Gender equality is not only a fundamental human right, but a necessary foundation for a peaceful, prosperous, and sustainable future. Eradicating gender issues means a world where women and men, girls, and boys all enjoy equal rights, resources, opportunities, and protections. When it comes to Gender Inequality, it stands for the distinction and discrimination that takes place between different genders for example society has its typical way of assigning different roles to boys and girls. They say a boy has to be strong, he can’t cry whether he feels hurt, good or bad, he cannot cry and can’t express his emotions openly; when it comes to a girl, most of the time she can’t go outside the house- she can’t do the job or work as it’s assigned duty for boys to earn. Yes, these are distinctions between boys and girls majorly, if a girl wants to become economically self-sufficient why can’t she? If she wants to go for higher studies without any pressure from family why can’t she? If she wants to drive a bicycle, or car without remarking oh! that’s a girl and she can’t drive properly, there’s going to be an accident and whatnot, why can’t she? It’s mostly because of the unfair rights between males and females the society we live in has confusion and chaos. It differs because of their gender roles which ultimately leads to unequal treatment in life.
Gender Discrimination has been around for many centuries as societies are changing and people are evolving, it’s high time to do away with gender roles. The root cause in many places regarding gender Inequality is the economic dependence of females on their male counterparts mostly and then the patriarchal setup in our society plays a big role where men dominate every sphere of life and then consider themselves superior to others on the contrary females are taught to be calm and composed with patience in abundance.
This discrimination and violence against women and girls, deeply rooted in the fabric of societies, is persistent and systematic. And in recent years, there has been a recurrence of scepticism against and denial of international standards concerning women’s human rights, gender equality, and gender-based violence, while women and girls are increasingly raising voices to demand equality, including through feminist movements.
There are those who argue that gender inequalities around the world are getting less. Dorius and Firebaugh, in their 2010 study, investigated global trends in gender inequality. Using data to research developments in gender inequality in recent decades across areas including the economy, political representation, education, and mortality, they conclude that a decline in gender inequalities can be seen which spans diverse religious and cultural traditions. Despite the fact that population growth is slowing this decline, as population growth is more prevalent in countries where there is most evidence of gender inequality. However, even optimistic studies such as this admit that: Optimism about the future of global gender equality must be cautious for two reasons. First is the obvious point that there is no guarantee that current trends will continue. Second, gender equality can be seen as a two-step process that can be summarized colloquially as ‘first get in the club, then attain equality within the club.’ Most of the indicators we examine here focus on attaining membership in the ‘club’—enrolling in school, joining the economically active population, and becoming a member of the national legislature. Gender parity on these indicators is only part of the story since, to cite one example, men and women are entering highly sex-segregated labor markets, at least in industrialized countries (Charles and Grusky, 2004). (Dorius and Firebaugh, 2010: 1959).
Deep down this concept of Gender Inequality has really a bad impact on society. Firstly, it impacts children who fall prey to Gender stereotypes from a young age. It has a serious and long-lasting impact on women and other marginalized genders. All in all, we really need to end these age-old traditions and distinctions between genders. What’s right and just should be there irrespective of gender and we should start promoting equal rights, responsibilities, respect, representation, and opportunities in every sphere of life no matter what with much dignity!
The author can be mailed at afreenmanzoor34@gmail.com
