I Wish Santa was a Woman...

Ok so I know that Santa is a guy because Saint Nicholas was a guy, but wouldn't it be nice if he were a woman? Then we wouldn't have another oppressed woman figure who is happy to spend all of her life at home taking care of her husband (Mrs Claus). I feel like this is a great example of how tradition dictates gender roles and it's so hard to break with tradition. Another Christmas-y example: in many families, the dad is the one who gets to carve the turkey at dinner and basically lead all of the celebrations. To be honest, I love traditions and I would hate to get rid of many of them. Maybe its ok to keep traditions as long as we recognize that they really show us the patriarchal history of our society and as long as we start to make new, less sexist ones.

Another reason why Santa should be a woman: The idea of a man coming into my house in the middle of the night freaks me out (Along with the watching me while I'm sleeping and knowing when I'm awake). Unfortunately, a large percentage of women have suffered or will suffer from sexual assault or rape in their lifetime. A surprising number of men have suffered or will suffer from this as well. The majority of perpetrators in these crimes are men. Yes, this seems like a ridiculous and sad point, but I feel like everyone would be more comfortable if it was a woman breaking in to the house at night.

The truth is, I love Christmas and I love Santa; but part of me really wishes he was a woman.

Oppression

Recently, our readings for class have touched on themes of oppression. Oppression is a word that is often used without true understanding of what it actually means. One thing that this class, and really all of the pacs classes I've taken have taught me is that it is important to really analyze and understand the terms that we use before trying to understand their implications. Oppression is one of those terms. I had never really thought about what oppression meant before. I had often used it as a term to mean "held back" or "held down," but that's such a broad definition that it lessens the importance and impact of the word. Oppression must be defined by who it affects. Group membership and some kind of identifiable group dynamics must exist in order for oppression to exist. Oppression, just like many other ideas related to conflict, is closely associated with power. The oppressors must have the power to oppress and I would argue that the oppressed must have a lack of power to defend themselves.

From Fathers to Husbands to Sons...

Why are women always dependent on men? Or the better question is: Why does everyone think that we are? I'm sick of seeing the theme of ownership of a woman in so many different contexts. It's like a woman is a dog who is owned by her father, then passed on to a husband, and then when she has a son, owned by him. The discourse is not often this direct, but the idea of a woman needing a man is seen very frequently. For example, I was reading an article about Aubrey Graham, a rich Jewish Canadian turned American rap star (that's another story altogether), said, regarding his parents' divorce, “I had to become a man very quickly and be the backbone for a woman who I love with all my heart, my mother." While I am sure his role changed in his family when his parents divorced, I find his comment to be based on a sexist ideology that says that a woman cannot survive independently. We often fail to question the myth that tells us that every home needs a "man of the house". What does that even mean?

Gender and Security

A few weeks ago we explored the theme of security. As I talked about in my last blog, definitions are always a central part of analysis, so we started by talking about possible definitions of security. While the articles focused more on the military, in class we talked about security in the domestic sphere. For me, it is much easier to comprehend examples in the domestic sphere because I can relate to them. I've never been a witness to war. We talked about security as a perception rather than a measurable fact. This applies well to the idea of domestic violence and relationship dynamics. Women often stay with abusive husbands or boyfriends because they feel greater security if they stay in the relationship; even though statistics say that they are not really safer. What really is at the basis of determining security? Do different things make each person feel secure? Or is there some basic need that drives the perception of security that is common throughout all humans?

Ugly Betty

One of the articles that my group picked for our presentation about the portrayal of gender in different cultures by the media was "Ugly Betty is Gone. Now Where's the Latina TV?" This article brought up important points about both cultural and gender representation in the media. Oftentimes in the media, "culture" is based on appearances rather than actual cultural groups. As shown in this article, Latinas are a perfect example of how this can play out. Latinas can look like they are of African or European descent and can often play roles as representatives of these cultures rather than their own. This makes media stereotyping an even more complex phenomenon because it gives skewed perceptions of gender in different cultures while not even correctly portraying each culture.

This article is also very interesting because it discusses nonwhite couples in the media. The author states that men that are not white can be in a tv show by themselves or can have a partner of a different race or culture. On the other hand, nonwhite women are almost always portrayed alongside a man of their culture or race. While this is a valid point in many aspects, I don't think it always applies. I think this would be a more powerful and convincing statement if it was about the ROLE the actress played rather than the actress herself. If Jennifer Lopez plays a "white" role than she can have a white boyfriend or husband. However, if she plays a Latina role, than she will almost always have a Latino boyfriend or husband.

Poems

In class we went over poems about gender and ethnicity. My specific group discussed a poem about an Asian-American woman who had trouble finding beauty in herself because she wanted to be white. The poem was powerful for many different reasons. As much as we stereotype Asian-Americans in the media and in our own lives, I feel like they are often looked over when we talk about race and diversity in the United States. So much of our discourse centers on black and white. When I read this poem, I assumed that the author was a black woman, just because she said that she was not white. I feel bad when I catch myself doing things like that, but I also find it very interesting because it shows that despite my efforts to analyze how my perceptions are affected by society, I am easily shaped by what I am told and by my experiences. Why are Asian-Americans not a part of the discourses that I have been taught? It could be because of where I live in the United States, but it could also be many other factors. Are Asian-Americans generally not included in traditional "white" or "non-white" contexts? What could be the consequences of this?

Commercialized Gender Messages

Today my mom and I went shopping for my cousins in the toy department at a store in our local mall. We were both shocked by how separated toys are for girls and boys. It was frustrating because as much as I don't want to solidify the gender messages that society sends to kids, I don't want to be reactionary and I don't want to offend the kids' mom. I just want to get the kids a present that they'll enjoy. I talked to my mom about it and she said that when my brother was little, there was a big push to make more toys for all sexes and genders. There were dolls that could be for a boy or a girl and there was a greater emphasis on selling toys for kids rather than for boys or for girls. She was disgusted that society has moved away from this and gone completely in the opposite direction. This doesn't mean that toys need to change drastically, it just means that marketing needs to change. Having a girl aisle and a boy aisle is sad, especially when it's for little kids who just want to play with the shiniest thing they find. One of the things that bothers me the most with gendered toy aisles is the easy bake oven. No one can say that boys don't like easy bake ovens. At the same time, any boy that asks for one for Christmas either A) has to become a chef when he's older or B) is gay. When it comes to toys, I think guys have more rigid restrictions on what they're allowed to want. It makes me so sad and so frustrated thinking that we do this to young kids. Even if parents assure their kids that they can want whatever they want, society will continue to pressure kids to conform to the existing gender standards.