In honor of March as Women’s History Month, TCNJ’s chapter of HerCampus has been celebrating its fellow ladies by featuring an abundance of articles discussing and celebrating female empowerment. As the month draws a close, let’s explore some of the highlights of the past year that addressed or created positive change toward women’s rights and gender equality.
Addressing Sexual Assault: #FreeKe$ha and Bill Cosby
This year, we saw more women publicly addressing the issue of sexual assault and confronting their assailants. The New Yorker featured thirty-five women who admitted to being raped by respected actor, Bill Cosby, and each individual shared their story with the publication. When singer, Ke$ha was not legally released from her contract with music producer, Dr. Luke – whom she claims drugged, emotionally abused and raped her – Internet and social media users responded in support of Kesha with the hastag #FreeKesha
Planned Parenthood Controversy
Photo credited to Ellen Rothfuss
When the U.S. government discussed defunding Planned Parenthood, the distinguished nonprofit organization responsible for providing reproductive healthcare services and clinics, social media exploded. People posted their support of the organization with the hashstag #IStandWithPP, and the public’s response caught the attention of the American government which continues to fund Planned Parenthood.
Jennifer Lawrence Tackles the Wage Gap
This past October, Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Lawrence wrote an essay for Lenny Letter titled “Why Do I Make Less Than My Male Co-Stars?”, addressing the gendered issue of women earning an estimated $.75 to a man’s $1.00. She compares her own personal struggle with voicing her opinion because of how opinionated women are perceived, while male actors are received more successfully in similar endeavors.
Viola Davis Wins and Speaks at the Emmy’s
On October 20, 2015, actress Viola Davis became the first Black woman to win the Emmy award for the category, Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series. She then utilized her platform to address the lack of diversity in female roles on television and film. She stated, “The only thing that separates women of color from anyone else is opportunity. You cannot win an Emmy for roles that are simply not there”, thanking writers such as Shonda Rimes (the creator of her show, How to Get Away with Murder) who create diverse roles for women.
Science disproves the myth that men and women have different brains
For centuries, many people believed that stereotypically gendered behaviors could be attributed to brain functions, arguing that men and women had differing structures and cognitive processes in their brains. But a recent and intensive study, led by neuroscientist Daphna Joel proves that brains cannot be categorized as male or female (Wheeling ScienceMag). Along with serving as a significant development in the field of science, this discovery changes societal perceptions of gender as well.
Chris Rock: Why Male and Female Acting Categories?
At the 88th Academy Awards ceremony, comedian and actor Chris Rock hosted the show, collecting laughs while also bringing to light serious issues such as gender inequality in the film industry. He questioned the purpose for diving acting categories by male and female actors. He reasoned, “There’s no real reason to have a men and a women category in acting. It’s not track and field; you don’t have to separate them.”
Women in Combat
On December 3, 2015, Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter announced via a news conference that women will now be able to hold any combat position in the American military. He stated, “They’ll be allowed to drive tanks, fire mortars and lead infantry soldiers into combat. They’ll be able to serve as Army Rangers and Green Berets, Navy SEALs, Marine Corps infantry, Air Force parajumpers and everything else that was previously open only to men” (Rosenberg et al The New York Times).
Sources:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/04/us/politics/combat-military-women-ash-carter.html
http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2015/11/brains-men-and-women-aren-t-reall…
http://www.lennyletter.com/work/a147/jennifer-lawrence-why-do-i-make-les…