Isabel Present

5/2/15
Green Group

Feminist Essay
In the history of the fight for equality, all oppressed groups were required to obtain political, social, and
economic rights in order to achieve equality. The two tools that a group uses to obtain their rights are the media
and the government. Oppressed groups, such as, racial minorities, attempt to gain political recognition for their
struggles in hopes that economic legislation will follow political recognition. Minorities have been attempting
to create media that is representative of minorities to bring attention to discrimination. It is difficult for a
minority group to create social and political equality since they are not economically equivalent and often
receive a lower quality education. Women must be given legal protection that promotes social and political
equality, unlike programs for minority groups which promote political, economic, and social equality, due to
differences in the origin of the groups inequality.
Minorities, who were treated as property by their owners/employers, and women, who were treated as property
by their husbands, were historically two groups with limited ways to obtain economic stability. In 30 years,
women have gained enormous economic opportunities, with the ability to be hired at an entry level position at
almost all corporations. Women earn 60% of undergraduate and masters degrees (American Progress).
Inequality occurs when an opportunity for a promotion arises, as only 4.6% of Fortune 500 Company CEOs are
women (American Progress). In a survey, 64% of women believed they were not considered for promotions as
often as their male counterparts (nwlc). This type of inequality is rooted from the idea that women are feeble
minded and need the protection of men. Schlafly believes women should see themselves as beneficiaries from
male dominance and that no further action is required to attempt to achieve equality (time). When women do
not have the same opportunities to make a contribution as men, a country is only using half its resources.
Programs are often designed to temporarily increase employment opportunities (SCU), but the media is more
effective at bringing lasting social change.
Positive ethical values may shape the law, but the media creates those ethical values. Brownmiller writes that
the ideology of rape is fueled by cultural values. The media of the 1970s created the image of women as

Isabel Present
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Green Group

property of the man they are married to. Todays media has seen little improvement. While the media
encourages discussions about racism and its implications, it treats the topic of sex as if it were taboo. Rape and
sexual offenses are one of the least reported crimes. The media has cast a cloud where men can view
pornography yet it in inappropriate to hold a discussion about it. It is the medias responsibility to make sex an
acknowledgeable topic, not the government. Brownmiller points out the most vigorous opponents of porn are
often those same people who shudder at the explicit mention of any sexual subject. While the media is turning
pornography into the silent oppression of women by men who feel the need to assert their dominance, it is also
promotes the role of the male as dominate and justifies the male desire to dehumanize women and look at them
as if they are toys instead of people. Economic inequality often spurs from the media portraying the image that
women are not as smart as men to young girls. If the media displayed women as people, not body parts, ethical
values would shift and people would begin to disapprove of pornography, without having to violate first
amendment rights. The majority of America disapproves of the Westborough Baptist Church due to the medias
strong negative portrayal of their picketing. The media disapproves of hate speech against ethnic minorities and
LGBTQ but endorses the idea that the victim of a sex crime should feel ashamed.
Without legal equality, Schallys utopia could come true. In former eras, women had no choice but to let men
be our lawful protectors (Brownmiller). Women currently comprise less than 20% of congress although they
make up over half the population (Rutgers). With a disproportionate representation in government and law
enforcement, women lack the authority required to create legislation that gives sex crime perpetrators a harsh
punishment. Although rape is illegal in all states, a prosecutor must have a strong basis of evidence (civil
rights project). The ERA would have allowed women to take stronger federal action against sexual offense
perpetrators and push social reforms, similar to the reforms to help minority groups, to plant an image of the
female as a person instead of an object to be bought or sold.

Isabel Present
5/2/15
Green Group

Works Cited
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Sachs, Andrea. "Phyllis Schlafly at 84." Time 7 Apr. 2009: n. pag. Time. Web. 3 May 2015.
<http://content.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1889757,00.html>.
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May 2015. <https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/women/report/2014/03/07/85457/fact-sheet-thewomens-leadership-gap/>.