Speier described his desire to help in spiritual terms. “Demorris had a debt that he couldn’t pay so we had to help,” said Speier. “We had a debt that we couldn’t pay so Jesus had to pay it.” Davis had gone to catch a Greyhound bus that eveing for a return trip home for good when he got a call from Speier urging him to come back to college because help was on the way. That night, in a move that reinforced Speier’s belief in Davis’ character, the student gave a pair of his shoes to a homeless man at the bus stop. Speier admitted that he didn’t think the whole amount could be raised in such a short period of time but help came in some unexpected forms. “I thought we would have larger donors but we got a lot of small donations, ” said Speier, who said most of the individual gifts were no higher than $200.  By 3 p.m. on deadline day, Davis was square with WCU, thanks to faith and the power of online communication. The recipient thanked his benetactoors in a video posted on the THRIVE page. “Every person has influence on a certain amount of people,” said Speier. “We just wanted to use the influence to do something good.”

Blog 3

Females ‘Less physically active’

The studies are being presented at the UK  Society for Behavioural Medicine annual conference. The researchers stating that females are less physically active at both ends of life than their male counterparts, two studies suggest.  Researchers studied activity levels in school children and the over 70s-and in both cases found males tended to be more active. Liverpool John Moores University found girls take part in 6% less vigorous playtime activity than boys. The researchers, who focused on 10 and 11 year-old children in the school playground, found that boys and girls tend to play differently. Girls tended to spend time in smaller groups and engage in verbal games, conversation and socialising. Most boys, however, played in larger groups, which tend themselves more to physically active games, such as football. Researcher Dr Nicky Ridgers said: “It is a concern that girls’ activity level are lower than boys and, although it is just one piece in a complex picture, this could be contributing to girls being overweight and obese. “School should be aware of the differences between the way girls and boys behave in the playground and the fact that girls tend to favour small group activities. “They could then consider the availability of equipment and provision of playtime activities that would encourage girls to take part in more vigorously play.” The gender difference was mirrored in a second study, led by the University of Britol, which looked at activity levels among the over-70s. In general, levels of physical activity were very low among most people of both sexes aged over 70. More than 70% of the people who took part in the study walked for fewer than 5,000 steps a day. However, women were more likely to be less active than men.   Researcher Professor Ken Fox said: “Men accomplish more higher intensity physical activity than women and this seems to be explained by trips out of the house. “However, there is evidence that they also sit down longer periods  in the day. “Women do more lower intensity activity which probably represents daily tasks around the house.  Today women are very activity. Who care what a researchers says.

blog 2

I love this anthology for many reasons and find it ideal for an Intro level WS class. Each chapter begins with an introduction that summarizes the reading and puts them in context. I expect the introduction to be a little overwhelming for me, but then I take time to discuss the key points and break them down. Each chapter includes at least one essay with a global  feminist perspective, which is one of the reason I like this book. There is a good mix of essays representing minorities and essays that (who are African American) ” can relate to. “Some of the essays are dry but very informative:  This book contains many of the pivotal authors in the feminist movement, and hits all of the major women’s concepts. This book does *not* indicate  that women who want to be housewives should recieve our disdain. It is instead very inclusive and allows for many perspectives to converse within its page. The book Listen Up is a good complement to this anthology, since its essay are informal and personal. I purchased this book for my women’s studies class.  The content of the book was excellent and the essays included, written by prominent people in the women’s studied and the women’s movement, helped reinforce the message of the chapters.  A good book for anyone interested in learning the TRUTH about feminism and exposing the stereotypes. This book is a great introduction for those who want to learn more about what feminism is all about. The book contains the history of women’s movement and article from variety of authors concerning the lives of women from different social and cultural backgrounds. The issue of race and sexuality are important topic in the book because depending on their background, women have different experiences with sexism. It delves deeply into the reality of oppression and how it effects everybody and not just a certain group of people. It’s a great read if you would like to see women’s issues from the perspective of a diverse range of people.

blog 1

I am just testing my new blog.