The Glass Ceiling: Are Women Treated Differently?

"The Glass Ceiling: Are Women Treated Differently?"

The history and progress of women rights in the home and public life is a powerful story; especially the women of the United States. In an effort to understand the rights of women we have to look at history to fully understand the subject. In the past and present day there is a sleuth of information that can be tracked to comprehend the freedom women have gained in our society and achieve awareness on the issues that still need to be addressed.

In our world, there has been an underlying theme of women as second-class citizens or inferior. Sadly for many women it has been difficult to gain respect or the same rights given to the opposite sex. Again, like mentioned previously, an investigation of the facts through history and current events can better equip us with an understanding of the inequality of women since the beginning of time.

In the book of Genesis 2:21-23 it tells of how God made Eve from a rib taken from Adam:

Genesis 2:21-23 "And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; and the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. And Adam said this is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man." (King James Bible)

It can be seen in the Bible that from the beginning of time God had a special purpose for women. The writer of this paper believes that it was here where God instituted the concept and definition of family. The writer of this paper also thinks that God was establishing the duplication of DNA and how DNA works through multiplication between a man and a woman. Another interesting fact in this Scripture is how God created woman from Adam's rib instead of creating her from the ground like Adam. This order of creation reveals the principle of gender positioning. It is well noted that the woman was not created first but was created after Adam. God chose to create her from a rib he took from Adams' body which leaves us with the impression that she is subordinate to Adam.

There are many other factors that can be formulated by the writer of this paper to further build a case in the difference between man and woman. From the beginning of time the roles of a woman have always been polar opposite from those of man. This is observed easily in the overall physical attributes that are distinguishable between both sexes. One can also notice the differences psychologically. The most notable difference is men cannot become impregnated and give birth to a baby. Having established these differences the question concerning the equality of men and women need further clarification. This writer of this paper draws a conclusion that God created man to be the head of the family. The can be seen in Genesis 2:24:

"Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh." (King James Bible)

In reflection, this Scripture calls husband and wife one flesh and helps answer the question proposed concerning equality or inequality between males and females. By the mere fact that a male and female are considered one flesh, shows us that men and women are equal beings. As for the leadership roles of both sexes, we are able to differentiate them by our instincts, as seen through history. History shows us that men are hunters and women are domestic in nature. While this is a very basic description differentiating both genders, it takes wisdom accompanied with love to decipher a healthy balance without dismissing Gods' order of creating Adam and Eve. It can be concluded that man was created first as a patriarch leader and woman was created second as a matriarch leader. This also directs us to an understanding of the family unit as provided in Genesis 2:24.

Our next portion in the investigation of the glass ceiling and if women are treated differently can be seen historically through cultural studies. In the book Gender Equality by Sean Connolly the author says women are the biggest civil rights group:

"Women, on the other hand, form at least half of the world's population. Yet for many centuries, women had little or no independence and were required to obey either their fathers or their husbands. In many countries, women could not own property or businesses. Their children were considered the "property" of their husband, even if he was cruel or had abandoned his wife. And to make matters worse, women did not have the right to improve their position by voting for changes in society." (Connolly)

This sets the stage for the innumerable studies on the treatment of women being treated differently. The writer of this paper believes women are mistreated and are treated differently in the world. They are treated differently in every level: in the home, in the workplace and in the general public. In the following website it lists the ten biggest reasons in the mistreatment of women in our world today:

Female Infanticide, Sexual Subjugation, Citizenship, Custody Rights, Victims of Violence, Right to Travel, Access to Education, Right to Divorce, Clothing Requirements, Forbidden from Driving. (Listverse)

Through current events the writer of this paper has learned the following information about women's rights described in this following section: In China the one child policy is the cause of death for female infants, crippling the female population in that country. The same is true for India where female fetuses are aborted and baby girls abandoned to die because of the preferential desire for a boy. In both China and India the ratios between boys and girls is disproportionate and in favor of more boys due to the infanticide of girls. In Morocco, women are much more likely to be charged with a crime if having sex outside of marriage in comparison to the men committing the same act. In that same region many countries deny citizenship to women and deny women custody of their children if they are divorced. Women are prone to violence, and the laws in many countries do not protect domestic violence because it is considered a private matter. Things like spousal rape are not a considered a crime and husbands have a right to their wives bodies at all times. In too many countries husbands can file official complaints at airports and forbid travel for their wives. As for education in countries like Afghanistan, it is illegal for a girl to get an education. Some progress has been made since the fall of the Taliban but women are still struggling to see their rights fulfilled. It many places it is still prevalent for husbands to have the right