A friend of mine posted the following article, and I felt it deserved sharing and commenting on. While the article focuses mostly on the consequences that the oppression of women in impoverished countries has on the economy, I think there are a few other issues that relate to the topic; in the United States, it raises questions about the continued disparity in pay between men and women, as well as our continued support of nations who oppress their women. Lastly, the stark differences in the well-being of women from the best to worst nations of the world demonstrates a failure on the international community.
The article points out that in the nations where women are treated the worst, they are unable to participate in the economy. The author argues that by protecting the legal rights of women and allowing them equal participation in the economy, impoverished nations can grow. She points out that while the oppression of women is a moral issue, it also a choice to remain in long term poverty. She says:
If you are not innumerate, you can start a business. If you are not living in mortal fear of rape and beatings at home, you can organise your community to dig a new well. If you are not subjecting your daughter to traumatic genital injury at three and marrying her off at ten, she can go to school. And, when she does marry and has children of her own, they will benefit from two educated, employed parents, which means twice as much literate conversation in the home, twice the contacts, and twice the encouragement to succeed.
No nation, she says, that has educated it’s women and given them legal rights is poor, and many are booming. China, South Korea, Brazil, and Turkey are all great examples of nations that match this profile. With both the moral and economic ramifications caused by the oppression of women the issue cannot be ignored. However, we also can’t ignore the problems that still exist in the United States.
As recently as 2008, women were paid on average, 77% of their male counterparts. While there are variances across occupations, the disparity is undeniable. Further, there is even greater disparity between men and women in male-dominated occupations. The wages of women approach their male counterparts in neutral or female-dominated occupations. Not only do women make less than men, women also tend to be clustered in lower paying occupations than men of equal education. By continuing to let discrimination such as this go on, we discourage women from entering into the economy. They are almost guaranteed less benefit than men, so they have less economic motivation to be employed. In this situation, half of our population is paid less and given less motivation to participate; when even some women are discouraged from entering the job market, or male-dominated fields, that person’s contributions are immediately eliminated without ever being inspected for merit. The rights of women are oppressed and the ideas they offer are ignored*
Perhaps more frightening, is the oppression of women that the United States supports abroad. If you haven’t guessed already, I’m referring primarily to Saudi Arabia. The United States is Saudi Arabia’s largest trade partner, and Saudi Arabia is the largest export market for the United States in the Middle East.** Our long-standing friendship with Saudi Arabia is in spite of the abysmal conditions of women in the nation. A brief glossing of the status of women reveals that women must be given permission by their guardian to leave the country, giving rise to instances of 20 year old younger brothers restricting the movements of their PhD holding sisters. Women are censored from the public eye, women in the working class up to the royal family are secluded from society. The sexual abuse of women is common in Saudi society, including regular abuse within the family. *** Despite the terrible condition of women within Saudi Arabia, they remain a major ally of the United States in the Middle East.
It seems clear that while the article I first posted demonstrated the need for liberating women in the worst situations, there is also much work to be done at home. We cannot continue to deny the positive effects of equality in the economy. We also cannot support nations like Saudi Arabia and others to condone the oppression and abuse of women. While the economic benefits of change are nice, the moral obligation to protect others from abuse seems cause enough. Maybe that’s just optimism though.
*Fitzpatrick, Laura. “Why Do Women Still Earn Less Than Men?” Time U.S. 20 April 2010. Web. 7 October 2011.
**Bureau of Near Easter Affairs. “Background Note: Saudi Arabia.” U.S. Department of State. 6 May 2011. Web. 7 October 2011.
***Al-Mohamed, Asmaa. “Saudi Women’s Rights: Stuck at a Red Light.” Arabian Sight. 45-51. Web. 7 October 2011.
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