Women’s RIghts Are Still Not Where They Should Be

Richard MacTough
Staff Writer

As Women’s History month comes to a close, there is still much to be done in the battle for women’s rights.

Three of the biggest conflicts are over inequality, abortion and participating in sexual activities.

One issue we face is that women are still referred to with derogatory terms such as slut, whore or THOT.

The conversation needs to be changed.

“Male nurses are found to earn about $5,000 more than female colleagues,” according to a study conducted by the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Nursing is a career that is considered dominated by women.

They do the same hard work as men, and are still more likely to receive less pay.

This absolutely has no place in such an essential job that we need to always be filled.

Parents should encourage their daughters to become interested in science, math or even something like engineering.

In modern film, there are a lot of protagonists who are foolish and save the woman in distress who is depicted as more intelligent and independent, but still seems to have the main protagonist save her.

“Star Wars: The Force Awakens” has become a true inspiration for young women and girls. Rey (Daisy Ridley) is a strong female character that is intelligent, powerful and is able to handle problems on her own.

She is able to escape before being rescued and actually rescues the male protagonist at many points.

In the difficult experience of abortion, women are the ones who have to face this problem directly.

Men can be absent, refusing to have any experience, and presidential candidate Donald Trump recently said women should be punished for abortion.

How about men? If women should be imprisoned, why are men free from consequences? I, as a man, understand that if my fiancé is pregnant, I am just as responsible.

Trump is known to be extreme, and neither a women or man should be punished for abortion.

Pro-life activists are not for life. They should be described as pro-birth because after the child is born they are not concerned with their living arrangements.

People on welfare and young moms are looked down on.

They are shamed as “getting free stuff” or “terrible moms.” The reason young women get abortions is because they are aware they are not ready to have full responsibility for another life.

The father is not often talked about, and women do not get a paid leave from jobs after having a baby. They are treated unfairly.

My sister at one point was forced to get on her knees and scrub a floor while carrying my niece for seven months at work.

Some may argue that a person shouldn’t have sex if they cannot prevent pregnancy. Pregnancy is never 100 percent preventable.

There is always a chance it can happen, and participating in sex is normal. Telling people not to do it is ridiculous.

Men and women will fight off hormones and will eventually participate in sexual activities. This is something women are commonly shamed for.

When men have sex, they are given cheers and are celebrated. If a woman has sex, then society will refer to her as a slut no matter what.

My fiancé has been shamed for wearing a shirt showing a little bit of cleavage. A man told her that she shouldn’t “wear a shirt like that if she has a boyfriend.”

That is victim blaming and falling into the rape culture. A woman should not be harassed no matter what she is wearing.

If a guy wears pants with his underwear showing, does that mean anyone can touch him?

It certainly does not. We should change the way we see women and their roles in modern society.

Email Richard at:
rmactough@live.esu.edu