Gender and Gender Related Concepts for BDU Female Instructors

Abay Minch Lodge , 23,Nov,2013 Prepared By Haimanot Minwuye

– A woman is not a “mere means” or instrument ,to one or more man’s pleasure or happiness. Rather she is an “end- in -herself” ,a rational agent whose dignity consists in having the capacity for self-determination ( Wollstoney Craft 1879).

Are Women and Men the Same or Different ?

Are Human beings a product of Biological Process or Social Environment?

Sex What makes every person

either female or male Chromosomes Hormones Anatomical / Physiology

Sex; Biologically constructed e.g

childbearing, breast feeding

Can’t change

Gender A set of characteristics,

roles, and behavior patterns that distinguish women from men socially and culturally.

The different ways in which women and men look and behave, and how they relate to each other

Socially-constructed not born with can be changed

Gender Vs Sex

Naturalists, Gender is biological

Males are born masculine and females are born feminine.

Genetics and hormones determine whether a person will

behave in a more feminine or masculine way.

Men are physically stronger. They are usually more

aggressive and externally oriented. They speak with

different voice and pitch.

Nature/Nurture debate

Rousseau, – Naturally women are pleasure seeking and pleasure giving

than men. – Rationality is the most important educational goal for men

but not for women. – Rational man is perfect complement for emotional woman

& vise versa.

Goldberg; Socialization does not consist primarily of parents telling little boys to be aggressive and little girls to be nurturant-these tendencies exist without socialization. To believe that males should not have a stronger dominance tendency .. Is to hope for the impossible.

All men and women must be themselves, realizing that God has given each of us unique abilities with which to pursue our goals, and that our primary responsibility is to take full advantage of those abilities.

Men Are from Mars Women Are from Venus ( John Gray). – One day long ago the Martians, looking through their telescopes, discovered the Venusians. Just

glimpsing the Venusians awakened feelings they had never known. They fell in love and quickly

invented space travel and flew to Venus.

– The Venusians welcomed the Martians with open arms. They had intuitively known that this day

would come. Their hearts opened wide to a love they had never felt before. The love between the

Venusians and Martians was magical. They delighted in being together, doing things together, and

sharing together.

– Though from different worlds, they party in their differences. They spent months learning about

each other, exploring and appreciating their different needs, preferences, and behavior patterns.

For years they lived together in love and harmony. Then they decided to fly to Earth. In the

beginning everything was wonderful and beautiful. But the effects of Earth's atmosphere took hold,

and one morning everyone woke up with a peculiar kind of amnesia selective amnesia! Both the

Martians and Venusians forgot that they were from different planets and were supposed to be

different. In one morning everything they had learned about their differences was erased from their

memory. And since that day men and women have been in conflict.

Nurture

The differences between men and women are more socially constructed since childhood by pressure of the society & parents to conform to what they "think" men and women should be.

Being born a woman (or man) can mean very different things depending on the social environment. Having a female body does not necessarily make you behave in a particular way.

Cntd.

Understanding the life of a woman or man involves

understanding the history of the society in which they live.

The Tchambuli tribe in New Guinea consider ‘masculine’ what most

Westerners regard as ‘feminine’. In that tribe men adorn(decorate)

themselves.Tchambuli women are the dominant partners and men

are emotionally dependent on them.

The Arapesh of New Guinea regard both women and men as

‘inherently gentle (kind), responsive and co-operative’ and that

both women and men of the tribe take responsibility for child

care (Mead, 1963/1935: 134).These are all traits that North

Americans & Europeans tend to see as ‘feminine’ characteristics.

Discussion

Why people use Gender & Women Interchangeably? And is there something wrong with this?

• Presence of gender inequality. • The existence of violence on women . • Lack of knowledge and training on the issue.• Focus on women’s problem.• Lagging behind International standards due to

different factors.

Gender Inequality

Gender inequality refers to unequal treatment or perceptions of individuals based on their gender/sex.

Why Gender Inequality Exists ?

Causes of Gender Inequality;

• Are many and complex and they are not fully

understood. Intra household decision making process

Low levels of education and training of women

Poor health and nutritional status

limited access to resources ( land, credit, info. etc. ).

What is Gender Equality ?

– Providing equal treatment in laws and policies

– Providing equal access to resources and services

– Providing equal obligation

Providing equal enjoyment of human rights, opportunities,

and resources.

Gender equality is the measurable equal representation of

women and men.

What is Gender Equity

Gender equity is the process of being fair to women and men by recognizing diversity and disadvantage and directing resources and services towards those most in need to ensure equal outcomes for all.

A gender equity approach therefore acknowledges that different strategies are often necessary for women and men.

Gender Mainstreaming

Gender mainstreaming is a process that ensures:

… that gender perspectives and attention to the goal of gender equality are central to all activities – policy development, research, advocacy/dialogue, legislation, resource allocation, and planning, implementation and monitoring of programmes and projects.

Gender Sensitive

A policy, program or service that recognizes that women and men are constrained in different and often unequal ways as potential participants and beneficiaries.

Gender Blind

A policy, program, project or service that ignores gender and therefore incorporates biases that may be in favor of existing unequal relations.

Summary The main aim of this presentation is to call for the

end of male domination and abuse, and bring equal rights for women.

Both men and women should be treated equal. A women should not be like a candle burning in a dark room.

To draw staff attention on what gender means and bring them together to work towards the same goal.

Thank you