The pursuit of human rights and freedom has become a priority discussion for many nations. It is disturbing that as the world moves towards achieving global standards for human rights, it advances a regime that discriminates against women. The discussions provide a sociological perspective that constructs a dominance of masculinity in almost every sector of society. From the readings and in daily interactions between peers, women are exploited. The marginalization and abuse of women demonstrated in the resource have reached the apex and require a redress. Although the privilege to choose gender is limited, it is significant that rights should be based on gender needs in society rather than through a collective approach.
The readings illustrate that being born a woman carries potential risks. Society uses women as tools of the trade for various situations. For example, in African civil wars, women bear the highest form of brutalities, such as rape and physical abuse. In addition, women face several risks from maternal mortality to victims of war. Societal cultures also expect women to submit to their male counterparts. Accordingly, women who have improved their social statuses and gained professional training or employment remain victims of work-based abuses, including indecent treatment. The situation is even more interesting because professional women within similar ranks as men are disadvantaged in regards to work expectations, promotions, and other responsibilities.
The patriarchal nature of society favors male children compared to their female counterparts. The reading reflects on various perspectives where the male child is hardened while the female teenager is “softened” for the future. Boys in some cultures are discouraged from being shy and expected to be assertive to maintain the aspects of masculinity. Notably, even toys developed for male and female children do vary. Girls are expected to play with dolls that call for tenderness, while boys are socialized into cars, guns, complicated moving plants, which require skill and aggressiveness. The effect of such an initiative on the cognitive development of children is more dedicated to advantage boys when exposed to real life struggles. The challenge, however, is that both children are expected to work for similar resources albeit with different upbringings. These practices disenfranchise the girls who grow up as “weak beings” due to cultural expectations placed on them. The male-controlled system builds a tradition that influences gender characters that disadvantage women. For instance, society defines roles at birth based on the cultural expectation of each gender, other than allowing individuals to derive their identity from a balanced platform and personal determination. However, society should enhance practices and progressive cultures to redeem women from gender-based discrimination.
The changing paradigm about education for male and female is shifting the focus of gender discussions. For example, the readings demonstrate that more women are graduating with college or university degree compared to men. However, although this aspect may be true, women have more debts due to the educational expenditures, while men drop out of college to avoid obligations and shift to the workforce to gain early independence. Therefore, although women may bargain for higher salaries due to better qualifications, their level of indebtedness is relatively high, and this may affect their freedom. Finally, using gender as benchmarks for abuse or discriminations is wrong. Hence, society should reconstruct gender perceptions and allow for sociocultural and economic inclusion of all genders.