Gender equality, is also known as sex equality or sexual equality or equality of the genders which implies that men and women should receive equal treatment unless there is a sound biological reason for different treatment.[1]
The concept based on the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, and the ultimate aim is to provide equality in law and equality in social situations, especially in democratic activities and securing equal pay for equal work.
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History
The movement towards gender equality, especially in Western countries, began with the suffragette movement of the late-19th century, which sought to allow women to vote and hold elected office.
There have been substantial changes to women's property rights, particularly in relation to their marital status. (See for example, Married Women's Property Act 1882.)
In the 1960s, a more general movement for gender equality developed based on women's liberation and feminism. The central issue was that the rights of women should be the same as men. continued to focus on specific issues.
Changes to attitudes to equality in education opportunities for boys and girls have also undergone a cultural shift.
Over time, there have been significant changes in attitudes which have resulted in more just legislation
Some changes came about by adopting affirmative action policies. The change has also involved changes to social views, including "equal pay for equal work" as well as most occupations being equally available to men and women, in many countries. For example, many countries now permit women to serve in the armed forces, the police forces and to be fire fighters - occupations traditionally reserved for men. Although these continue to be male dominated occupations an increasing number of women are now increasingly active, especially in directive fields such as politics and occupy high positions in business.
Similarly, men are increasingly working in occupations which in previous generations had been considered Women's work, such as nursing, cleaning and child care. In domestic situations, the biological differences between men and women in relation to activities related to child bearing are more commonly shared where possible, and the role of child rearing is not as widely considered to be an exclusively female role, so that a wife may be free to pursue her career after marriage and following childbirth.
Another manifestation of the change in social attitudes is the non-automatic taking by a woman of her husband's surname on marriage or combining names as in the Spanish naming customs.
Many people consider that the objective of gender equality has not been fully achieved, especially in non-Western countries. A highly contentious issue relating to gender equality is the role of women in religiously orientated societies. For example, in Islam women have equal dignity, but not equal rights and in some Christian churches the practice of churching of women may still have elements of Ritual purification and the Ordination of women to the priesthood may be restricted or forbidden.
Not all ideas for gender equality have been popularly adopted. For example: despite Topfreedom the right to be bare breasted in public frequently applies only to males and has remained a marginal issue. Breastfeeding in public is more commonly tolerated, especially in semi-private places such as restaurants.[2]
Efforts to fight inequality
World bodies have defined gender equality in terms of human rights, especially women's rights, and economic development.[3][4] UNICEF describes that gender equality "means that women and men, and girls and boys, enjoy the same rights, resources, opportunities and protections. It does not require that girls and boys, or women and men, be the same, or that they be treated exactly alike."[5]
The United Nations Population Fund has declared that women have a right to equality.[6] "Gender equity" is one of the goals of the United Nations Millennium Project, to end world poverty by 2015; the project claims, "Every single Goal is directly related to women's rights, and societies where women are not afforded equal rights as men can never achieve development in a sustainable manner."[4]
Thus, promoting gender equality is seen as an encouragement to greater economic prosperity.[3] For example, nations of the Arab world that deny equality of opportunity to women were warned in a 2008 United Nations-sponsored report that this disempowerment is a critical factor crippling these nations' return to the first rank of global leaders in commerce, learning and culture.[7]
In 2010, the European Union opened the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) in Vilnius, Lithuania to promote gender equality and to fight sex discrimination.
It is also worthy to note that gender equality is part of the national curriculum in Great Britain and many other European countries. Personal, Social and Health Education, religious studies and Language acquisition curricula tend to address gender equality issues as a very serious topic for discussion and analysis of its effect in society.
See also
General issues
- Complementarianism
- Egalitarianism
- Feminism
- Gender inequality
- Gender mainstreaming
- Masculism
- Men's rights
- Right to equal protection
- Sex and gender distinction
- Sexism
- Women's rights
Specific issues
- Bahá'í Faith and gender equality
- Female economic activity
- Female education
- Gender Parity Index (in education)
- Gender sensitization
- Matriarchy
- Matriname
- Mixed-sex education
- Patriarchy
- Quaker Testimony of Equality
- Shared Earning/Shared Parenting Marriage (also known as Peer Marriage)
- Women in Islam
Laws
- Anti-discrimination law
- Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women or CEDAW (United Nations, 1979)
- Danish Act of Succession referendum, 2009
- Equal Pay Act of 1963 (United States)
- Equality Act 2006 (UK)
- Equality Act 2010 (UK)
- European charter for equality of women and men in local life
- Gender Equality Duty in Scotland
- Gender Equity Education Act (Taiwan)
- Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act (United States, 2009)
- List of gender equality lawsuits
- Paycheck Fairness Act (in the US)
- Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (United States)
- Uniform civil code (India)
- Women's Petition to the National Assembly (France, 1789)
Organizations and ministries
- Afghan Ministry of Women Affairs (Afghanistan)
- Centre for Development and Population Activities
- Christians for Biblical Equality
- Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality (European Parliament)
- Equal Opportunities Commission (UK)
- European Institute for Gender Equality
- Gender Empowerment Measure, a metric used by the United Nations
- Gender-related Development Index, a metric used by the United Nations
- Government Equalities Office (UK)
- International Center for Research on Women
- Ministry of Integration and Gender Equality (Sweden)
- Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development (Malaysia)
- Philippine Commission on Women (Philippines)
- The Girl Effect, an organization to help girls, worldwide, toward ending poverty
- Total E-Quality (Germany )
Historical anecdotal reports
- Global Gender Gap Report
- International Men's Day
- Potty parity
- Women's Equality Day
- Illustrators for Gender Equality
References
- ^ United Nations. Report of the Economic and Social Council for 1997. A/52/3.18 September 1997, at 28: "Mainstreaming a gender perspective is the process of assessing the implications for women and men of any planned action, including legislation, policies or programmes, in all areas and at all levels. It is a strategy for making women's as well as men's concerns and experiences an integral dimension of the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programmes in all political, economic and societal spheres so that women and men benefit equally and inequality is not perpetuated. The ultimate goal is to achieve gender equality."
- ^ {{cite book|last=Jordan|first=Tim|title=Social Change (Sociology and society)|publisher=Blackwell|year=2002|isbn=0-631-23311-3
- ^ a b World Bank (September, 2006). Gender Equality as Smart Economics: A World Bank Group Gender Action Plan (Fiscal years 2007–10). http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTGENDER/Resources/GAPNov2.pdf.
- ^ a b United Nations Millennium Campaign (2008). "Goal #3 Gender Equity". United Nations Millennium Campaign. http://www.endpoverty2015.org/goals/gender-equity. Retrieved 2008-06-01.
- ^ UNICEF. "Promoting Gender Equlaity: An Equity-based Approach to Programming". UNICEF. http://www.unicef.org/gender/files/Overarching_2Pager_Web.pdf. Retrieved 2011-01-28.
- ^ UNFPA (February 2006). "Gender Equality: An End in Itself and a Cornerstone of Development". United Nations Population Fund. http://www.unfpa.org/gender/. Retrieved 2008-06-01.
- ^ Gender equality in Arab world critical for progress and prosperity, UN report warns, E-joussour (21 October 2008)
Dennis O'Brien (May 30, 2008). "Gender gap clues". Baltimore Sun. http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nation/bal-te.gender30may30,0,4246291,full.story.[dead link]
External links
- United Nations Rule of Law: Gender Equality, on the relationship between gender equality, the rule of law and the United Nations.
- HillarysVillage, Forum for women, minorities, members of the gay community and those who are otherwise marginalized.
- The OneWorld Guide to Gender Equality
- WomenWatch, the United Nations Internet Gateway on Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women
- Women's Empowerment, the United Nations Development Program's Gender Team
- GENDERNET, International forum of gender experts working in support of gender equality. Development Co-operation Directorate of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
- Gender at the OECD Development Centre, gender activities at the OECD Development Centre
- Gender Equality as Smart Economics World Bank
- Women Leadership: Yes she can!
- The Local Gender equality in Sweden (news collection)
- Women Can Do It!
- Return2WorkMums For women returners to the workplace
- Sexism Discussion Group
- Sexual Equality and Romantic Love
- Gender Equality Tracker
- Gender and Work Database
- Gender and the Built Environment Database (about gender and the built environment)
- WiTEC - The European Association for Women in Science, Engineering and Technology (SET)
- Gender Equality in Labour & Life - Online Course focus on PA (SET)
- National Center for Transgender Equality
- Egalitarian Jewish Services A Discussion Paper
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