Understanding Gender and Gender Equality

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Understanding Gender and Gender Equality
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Some Thoughts

• The status of women indicates the character of
  the country
• Pt. Jawahar Lal Nehru
• All nations have attained greatness by paying
  proper respect to women. That country and that
  nation which does not respect women has never
  become great nor will it ever be in future.
• Swami Vivekananda

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Some Facts !!

• Women perform 2/3rds of the worlds WORK
• EARN 1/10th of worlds INCOME
• Are 2/3rds of the worlds POOR
• OWN less than 1/100th of the worlds PROPERTY
• (Source UN statistics )

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Definitions

• Gender Gender refers to the socially
  constructed roles ascribed to males and females.
  These roles, which are learned, change over time
  and vary widely with and between cultures 
• Sex Biological distinction between males and
  females. Determined with reference to genetic and
  anatomical characteristics.
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• Empowerment of women

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Sex and Gender - differences

• Sex
• Natural biologically constructed
• Constant everywhere
• Normally unalterable
• Aspect of physical inequality
• Innate and not learned
• Categorizes as male and female

• Gender
• Socio-cultural, society-made
• Variable with time, place and culture
• Attributes can be changed
• Aspect of social inequality and unequal power
• Learned behavior
• Normative behavior expected from society

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Gender defines

• Behaviour how to talk, walk and laugh
• Dress Code what to wear, what not to wear
• Roles what kind of work to do and what not to
  do
• Responsibilities housework, office-work,
  cooking, cleaning, child-rearing
• Mobility where to go, what time to go, what
  time not to go, how far to go
• Rights property, maintenance

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Gendered Qualities and Attributes
FEMALE MALE
Body Mind
Nature Culture
Emotion Reason
Subjective Objective
Private Public
Caring Power
Nurturing Control
Love, selflessness Ambition
Affection Aggression
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Gendered Space
MALE FEMALE
Public Private
Cinema, Stadium, Street corner, Bus Stand Kitchen, Home, School
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Gendered Objects
FEMALE MALE
Bangles, Toy Gun
Dolls Bat and Ball
Light Colors Dark Colors
Cycle Motorbikes
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Gendered Jobs
Female Male
Secretary Farmer
Nurse Doctor
Air-hostess Pilot
Teacher Engineer
Bank Employee Defence Services
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Gender division of labour

• Caring/ nurturing breadwinning
• Low paid high paid
• Repetitive skilled
• Movement of jobs from men to women

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Manifestations of Gender

• Son-Preference
• Discrimination in food distribution
• Lack of educational facilities
• Masculine vs. Feminine concept
• Lack of mobility
• Lack of right to property
• No space in decision-making

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Gender-based Violence

• Infancy discrimination
• Childhood child labour, child marriage, child
  abuse, discrimination
• Adolescence ,sexual harassment, rape,
  traafficking, commercial sex work
• Adulthood domestic violence, cruelty and
  death due to dowry
• Old Age widow, abuse, lack of access to
  care, nutrition medical facilities

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Gender relations

• Gender relations are those social relations which
  refer systematically to those aspects which
  create and reproduce systematic differences in
  positioning of men and women

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• Gender is another axis of inequality along with
  caste and class
• Women are not a homogenous group

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Five dimensions

• Rules how things get done
• Resources what is used, what is produced
• People who is in, who is out, who does what
• Activities what is done
• Power whose interests are served

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Approach to Equality

• Formal equality regards women and men as being
  the same and therefore sets out to treat women
  the same as men.

Its principle aim is to achieve equal treatment
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Formal Equality

• Formal equality does not take into account
  biological and gender differences between men
  women.
• Its neutral standards are in fact based on male
  experiences and standards. By imposing male
  standards on women, it excludes or disables women
  from equal access, opportunities and
  participation.
• It promotes gender bias and blindness which
  reinforces dominant standards based on male
  experiences interests

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Protectionist Approach
Recognizes the difference and prescribes
different treatment. However in its recognition
of difference, it reinforces rather than
challenges gender differences and stereotypes,
often barring women from doing certain things in
their own interest, or limiting their spheres of
activity.
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Protectionist Approach

• Approach is likes are to be treated alike, and
  in recognition of gender differences, it seeks to
  treat women differently.
• Eg. women are prohibited from night
  work/migrating because it is considered to be
  unsafe for them. Or for instance, preference to
  women for jobs such as nursing, teaching based on
  a naturalised understanding of womens nursing
  and caring roles.
• Rather than focus on the external, structural or
  systemic cause for subordination and stereotyping
  of women, this approach endorses rather than
  corrects it.

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• The approach is dis-empowering as it accepts
  difference as natural rather than socially
  constructed. It perpetuates the differences and
  the disadvantages that come with it.

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Substantive equality

• Substantive equality approach recognizes that
  some
• people are in an unequal position have to be
  treated
• differently from others in order for them to
  benefit
• equally.
• E.g. if night work is involved, the Environment
  should
• be made safe for women to work. It is concerned
  not
• just with equal opportunity but also with
  equality of
• results.
• E.g. to remove gender stereotyping in job market,
  it
• calls for an Equal Opportunities policy to give
  women
• and other marginalised groups a priority in jobs
  and
• positions from which they have historically been
• excluded, if they meet the required
  qualifications

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Substantive Equality Approach

• Stipulates not only formal legal equality
• but correction of historical, systemic and
• structural barriers to enable equality of
• results in real terms
• Equality of opportunity
• Equality of access and
• Equality of results
• It takes into account and focuses
• on diversity, difference, disadvantage
• and discrimination.
• It deploys affirmative action through use of
  temporary special measures to accelerate social
  change.

Seeks a paradigm shift from equal treatment
to equality of outcomes
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Why Gender training is important?

• A development intervention
• Awareness to influence behavior attitude
• Influences personal and professional life
• Helps in realization of full potential of both
  men and women
• Helps promote millennium development goal (MDG)
  of gender equality and empowerment of women

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• Thank You