Covid and Gender

Honestly I am kind of scared. As a Democrat who hates the current President. I sincerely hope that Biden wins. I am here as I am typing this comforting my trans and gay friends who are scared to death of getting their rights taken away and for me, a mixed girl, to have to face more ongoing police brutality; and not to even mention COVID. Biden is in the lead right now, which is a plus, and I hope it stays that way. I love politics, as I am not afraid at all to get political, but all of this is seriously stressing me out which in turn is causing me to fall behind on my classes a bit, but I think I can make them up with no problems. My mindset right now is pretty stressed as I am still worrying about my classes in hopes that I do well for the semester so that I can keep my scholarship. I am certain that I do, but there’s always that “what it” that lingers in the back of my mind. Thankfully, I have therapy every two weeks to share what’s on my mind as well. Finally, the holidays themselves are approaching, and I am a bit scared of that as this Thanksgiving is the one year anniversary of my great grandmother’s death, whom I was very close to, so it will be depressing for me I am sure.

“The Freedom to choose your Pronoun” by Jennifer Conlin is an interesting read that entails the inclusion of pronouns for the first time by companies such as Google. It explains the happiness that is felt within the LGBTQ+ community when they feel that they are properly represented. Later in the article, the audience gets a first glance at new names and labels people put on themselves and want to be identified, such as bi-curious and polyamorous. The journal then explains how more people today are more accepting of one person’s sexuality than gender pronouns, which feels threatening to some gender neutral people who go by non conforming pronouns such as they/them. While some people do feel threatened by it, it seems more facilities like college campuses intend to become more progressive and to take the time to get to know the individual in that aspect, in which people who are part of the LGBT community seem to like. While it isn’t an immediate progressive way, it is a start, and for many that is enough for now.

For my journal prompt this week, I had chosen to read and explore “Why our feminism must be intersectional” by Jarune Uwujaren. Jarune goes in depth about what white feminism is and how different it is from other types of feminism. She explains how white feminism is the “one size fits all” type, and all other races and minorities have to fit into it. Types of white feminism include transphobia of trans women and saying that things that don't fit their standards isn’t “real feminism”. She then goes on to explain what intersectionality is, and how it must be included within all forms of feminism. Jarune gives the audience examples such as a disabled trans person, and then makes the audience understand that a person like that cannot choose which part of them is more oppressed, and that society needs to be more accepting when it comes to forms of oppression. Finally, the author then gives us three steps in which to take a step back and analyze the situations at hand, and how to break through the molded barrier in order to make sure that everyone gets a fair shot at life.

For my week nine journal prompt, I chose to read “Us Latina and Latin American Feminisms: Hemispheric Encounters” by Edna Acosta-Belen and Christine E. Bose. In the article, the authors talk about how Latinx feminism has risen out of politics such as having ties with the United States. Politics in feminism basically go hand in hand even when it shouldn’t be. Feminism tends to lean on the left, progressive side of things, while right leaning politics tend to want to keep women from breaking traditional gender roles. The journal then goes into detail about discrimination the US has put on Latina feminists, and women of color in general. One of the topics being brought up along with feminism being LGBT rights. These two arguments have almost always gone hand in hand as everyone wants their share of equal rights (and so they should), and it feels like the patriarchy has a stranglehold on these two specific protests in which the people participating have to fight even harder for what they want. Finally, The journal goes into depth about how different types of feminism are looked at around the world, and that fighting for the right to vote or wanting to work outside of home isn’t the only problem a woman has to face. Many women around the world, for example in third world countries, often fight for their lives, such as being stoned for cheating or showing indecency. I already knew this about feminism and as a woman living in a first world country, it is almost unimaginable for me to think women are still living like that.

I have had multiple experiences with White privilege, especially growing up as a mixed girl in an all White, conservative town. If I had to choose specifically, I would comment about school behavior. It would always seem the teachers were out to get me from a young age; while it became less obvious the more I grew up, I could very easily pick out the underlying tones and prejudices the school had against me. I would be either in the top or close to it my whole life, working to make sure I made something of myself, but the teachers nor the principal would cut me any slack. They made sure certain ones would get their praise and awards but even when I had the same grades as them, I wouldn’t get the same treatment. There was one year in which I got the highest grade in my class, and I was sure there was no way anyone else could get it. The teacher ended up giving it to a white boy who “tried his hardest to make up his F to a B” that year; what stung even more so what the fact that I was his tutor that the teacher assigned him. I have dealt with White privilege my whole life, and I am glad that now I can get some equality at Univeristy.

A very specific example of gender inequality comes to mind when I think of tradition. Growing up with a rather old fashioned, although democratic, family, tends to send mixed signals. My family is usually very progressive when it comes to human rights such as racial statuses and the class system; however, when it comes to the traditional order of men and women that’s where it seems they fall short. My Great-Grandmother always told me before her death that I would be the one to cook and clean for my husband. She is, was, and always will be proud of me for going to college in order to make something of myself, but when it came to household duties, I always got most of the work as opposed to my brothers. I never saw this as fair, as I was the only girl of my generation with three boys in the house near my age. Whenever I questioned it, my Nana would always say “because it’s a woman’s job. They’re boys.” I would hope that in future, older generations can see how wrong this is, and can afford to move on from it in order to make an equal world for everyone. It’s also a good idea to educate women in teaching them that they are much more than just a housewife for their husband. This idea has been put into girls for hundreds of years, and it’s time they get taught something else, but still have the right to choose what they want in life.

Whenever I think of a real man, always the first thing that comes to mind is a buff, muscular dude with facial hair. Although I know in my head that one doesn’t have to be a real man and look like this, it’s just what comes to mind first, someone who is overly masculine. Once I get this thought out of my head, I begin to think of my own interpretation of what a real man is. The first real person that comes to mind is my boyfriend. My boyfriend is one of the best men I have interacted with. He is a feminist, and believes in equality for all. He doesn’t care about womanly hygiene, and actually prefers for me to tell him what goes on in my body so he can help in the best way possible. I believe all men should behave like this, as whatever troubles women go through in their life should be supported in any way. Men not acting like this is another sign of misogyny, and believing that the perfectly clean, tiny, womanly frame is enough and any actual bodily functions is wronged by women. Another definition of a “real man” often stems from transphobia as well, in which a “real man” wouldn’t be of an AFAB transitioning into a male. This is false, as scientific studies have proven, that dysphoria is a real thing that happens in the brain, and one’s mind not fitting the body they were born with is real. Trans people are real people, and a trans man is a real man, while a trans woman isn't.

My view on gender hasn’t changed much. When I was younger, I used to only believe in the main Binary of Man and Woman. As I grew older, I learned there is much more to gender than I originally thought. I slowly began to learn about transgender people, and wht that was, which was only a gateway door to the many other identities out there. I’m still a bit confused about things regarding gender, for example, the difference between non binary and genderfluid, but I am trying my best in order to understand so I don’t offend anyone and to respect their life. I would also like to use my information to discover my own gender identity, as I have found out whilst talking to my friends that I may not be cis. There are days where I would like to be a man, but not all the time, and I am very interested to hear more about what it could be. I also know that gender plays a big part in one person’s sexuality. A person identifying as one gender, but attracted to the same, different, or multiple genders are also important in one’s life. Society tends to overlook small details such as this, as it is assumed everyone is heterosexual, but now with all of these sexualities and genders, there should be more to do with them, such as representation and sex ed.

When I think of gender, I at first think of the stereotypical “there are only two genders” bias. I think of the two “socially acceptable” genders, male and female. While my mind switches to these two genders first, I am also quite aware that gender in itself is a social construct in which has been stretched into a heteronormative state in which society makes it nearly impossible for people to accept what is reality. Scientists have proven that people often feel outside the realm of what is strictly male and female, and continue to identify themselves as what they believe fits with what they feel. Sex is what one is born with, while gender is what we identify as. Many people tend to make fun of these identities, saying not so funny “jokes”, such as “identifying as an attack helicopter” and constantly berating the people by telling them their identity is a joke and that they’ll always be the gender they were assigned at birth. Gender is a coin of both prosperity and ridicule, in which a person unfortunately has to deal with the other side in order to gain the happiness they want to achieve in life. As a cis woman with many trans and non binary friends, I personally cannot understand the struggles others go through, although since I am the person my friends tend to vent to about their unaccpeting family, what people also seem to fail to realize, is that having people close to them be unaccpeting seriously damages their mental health.

To me, feminism is both a movement and a lifestyle. Today in the modern world, women have the same standardized rights as men do, such as getting a job and voting. We often take these relatively small things for granted, as women of the past had to protest and fight for these rights. There are many waves of feminism throughout history, the most three prominent being: the suffrage movement in the early 1900s which was the fight for the right to vote, the women’s rights movement in the 60-70s for women to get out of the traditional role of being a stay at home wife and mother, and to finally get a job for themselves in order to become more independent; finally, the new wave of feminism, which includes the women’s wage gap and rape culture. Feminism is usually looked at as a radical movement of men-hating women, when in reality, if you aren’t sexist, then you are a feminist. Misogyny throughout the years has painted feminism as a radical movement in which people should look down upon. It is often seen as radical women claiming “kill all men” and that women should rule the world, when in actuality, all the people who participate in the movement just want women to be seen as equals, and not as a second class citizen.