Lois Banner Evaluates the Gains of the Women's Movement (1980s)
Feel free to agree/disagree with Banner as you react to her article. You may choose to use the three questions (Reviewing the Reading) at the end of the article to frame your responses to Banner's article.
I concur with Lois Banner, in that the women’s movement has made great headway, but the quest for full equality is far from over. As stated on page one, women have made tremendous advancements in fields of work. From 1970 to 1981 the percentage of women doctors and lawyers quadrupled. Over the ten year period of 1971 to 1981 the percentage of women engineers was multiplied by ten. The nation’s female elected officials quintupled from 1975 to 1981. Thousands moved into white collar jobs. Yet equality is still kept out of reach as women are faced with discrimination. For every dollar a man makes a woman is paid 57 cents. Professions such as nurses, clerks, and non-college teachers are heavily weighted toward women. On the other hand, however, business executives and congress seats are immensely segregated against females. Such conflicting results lead to uncertain opinions of how the women’s movement will end up affected the average person. I believe that the goal of equality will be continually fought for and, therefore, realized.
ReplyDeleteLois Banner presents concrete evidence concerning the increase of women in the work force since 1970. Of all the figures presented in Banner's evaluation, the most striking is the statistic concerning women elected officials. Banner states, "In 1975, 5,765 of the nation's elected officials were women, by 1981, the figure stood at 14,225." This is an astounding increase of women in government. Also significant is the decrease of black women in domestic service. In twelve years the number decreased from 30 percent to 9 percent.
ReplyDelete(I wonder if that statistic is accurate in southern states?)
Even though women have made great strides, Banner indicates areas where discrimination still exists: the majority of non-college teachers are women, secretaries are mostly women, and most nurses are women. Further, statistics reveal women earn 57 cents where men would earn a dollar. It is exciting to see that the traditional American family is being replaced with greater flexibility when it comes to traditional gender roles. This shift at home gives promise to the future since children are raised in flexible households.
Lois Banner is right by saying that the women's movement has made good progress, yet women are still not treated with full equality. There are increasing percentages of women moving into professions and graduating with educations, as stated in paragraph three. For example, the percentage of women being awarded engineering degrees increased from 0.8 percent in 1971 to 10.4 percent in 1981. By 1979, percentages of women lawyers increased from 4.7 to 12.4 percent , and percentages of women doctors increased from 8.9 to 11 percent Even though these advances were happening black women were still being discriminated against. Black women didn't give up though, they eventually got equality similar to white women. Women also had wage discrimination, in 1982, women still made about 57 cents of every dollar men made. Partially because of this 81 percent of all welfare recipients in the United States are women. What will happen is hard to predict, but the amount of movement already is great progress.
ReplyDeleteI agree with both Charlie Barber and Owen Hitt on their decisions. In Charlie's he explains that great progress for women's rights has happened throughout time, but there is still work to be done. A couple of good examples are increases in percentages of women lawyers, doctors, and engineering. An example of discrimination would be wage discrimination, in 1982, women still made about 57 cents of every dollar men made. In Owen's decision he states that women in the work force have been increasing since 1970, and women elected officials have dramatically increase from 5,765 to 14,225, in 1975. Even black women are making great progress like percentage of black women in domestic service decreased, in twelve years, from 30 percent to 9 percent. Even though women have made great advancements, they still are working to make things better.
ReplyDeleteAlthough a plethora of discriminatory acts still appear today on the basis of sex, I have to believe that things only got better because of this feminist era. This is the way I view if something is either a success or failure. The “Feminist Era” should be viewed as a clear success. Like Louis Banner wrote in the excerpt, “Growing numbers of women… are moving into the professions.” I accede with this statement, because equality in the workplace is one major aspect of equality for women. However, this does not mean that there is full equality. As 15barberc has stated, and so in the reading, “women still made about 57 cents for every dollar men made”. The comparison of payment between sexes completely shows that there is certainly not full equality. Another example of finding equality is that “…advances are being made in breaking down many sex-segregated occupations; 47 percent of all bus drivers and bartenders are now women”. Louis Banner comes back later in the writing saying that “Out of 435 members of the House of Representatives, 19 are women”. This is the reason I strongly support this piece of writing. The author states the advances in ending sexual segregation, but also says that more advances need to be composed, because equality is not yet accomplished. I believe, however, that equality is very hard to achieve, because of the way our society works. There are certain occupations in which equality is seemingly impossible, like law enforcement and rescue. An example is a fire-fighter, an occupation we discussed in class. Will the employer take the higher qualified individual, or the more discriminated person to try and achieve this ultimate goal of equality? This decision is simply left to the views of each individual, in which we have learned, have changed. In the excerpt, there is the statement “many Americans seem willing to… applaud the extension of equality to women.” This is what the aspect of equality comes down to: the views of each and every person in this world today.
ReplyDeleteWomen have fought tirelessly to be treated with equality, and statistics will show that all of their struggles are definitely paying off. From 1970 to 1981, the percentage of women doctors rose from 8.9 percent 22 percent. With the medical branch being such a vital part in our work force, this rapid growth shows that women were starting to be trusted to do work that, previously, was mostly done by men. Involvement of women in politics was also increasing. In 1969, 301 state legislatures nationwide were women; by 1981, there were 908.
ReplyDeleteAlthough these statistics show the increasing involvement of women in our work force, women are still struggling with inequality. As recently as 1982, women only made about 57 cents for every dollar a man made. This difference in pay between a man and a woman shows that women were still being discriminated against. Women were doing the same amount of work, but were being paid less because of their sex.
To this day women still fight for equality, and they will continue to fight until equality is reached. Lois Banner is very accurate when she writes how the feminist movement of the past 20 years has made such an impact on our country that it is hard to imagine its demise. I believe that in our country, and throughout the world, the best result comes from people working together; therefore, there is no room for discrimination.
The opinion of women has developed into a positive opinion since the "Feminist Era". "In 1980, polls showed over-whelming support for women's... rights to political office." This is showing that America is now believing that women can help lead our country. The statement shows much improvement from the two women in the Senate and nineteen women in the House in 1982. Also, formerly known male-dominated occupations are now almost equally balanced between men and women. As written in the article, "47 percent of all bus drivers and bartenders are now women," and "By 1981, the percentage of women doctors had risen to 22 percent..." These facts show improvement in the women's job force and sexual discrimination. Lois Banner also writes that only 19 percent of all Americans live in the tradition of the "American family". This shows that men are respecting women more and it is common for women to labor outside of the home. However, with all of these improvements, women are still stuggling for equality. Women made 57 cents of every dollar that men made in 1982. Hence, "81 percent of all welfare recipients in the U.S. are women." Although women are still fighting for equality in some subjects today, they have come a long way in being treated equally in the workforce, and also in the family. Lois Banner's book made a huge impact on America today, along with the "Feminist Era".
ReplyDeleteI agree with many things that 15gourliasp has said in his blog post. For example, I see the "Feminist Era" as a success rather than a failure; I do not see how someone could disagree with that. Also, I agree that seems impossible in some professions to achieve complete equality. Like Peter said, a fire-fighter is a great example. "Will the employer take the higher qualified individual, or the more discriminated person to try and achieve this ultimate goal of equality?" This problem does not only occur for women, but also for men. Will men ever have the same equality of women when it comes to jobs like secretaries, dental hygenists, home health services for the needing elderly, etc. It is hard to imagine the same amount as women fire-fighters as men fire-fighters, and vise versa with secretaries. America has come a long way and has been successful in sexual equality, but it still has a ways to go.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Lois Banner in the sense that by this point in time, sexual equality was very close to being reached. With many of the statistics, like the lawyers and doctors, the equality still has some way to go. The percentage of women doctors had increased dramatically and meaningfully by 1981, but because it was still only 22 percent, there was still some definite way to go. I believe full equality would be anywhere from 40-60 percent of women in a particular workforce. Anywhere below that shows discrimination, where people do not think that women are worthy enough to be in a certain job. Also, anywhere above those numbers proves that women are profiled to be certain things, like clerical workers or nurses. Only .2 percent of nurses were men in 1979. And nowadays, men get made fun of for being nurses. It is implied that being a nurse is a woman's job. I don't really know what that means. I am not sure if it is a good thing or not when a man stands up against this stereotype. I believe as long as the woman wants to be there, it is fine, so long as the men aren't getting turned down instead. On the matter of poverty, the reason that so many woman recieve welfare is because they are so easily taken advantage of. They get pregnant, and then are left to take care of the baby by themselves, causing them to recieve welfare. That is also the reason that many of the women in the workforce have small children. They have a kid, get educated, then get a job. We have almost reached sexual equality: I think we should get the numbers between 40 and 60 percent.
ReplyDeleteOwen Hitt made a great point in noticing that the number of black women in domestic service decreased. He asked whether or not that statistic was accurate in southern states. Because black women were always known for being maids or simply housewives, I think that this fall in percentage of black domestic workers is a huge step for two reasons. It means that women are moving on from being just ladies who do laundry and clean and becoming real workers. Women became more masculine, in a sense. But masculinity is defined based on the descrimination of women. A masculine man does work for himself, does not need help. A masculine man wears a suit, and does not do dishes or make himself a sandwich. Sandwiches were the black maid's job. When the black women stepped away from this profiling, it was also a step in the civil rights movement. Showing that they are not going to do things for other people. Black women, in this time period, I see as the strongest people in the communities. They stood up against men and whites. Ian Miller states, "Black women didn't give up though," which is true. Black women stood up and out against almost everyone but themselves and white feminists. When this happened, it united black and white women, and was a step toward integration.
ReplyDeletePeter Gourlias mentioned the discussion we had in class concerning being a fire-fighter. Being a fire-fighter is obviously a very strenuous, physically demanding job. Not everybody can barge into a building which is completely enflamed, climb ten stories, kick a door down, locate a victim, and bring the victim back down to safety. Now, this scenario is obviously extreme, but our fire-fighters need to be prepared for such a situation. However, this begs the question on whether or not a woman could physically perform in said situation as well as a man could. This question should be answered with a physical fitness and capability test that every person should have to pass before they can become a fire-fighter. The test should be physically challenging enough that, if you pass it, there is no question that you would be able to perform in an extreme a situation as I mentioned previously. There should not be a separate test for women. Whether you are a man or a woman, if you cannot physically perform at the necessary level then you should not be able to be a fire-fighter.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the Women’s Movement made progress for women’s rights, but I do not think that people had changed for the most part. Lois Banner brings up a very valid point by saying that the progress of the women’s movement could be a direct result of having to deal with more pressing issues. We must not forget that the cold war was going on, and that fear of nuclear apocalypse had spread throughout the nation. When it came to deal with the issues of the country I am sure that people cared more about the domino theory and nuclear holocaust than equal treatment for women. What I am trying to get at is that American men were tired of hearing women whine so they gave them what they wanted. That opinion could be wrong though. People may have genuinely cared about women’s rights, or their opinions on the matter may have changed.
ReplyDeletePeople neglect to remember statistics can be made to depict whatever they wish. While these statistics people keep saying can very reassuring they can also be false. A person could run the same pole neglect some aspect and say that their statistics are correct. Although these statistics are probably correct we cannot rely on them solely for our opinion. The pieces of information Lois Banner gives to us about the polls done in the 1980s are the easiest to manipulate. The people running the pole can purposely pick people with the same opinion as them so they can say it is fact. To be specific, the poll done to see how people felt about women in political office the group running the poll picks people with that outlook to say that it is true. Like I said though these statistics may be true but cannot be relied upon as our only evidence so in addition to the statistics provided we must provide additional information to prove that true.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Lois Banner, that women's rights have definatly improved from the 1970's. She lists dozens of statistics throughout the article giving evidence that women have alot more equality than they used too. The fact that in 10 years (1971-1981) the percentage of women being awarded engineering degress went up nearly 10 percent is amazing. Also 96.8 of all nurses are women and only 19 percent of all Americans live the tradition of the "American family", where the father works and the mother stays at home. These statistics don't lie, women in the work force are being treated with much more respect than in the 1970's.
ReplyDeleteLois Banner is precise when saying that women have made good progress, but still do not have full equal treatment as men. Much of the progress that has taken place was the percentage increase of jobs. Some examples she gave are stated on page one such as, the percentage of women doctors risen 22 percent. Also, the percentage of women bus drivers increased 47 percent. Although job opportunities are now open, Lois proves that there is still discrimination against women. A piece of evidence that she shared was that women still made about 57 cents of every dollar men made. If women are working just as hard as men, they should be getting paid the same amount. It is not fair to be paid less because of your gender. Women to this day still fight for their equality and I believe they will fight until they receive it.
ReplyDeleteI partially agree with 15pakulskit when he says, “women in the work force are being treated with much more respect than in the 1970's.” It is true that women are being treated better. So many opportunities are now open to them. Percentages are much higher than what they were before. Although, I would not call this better treatment “respect”. I do not think the women are getting treated with respect. Women are working just as hard as men are, but they are not getting paid the same amount. Why should a man that works the same job as a woman get paid more? I see no respect in that. I believe that you should not be paid differently due to gender.
ReplyDeleteBen Kocan said that women have have not yet gained eqaul rights as men. I have to disagree. He quotes Banner on saying "In 1982, women only made 57 cents of every dollar men made." Today women make up to 76 cents of every dollar men make. Now you may say that this still is not equal, but on average men work more hours a day than women so the men have earned their extra 24 cents. Most people on this blog seem to think that women's rights is still not eqaul but for the same reasons. How equal do you want them? We all know that no matter how equal we try to make them, someone isn't going to like it.
ReplyDeleteLois Banner is correct when she says that women are close to becoming equal with men. All of the statistics are pointing towards women finally gaining substantial ground on men. This is great on the surface, but brings up an overlooked problem. With all of the equality women are receiving, they are leaving behind the lives that women once led. This leaves many responsibilities behind, including housekeeping and child rearing. With every new woman entering the work force, more things are left undone. Neither men nor women can work full-time and complete all of the duties listed as well. Does this mean that parents are leaning towards children raising themselves? As I said before, I believe that women should have every right to equality. I also believe that the strong core of most successful families does not exist as strong when both men and women work full 40 hour weeks. We must realize now that if women want full rights, we must also be prepared to redefine what we call the perfect family.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Ian has a viable point in saying that polls can be very easily manipulated. However, I do not believe like he that the polls were rigged. Within the paper, not once is a single group mentioned in any of the polling. Along with this evidence, the amount of people polled for this would cover many different minorities and cultural and social boundaries. While doing all of this, the polls are reflecting multiple different opinions and styles of life. This allows the polls to be accurate in their depictions of the American people. Ian has a point, but for this poll, I believe that the lack of listed specific groups proves that no one group was polled.
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