When will women be respected to the point that they will be allowed to do many activities alone?
When will women be respected to the point that they will be allowed to do many activities alone which men take for granted?
When will women ever gain the right to walk to the store alone and back without a single sexual advance?
When will women be able to take out their garbage and check their mail without being sexually harassed in their own yard?
When will women ever gain the right to dress however she likes for her own self-gratification only, without being thought to be doing that for men, and without getting raped?
When will women be allowed to be alone and cherish and evening sunset and relax all to themselves? Why can’t a woman go hiking or mountain climbing without fearing rape?
When will women have the right to sleep alone at night without some man busting in and raping her?
Why haven’t women’s rights movements fought for these things? Why are women still seen as useless except as sex-objects, and why is the autonomy of women still ignored?
This question is about women in general, not me. The word “you” that appears in several of the answers is not appropriate. People must be shallow if they think questions others ask are always about themselves. That notion really paints a selfish mindset, doesn’t it?
Walk on, walk on with hope in your heart
And you’ll never walk alone,
You’ll never, ever walk alone.
You really live a life of fear. I pity you.
You’ve been betrayed by the women’s movement – they are only concerned with reproductive rights – they’ve all but abandoned everything else.
Oy. Another Mega-Feminist.
They ARE respected the way you secretly wish they weren’t. Quit being so melodramatic. You don’t NEED something to complain about.
Heh..
More feminist whinning and b****ing….
We are allowed all these rights. It is called freedom of speech and expression. Humans are sexual beings. Most good looking men get the same oogling as we do. It’s all about YOUR attitude. If ya look good a man’s gonna look. If a man has a nice body and is wearing fitting clothes, I’m gonna look. It’s called human sexuality. I don’t get harassed while taking out the garbage or checking my mail. I go hiking alone without fear because I hike trails I know and I am confident in my self defense skills. I don’t sleep alone at night when my future hubby is gone for whatever reason fearing the world. The problem is you, not womens’ rights.
Jewelrydesigner, there is more ‘awareness’ for many of womens’ ailments than mens. Who cares about prostate cancer? No one. You almost never hear of it. Breast cancer, cervical cancer, etc? All over the place. Things aren’t equal, women aren’t the only ones getting the shaft on some things.
When women and men no longer have sexual drive and it really all depends on where you live for a short term fix for you. Just because you live in an area that is like that, does not mean it is the same for everywhere.
I would also suggest not putting yourself on display as if you want someone to approach you and offer you money for sex.
Keep working for justice and that day MAY come.
I assume when you say ‘women’ you mean your self becasue not all women fear that. Maybe the ones in the ghetto or in really bad neighborhoods. I think when you think of it in those terms it will probably happen when these bad neighborhoods get better police protection.
I don’t think we’ll see it in our life time. I’m not sure it will ever change. If more women banded together for women’s rights it might happen some century. I think women are afraid to speak up because of losing their jobs, being mocked, and in general thought “damn feminist are at it again”! Until we can get anything sold including simple things without “a babe” being in the picture or making the pitch things won’t change. Until we change the laws for rape and murder of spouses we won’t see a change. If it were a law or illness regarding men it’s taken seriously. Women’s illnesses and fighting back being battered, again, things will not change. I wish they would, I would love to go out in the evening and walk or even go to a biking trail without threat of attack, nothing will change. It’s sad but it’s true! Until men start respecting women it will stay the same! Sorry!! I’m 61 and I can tell you that things have changed a great deal from the 1960’s to now. When I divorced I went to AAA to get my own policy because we had a policy together. I was told that I had to have an interview with the manager. When I asked why, I was told “women seem to be more emotional and might drive off a cliff” exact words!!!!!!! So maybe there is hope for more change but it happens only when we get together and force the change.
I don’t see things in the same light you do. I’m not discarding your feelings, and if these are things that happen to you on a daily basis, than you should speak up and be heard. Unfortunately, there are going to be a lot of people, myself included, that simply can not understand where you are coming from.
I have never walked into and then out of a store wondering why I got hit on.
I have never been hit on while taking out the garbage or checking the mail.
I have never worried about men thinking that I am dressed a certain way to impress men, or that a man is going to rape me because of what I am wearing.
I sit alone and watch the sunset, hike, camp, and swim alone and never have I worried about being raped.
I sleep alone, and never worry about rape.
A lot of your emphasis seems to be on feminism focusing on rape. Feminism is an ideology, an institution, and/or a political organization. None of these thing can fight a criminal act. Maybe because I live in a small town in a central southern state, but I do not fear being alone. Maybe I am simply too unattractive for men to care what I’m wearing, that I’m in a store, that I’m taking out my garbage, or checking my mail. Who knows?
Your feelings are valid, but they are your own. I do not know anyone who feels the same way you do. Rape is an awful thing, but it’s not something that can be stopped by an ideal.
Frankly I dont need to have so much freedom as a woman. I prefer to sleep at home and not alone, I prefer to have a maid who cleans the garbage, I always trek and hike alone and its safe…
Women all around the world, love to have their man as the head of the house. Nothing can change the tradition of things…. first a woman has to behave and remember she is a equal woman to the man but not try to show or prove it to the world……
take martial arts.
You can’t be so black and white with these situations; that’s what gets people in trouble. I think we have it a lot better than we used to, but in reality things aren’t going to change overnight. If a man say’s something derogative about your dress say something back. If you feel threatened in a dark alleyway why walk down there (that’s not just for women)?? I do understand you’re angry but if you act like a strong capable woman you will get treated like one. All I can say is don’t ask for power; just take it! Respect men, respect women. Just respect all things on this great planet; as they were meant to be.
I have that right now. I have lived alone for years and have never been restricted. I also carry a gun that I have a permit to carry and am not afraid to use it. I do allow any man to harass me in any shape or form. You sound like some one who is always afraid. Fear is a disease. If all these things are happening to you , you need to take charge of your own saftey and comfort zones. Don’t put the blame on all the men in the world. There are people out there that will see your weakness and you will become a victim, just because they smell your fear.
We did, we did! We had “Take Back the Night” demonstrations because women night shift workers, district nurses amd midwives were sick of being afraid of being attacked when they were at work.
It was significant at the time, how the law dealt harshly with any women who defended herself with any kind of weapon.
When Will a men be respected to the point that they wont be expected to protect the females with their life?
When will men ever gain the right to walk to work and back without a single undeserved harassment suit in that period?
When will men be able to take out their garbage and check their mail without receiving a state order to pay for a child he cannot even see?
When will man ever gain the right to dress however he likes for his own self-gratification only, without being though as a queer or transvestite?
When will men be allowed to be alone and cherish and relax without having to financially support an “independent” woman he divorced with? Why cant a man divorce without fearing to give half of their paycheck to their ex for the rest of their lives?
When will men have the right to sleep with a woman at night without the woman regretting it the day after and shouting “RAPE!!” ant the courtrooms?
Why havent women´s rights movements sticked to fight for inequity alone, instead of trampling men´s rights also?
Well there are quite a few questions you’ve laid out here, some of which are more rhetorical. To answer the first basic question of when, I would say now and never.
“Now,” several people have already illustrated. Many women are able to do the things mentioned without fear of rape or objectification, whether it is because they know how to defend themselves, frequent places they deem safe or deem society as generally safe, or don’t feel threatened, offended, or harrassed by objectification, or don’t feel these things exist, etc.
“Never” for various reasons: biology, environment and socialization, including value differences, fear, ignorance, etc.
Also, in response to some of the comments who find these scenarios ludicrous or outlandish, just becuase it hasn’t happened to you doesn’t make it untrue. I see a lot of “never happened to me or anyone I know,” which doesn’t make the statement false or invalid.
You might also consider that most people wouldn’t enjoy sharing personal stories of rape, harassment, or abuse as everyday conversation. Just a thought.
I haven’t been so fortunate as some of these others. I’ve had several negative experiences that are comparable to the ones listed here. One example. I was almost kidnapped in a safe area in daylight by two men, strangers. One grabbed me and tried to drag me into the car to have some “fun,” I was wearing baggy sweats, no makeup, and my hair in a bun. I was also coming back from a therapy session dealing with rape, making it seem more absurd. I only escaped because some people came walking down the street.
Some people might say “yeah but how often does that happen?” The answer: Too often. What’s the likelihood these men found someone else because I got away? What’s the likelihood that two women would have grabbed some man off the street and raped and/or killed him?
I’ve been sexually assaulted, harassed, objectified more times in my life than I would like to ever recount. So that’s exactly what I don’t do. I do not live in fear and behave as a victim although I have been victimized plenty. It sucks. It really, really sucks, but I deal with it. I have to or I will not enjoy all the other things life has to offer that are truly beautiful.
So what do I do? I take a proactive approach to dealing with what I feel is an overly-sexualized, irresponsible society. That means I do not walk around in suggestive clothing (that doesn’t mean I walk around in sweats all day either), take self-defense, don’t make a habit of going out alone at night, etc. I contribute positively by behaving consciously based on my values and acting as a role model. I behave rationally, logically, and maturely as any person (man and woman) should. I accept my mistakes and make an effort to learn from them. I also try to help people who need help.
I wouldn’t call it living in fear. It is being practical and responsible for myself in a society that has a multitude of problems. I think the problem underlying the lack of respect for women is in the lack of understanding of ourselves as people, that lack of values, and the lack of individual and social responsibility. For me, these are the things that interfere with liberty.
I have the right and fulfill it.
I go to dinner by myself and sit at the bar and have a drink. I travel by myself. I walk down the street and look the world in the eye. I am an accomplished business women.
Women have every right as men.
You have defeated yourself if you think otherwise.
You call people shallow who make an assumption here by using “you”? How does that make one shallow? Given this medium the questions are as flawed as any answer for the most part.
A better question is who made you spokeswomen for all women? As I see in these answers you clearly do not represent all woman. Taking your own experiences (maybe, or maybe you’ve never experienced this at all) and applying them broadly to others renders you question as baseless.
All people have limited freedoms in the world. How many people died in Iraq today? Men and women there can’t take their garbage out without a chance of dying… and the lions share are men.
What do you say to the women here that don’t share your viewpoint? (sorry it not “your” viewpoint right?)