The question is: are we living in a post feminist

world? Are women liberated at the moment? Sure, women can

vote, serve as jurors, judges, presidents, or prime

ministers. Equal pay is protected under legislation. Women

have certain rights to maternity leave. Women have equal

access to education. Divorce laws have been modified in

that both parties get half of their savings. Contraception

is more readily available. There radio programs, feature

articles, government bodies, TV stations (WTN) specifically

aimed at women's studies and affairs. Sport clubs are open

to women. Women can hold property in their name. Women are

allowed into bars to drink beer. In other words, since the

birth of feminism in the sixties, some of the oppression

against women has disappeared.

However, women are still far from equal. The average

hourly earnings of women are still 68% of those of men. In

cash terms, men earn on average, $3.66 more per hour than

women do. Women workers are on the lower end of the work

scale. Not very many women are high court judges, CEO's of

companies, or prime minister. With the exception of Kim

Campbell, who was only in office for a short time, who other

female presidents or prime ministers can you name? How

about a female CEO? Stumped you, didn't I?

Why is it that all the advertising of medicine,

cleaning products, and other household items are geared

towards women? Don't you just hate those Triaminic

commercials where both kids and the husband are sick and the

wife (mom) gives them all Triaminic? Then the commercial

concludes with, "Triaminic, recommended by doctors, and Dr.

Mom". There are countless other examples of the

stereotypical attitude of women being bearers of children

and keepers of homes. "A woman's place is in the home" as

the old saying goes.

How about the infamous woman-walking-down-the-street-

and-the-construction-workers-whistling example? What about

the guy telling his coworker a blonde joke? How many men

call women broad's? What about the constant sexual

harassment at work? Did you know that most sexual

harassment at work and in general is never reported? How

about the huge statistics on rape and violent crime against

women? I don't think women consistently being harassed and

degraded is beneficial to them gaining equal status among

men.

Women have the potential to get pregnant, which leads

to maternity leave for employers. So, they are slightly

more expensive to employ than men. That's why quite often

women are asked illegally at job interviews if they intend

to marry. Women will remain as second class citizens in the

work force as long as they are regarded as unstable

workforce. They are regarded in that manner because to

employers most women are likely to want pregnancy leave,

likely to come in late if their kid is sick, likely to want

to work part time, etc.

Women still do not have control over their bodies.

Abortion is illegal in many parts of the world. In North

America, women won the right to have an abortion, but that

right has been moving back inch by inch. With the recent

election of a Republican congress in the United States and

many anti-abortion groups lobbying for anti-abortion laws,

the pendulum is swinging the other way.

Women in North America are slowly getting there. If

you compare the equality of women in our society, to say,

the Middle East where women are not even considered persons,

women here are more equal to men. But isn't that like being

valedictorian of summer school?

Word Count: 585