Thursday, December 29, 2005
Civil Rights Aroung the World
Sometimes it’s important to keep things in perspective. America today seems preoccupied with a woman’s right to choose. Granted this is an incredibly important issue, and one that is hotly contested. It may, however, be overboard for so many voters and citizens to consider this as their primary if not sole voting criteria or criteria for support of a Supreme Court nominee.
In Civil rights, America may be behind much of the developed world, at this point, but remember there are still atrocities against women being committed around the world which are much more heinous than overturning Roe v. Wade and thus relegating abortion decisions to the state (Keep in mind that if Roe is merely overturned, abortion will not be illegal, but merely left up to the individual states to decide how it should be regulated).
South Africa just recently passed a law banning virginity tests for women. These unscientific and frequently incorrect tests can decide a woman’s fate for the rest of her life in Africa. In some areas, the social stigma a woman carries from failing such a test might make her a pariah in her own town. Though a new law declares a maximum penalty of 10 years to towns and people still administering virginity tests, this will not stop many villages who have firmly entrenched traditions which include these tests.
Though it is true that America must continue to fight for womens’ rights in the US, we must keep in mind how far behind some countries are lagging. Though it is not always our responsibilities as Americans to stymie civil rights abuses around the world, maybe more of our civil rights efforts should be focused abroad where they can make the most difference rather than continuously screaming our heads off about details here in the US.
(NOTE: I am pro-choice and believe that it is a vitally important issue. I merely think that we should not allow any one issue to develop a stranglehold on the political process. Government affects many aspects of our lives and each should be given due consideration.)
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I think though, that whilst urging people to look beyond the confines of our country, it is important to remember the importance of cultural sensitivity. It is easy to look to an Arab country and rail against the headscarves worn by women, but it is much more important to work WITH those women and with the governments to support free expression of religion.
I saw a documentary in a class last year about 4 women in Egypt. All identify as feminists, and all come from VERY different backgrounds. On the topic of enforced veiling (or the banning of it), I thought one woman spoke very clearly. As a religious woman, she chooses to cover herself as she believes is modest and proper, and whether the government chooses to enfore that veiling or to ban it, they are taking the religious expression out of the hands of the individual women. Enforced veiling can be as difficult and degrading for relgious women as for secular, as their symbol of religious observance has been reduced from the holy to the profane.
Anyway, the point is that action on the part of the rest of the world (and really any marginalized community to which one does not belong, I believe) needs to be characterized by inclusion of those for whom we are fighting and a sensitivity to the differences in cultural relativity.
I saw a documentary in a class last year about 4 women in Egypt. All identify as feminists, and all come from VERY different backgrounds. On the topic of enforced veiling (or the banning of it), I thought one woman spoke very clearly. As a religious woman, she chooses to cover herself as she believes is modest and proper, and whether the government chooses to enfore that veiling or to ban it, they are taking the religious expression out of the hands of the individual women. Enforced veiling can be as difficult and degrading for relgious women as for secular, as their symbol of religious observance has been reduced from the holy to the profane.
Anyway, the point is that action on the part of the rest of the world (and really any marginalized community to which one does not belong, I believe) needs to be characterized by inclusion of those for whom we are fighting and a sensitivity to the differences in cultural relativity.
I completely agree, but if you look at the Laws South Africa is passing, they are clearly moving towards a system that more closely resembles ours. I am not advocating completely changing other cultures to assimilate to American, I am merely advocating helping them enforce the laws and continue the trends they already have
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