Our
View: Genderless word ineffective,
superfluous
The feminist movement has a colorful history.
Beginning in the late 1800s, after slavery was abolished, women began fighting
for their rights while maintaining an obsequious façade. In the 1920s
women became more outspoken, marching down streets, chaining themselves to voting
polls and even going to jail for the right to vote.
The era most people associate with feminism may be the notorious 1970s, an era
associated with women who burned their bras and did not shave their legs.
Thankfully the struggle and strife our grandmothers and mothers endured was not
in vain. Their dream of a nation free of sexual discrimination has largely been
realized. Although feminist goals have been accomplished, feminist sentiments
still linger within our society and are creating a chasm between the sexes.
An obvious example of feminist beliefs that have become too extreme is the insistence
of using the suffix “ -person” at the end of a noun rather than the
formerly accepted suffix “-man.” For example, some people dedicated
to furthering the advancement of women’s rights insist female legislators
be recognized as “congresspeople.”
This may have been an appropriate and necessary demand 50 years ago, when women
were not recognized as individuals capable of intellectual contributions. Now,
by demanding women be addressed by a word devoid of any gender association, the
differences between men and women are highlighted.
The original intention of those fighting for women’s rights was to create
a society where women are regarded as intelligent people, equal in every way
to men’s capabilities.
These gender-free words are superfluous and do not accomplish anything for women’s
rights.
Most people do not associate words with the suffix “-man” as being
indicative of one’s gender. They are simply words used to describe someone.
People who persist on recognizing women as different are destroying decades of
work our ancestors strove to establish. Our foremothers fought against popular
opinion and made huge personal sacrifices to break the gender barriers that fueled
the common perception that men and women were fundamentally different and therefore
could never be equal.
The trace sexism that remains throughout the country will not be demolished by
sexless words.
Those ignorant enough to believe women are incapable of contributions beyond
the kitchen will not abandon their archaic beliefs readily.
Other civil rights movements have demonstrated that the most effective tool in
changing public opinion is education. By demonstrating women’s capabilities,
society’s stragglers will quickly learn to value women more.
Women in the past made huge efforts to make society equal. We should not become
zealous and apply feminist ideals in such fervor that we erode the progress made
by our ancestors.
Moderation is key to the success of any difficult task. Rather than worry over
minutiae, people concerned with the betterment of female existence should focus
their concern in more productive, helpful ways.
There are plenty of women in need of some kind of assistance who remain oppressed
despite the dramatic changes society has undergone. An example of this lingering
oppression is the fact that in a few states women still do not have a right to
collect the money they earned from their employers.
Husbands collect their wives paychecks from employers. Also, some men still believe
that women should not work outside of the home.
These are serious hindrances keeping our society from becoming entirely equal.
Wasting time and energy on small, insignificant issues is ridiculous and disrespectful
toward women who are facing significant challenges due to their gender.
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