CRJ #10

CRJ #10

When the constitution was written, women were considered property and thus not granted equal representation and or the right to vote. In “Constitutional Arguments” Susan B. Anthony comprises a strong argument against this suppression of women’s rights by using text from the work that denies the said rights. Her main argument uses the following phrase, “We, the people of the United States.” If the union is comprised of all citizens, then all citizens should receive equal representation inside the democratic republic. When seeking independence from Great Britain, men proclaimed that taxation without representation is unjust. These same men turned around and incorporated the wrong done to them onto other people, primarily minorities and women. Women were asked to follow laws that they had no say on.

Sharon Hays in “Flat Broke with Children” shows the battle between amending the current Welfare system to support those who truly need it, while guaranteeing a system that won’t ultimately end up corrupted. One of the main flaws in welfare is the negative connotation that is prompted whenever anyone mentions that they ware or were once a receiver. It is assumed that that person is irresponsible, ambitionless, and lazy. There is little sympathy given towards welfare recipients. While there are plenty of people who cheat the system by using their children as reasoning behind unemployment, there are thousands of people in the country that truly need the extra help, while already fully employed. Personally I have seen both sides of the welfare problem within my own family. My sister currently holds a study job and works more than forty hours a week, but the truth is that at the end of the day her pay is just not enough to support her three children. But according to the law, her pay should be high enough, because she is not in the poor range. This puts a lot of strain on my parents who try to augment her monthly salary as much as they can, while still trying to support me in college. While my sister is struggling to provide the best life for the children that she can, her partner’s ex-girlfriend, whom they share a child with, has six children, no job, and no desire to ever start an occupation. While everyone is entitled to their own free will, I do not find it exactly fair that the ex-girlfriend is living a better lifestyle with a nicer apartment, car, and the availability to afford Christmas presents through charity organizations than my sister, who is working hard to not go under. I think the welfare system demonstrates one example of how equality can never full be achieved in the world. In order to make a program to benefit the poor, you are also making a program that can be corrupted by the lazy.

“Unequal: A Global Perspective on Women Under the Law” by Jessica Neuwirth talks about the unjust laws purposely imposed upon women around the world, especially Muslim women. I feel this article addressed many of my concerns about being labeled a feminist in the being of the class. While, I believed in equality for women, I also believed that feminist were more towards American revolutions of equality, while the real battle belongs in foreign cultures where women are more specifically targeted. For my second event, I watched the film on the Iranian divorce process. During this process women are not treated as full citizens and a divorce requires unreal sacrifices that force many women to stay in unhappy, abusive relationships. In order to receive a divorce, women must for forfeit all rights to their children, money, house, and reputation. There are many different degrees of equality around the world for women, children, and minorities, but I have to believe that the United States is on the leading edge of equality; which is a scary statement because if there is still room for improvement here in the states then there is a massive need for improvement globally.