Discrimination and Gender: Notes

Study Sheet – Women’s Test #1
1. Sex and Gender
Dueling Dualisms, Anne Sterling
Maria athlete, Olympics, forgot sex certificate, failed sex test, kicked out, life fell apart  the power of sex in our society, when normality of things is questioned, causes challenges
1972 Sex vs. Gender separation
Sex: anatomically, physical attributes defined
Gender: psychological transformation based on self gender identity, behaviour expression
Gender norms, expectations, opportunities
Society of normalization, maintaining the “normal”
No clear cut biological distinction that works in all settings  doctors use physical aspects of body to determine sex
Nature (genes, hormones) vs. Nurture (environment, society, learning)
Natural assumption: gender as biological outcome of sex
Mainstream understanding (TV, media, science literature  Egg and Sperm ideas)

2. Intersectionality
Feminism is for Everybody, Verna St. Denis
Intersectionality: How racial positions, social and economic class, and sexual identity interact and intersect, gender vs. race oppression in black women’s lives, reinforcing inequality and social exclusion
Aboriginal women critique of feminism
1. Irrelevant, racial and colonial
2. Assumes patriarchy is universal  historical references of Aboriginal women having high status and power in their society, positions of authority and autonomy
3. Colonization  other women have not experiences this
4. Build on cultural traditions  rejecting community’s “ways” and challenging oppression is considered betrayal
5. Gender inequality not the most important  oppressed first as Native women, colonization, racism
6. “Sameness”  do not want to be like men
Verna St. Denis argues back – it is relevant, did not always occupy high status
Western Patriarchy influenced Aboriginals
Deepened inequality, entire world organized around principles of control, domination and competition
Encourages men to seek security and status through control, dominate women to compensate for other men controlling them
Being feminist does NOT mean you have to choose between gender and culture/nation
Sisters in struggle – understanding social hierarchies in relation to gender, confront ways women dominate other women through sex, class and race, social justice,

3. Transgender
Transgender Rights, Riki Wilchins
Transgender definition: state of one’s gender identity not matching one’s sex
Transsexual: cross sexes with bodies
Transgender: cross gender changing clothing, behaviour, grooming
Face discrimination – using e-mail they communicate, form social networks, become political minority, advocacy focusing on hate crimes, access to hormones
Embarrassment – sometimes advocacy not effective because embarrassed, society set norms regarding what is considered “embarrassing”
Fitting into binary (bathrooms, prison)
Identity with its own boundaries, hierarchies and norms – not considered transgender if one doesn’t want to take hormones or surgery
Joining side when transforming – reinforcing position of privilege
Feminism – does it consider transgender discrimination?
“Do” gender – outcome of practice, not outcome of body

4. Disability Theory
Giving Voice to Women with Disabilities, Neita Israelite and Karen Swartz
Unemployment, earnings, work participation
Male disabled still better off
Feminism disregards disability – white middle-class women as norm, those who differ in regards to physical, sensory or mental status, or race, class, or ethnicity are left out
Models of disability
1. Medical model
Physical, sensory or mental differences from norm
Defective member of society
Within the individual
Power, patriarchal-like dynamic to those not disabled
Internalize medical identities and devices

2. Social model
Social structure as the problem, not the individual
Distinction:
Impairment: functional limitation due to physical, mental or sensory impairment
Disability: physical and social barriers, limitation of opportunities in a normal life on an equal level
Society’s failure to provide appropriate services for disabled, restrictions (Human Resource Center, not wheel chair accessible)
Underestimating abilities, influencing behaviour and expectations
Sexuality of disabled women, exclusion from social and economic experiences
Feminist critique  production of disability needs to be considered, need for understand individuals and differences for collection oppression of women
Reinforcing stereotypes of dependent, passive and needy women
Norms  devices/what you are feeling is not you, but someone’s images transferred to you
Glasses  who constructs the norm? Able-bodied-ness

5. Chloe Cooley
The Secret of Slavery in Canada, Afua Cooper
First challenge to slavery in Upper Canada
Simcoe (Veteran of Revolutionary War) heard of Chloe Cooley from eye witness
Enslaved women, manhandled, thrown on boat, screaming in resistance
Prosecuted owner for disturbing peace
Pushed for bill for immediate abolition of slavery in province  resistance, slaves necessary for economy
Compromised  act preventing future introduction of slaves, children of slaves gaining freedom at 25, if children before that age, children will be free
Significance:
Declining slavery
Opening for underground railroad  foreign slaves immediately free upon reaching Upper Canada, escaping slavery
Resistance  importance (esp. women), started train for legislation

6. Indian Act
Regulating Native Identity by Gender, Bonita Lawrence
Indian Act: Canadian federal law, governs status and reserves, regulate day-to-day, identify who qualifies as Indian in form of Indian status
Indian act targeting women as responsible for spread of diseases, classified as prostitutes
Gender discrimination
Constant masculine terminology
Women excluded from voting  voice was unheard, crucial for survival of society
Status depends on Indian descent or marriage to Indian male
“No longer Indian” if married out, if married to different tribe only belonged there, cannot be buried with rest of family
Lost property, residency, kicked out with small children, no money, lost education funding, day-care, loans
Could not be employed in US  future affected
Rejected by community
BUT, men did not lose status regardless of who they married
Goals:
Remove as many Indians as possible
“Racial purity”, removing “half-breed”
Generations of people who did not belong
Struggle for change
Indian Rights for Indian Women
Lost federal court  discrimination against sex and race according to Bill of Rights
Appealed and won to UN  right for individuals in minorities to enjoy culture and practice religion
Canada embarrassed  Act to Ament Indian Act, 1985
Separate womanness from Nativeness, as if violations of Native Women’s rights are not violation of Native rights
Resistance
Afraid of assimilation, losing historic rights
Not up to Canadian government to determine who is or is not considered Indian
Changes
Women and children could apply to regain status
Reserves did not want to take back those with regained status, not enough resources

7. Gender Inequalities
Rethinking African universities, Amina Mama
Institutional cultures privileging masculine norms, power, and status
Gender-biased knowledge, values, assumptions
“Special”, not taken seriously, posing threat, came to find husband, knowledge is “unattractive”
Secretarial, cleaning, support services
Few women in academics, knowledge is male-centered, affects progress
Fear, affecting women’s performance, at a disadvantage
Hierarchized gender differenciation
More women attending, disparities become evident and took a stand
Activism, develop courses, new research
Significance:
Competition – Universities facing pressure to be internationally known, pressure on women studies in order to be globally competitive
Hidden curriculum
Knowledge starting to develop

8. Feminism and Anti-Colonialism
Under the Western Eye, Chandra Mohanty
Contemporary colonialism/imperialism between women, 2 opposite groups  Western women (universally liberated, superior, intellectual) vs. “third world women” (uneducated, victimized, sexually abused, need rescue)
Asymmetries of power  hierarchies between women, one more superior than the other, third world women needing “rescue”
How social relationships today construct racial hierarchies, gender and sexuality
Overlooking complexity and diversity in women  third world countries as “poor, uneducated, victimized”
Veiling in Middle Eastern Countries  perceived as sexual control over women, but reality is that not veiling results in punishment based on tradition, not forced to, refused to be seen as week
Does not consider cultural differences, victimizes all Muslim women, undermines their struggles, efforts and achievements
Solidarity, need to unite  common struggle/interests in diverse settings, commitment and relations of mutuality to develop common cause and build coalitions, become stronger

9. Homophobia and Heterosexism
Activist Insight: Homophobia and Heterosexism
Heterosexism: one pattern of loving, right to dominance/superiority
Homophobia: fear of feeling love for own sex, hatred of it in others
Heterosexism  privilege of the norm, power
Homophobia  sexism
Personal: belief that gay/lesbian is immoral, inferior
Interpersonal: behaviour based on personal homophobia (name-calling)
Institutional: discrimination based on sex orientation in government, businesses
Cultural: social standards/norm, media, “normal family”
Phobia – can it be cured?
Feminists as lesbians
Significance:
Link between patriarchal social relations and sexuality
Everyday lives and heterosexism (Doctor asking about birth control, assumptions)
Sexuality as social construction, reproduction of oppression and freedom
Reading of gender as outcome of social practices, assumptions about gender

10. Package Picture of Cultures
Undoing the Package Picture of Cultures, Uma Narayan
Stereotyping cultures, ignoring subcultures/internal differentiation
Culture as explanation for everything about individual
Colonial idea – not dynamic
Change – no room for evolution, historically culture changes, traditions change
Influence by cultures, mutuality – influenced by interactions, mutually dynamic, rejects idea of separate distinct cultures
Significance:
Individuals – do not want to be explained and judged by “package picture” of their culture, everyone is different
Feminism needs evolution just like culture, challenging it is not ruining it
Alliances made in different settings and cultures
Missing internal difference and change