I think gender identity is a huge issue in society, a stereotype of how a woman and men should portray themselves. A woman getting paid more than a man is suspicious, worrying about how we dress or look to fit someone’s standard to fit in, changing our personality to be accepted. Many people have different beliefs, the LGBT+ is one of the groups of people that are scared to be who they are base on how society treats them as sinners, being called names for coming out as a homosexual. Man is supposed to be though, men don’t cry, men don’t wear makeup, a man should act masculine and show no fear. Women are supposed to be mothers, dress feminine, cook, and bake. That’s how society portrays gender.
3 thoughts on ““Sex & Gender 101””
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I believe you’re right gender identity is a big issue in our society. I think that is why there is such a huge movement with nonbinary persons. Not to be confused with transgender, nonbinary people don’t want to conform to the gender standards placed on society. As the article Sex & Gender 101 stated ” Sometimes a person’s gender identity and gender expression may not “align” because of fear of how they will be perceived if they challenge traditional gender norms. ” Growing up while little girls were told they needed to dress a certain way, learn to cook and clean but if the little girl would rather play with trucks or outside playing a sport (Which neither of those should be labeled as “masculine” activities) the little girls were labeled as tomboys. On the other hand boys who wanted to dress up or play with dolls were called gay, something that has nothing to do with sexual orientation. Both these issues messes with the minds of children. The nonbinary label is a way for people to freely express themselves they way they wanted as kids without being told that their gender isn’t allowed to do or wear certain things.
In my opinion, I also feel that gender identity is a problem in today’s society, and as a result, people are subjected to a lot of preconceptions and expectations. Some people are still unable to express who they are.
A gender role is a social norm that entails a set of behaviors and attitudes that are regularly accepted, suitable, or desirable for a person depending on their biological or apparent sex.
Due to gender roles, Men are expected to be powerful, aggressive, and courageous. A man’s role in the house is providing for the house, some men believe that being a good provider means supporting their family financially, being a protector, he protects himself and his family, and he is a leader and teacher to his children. While women are expected to dress in stereotypically feminine ways and to be courteous, be kind, and caring in general. Cooking, cleaning, and staying at home are women’s responsibilities at home. As a black woman what is expected of us from most of society is a bigger butt (because black women are often overly sexualized), long or curly hair (or it isn’t “good hair”), a “sassy” attitude (because if we are too “rude” we are angry), and much more.
Considering what is expected from all of us, as a man, woman, or as a member of the Lbtq+, we are not able to dress how we want, act, or talk a certain way because of the gender roles placed upon us. Some of us even fear judgment from others. A few years back, I want to say summer 2018, I saw someone on the train change out of a short top, a skirt, flower crown, jewelry, and heels into baggy jeans and a regular tee with sneakers, no jewelry or flower crown; I couldn’t help but sympathize with them since I realized they had to disguise their actual identity at home or around certain people. Just imagine how many people have to do that, just so that they have a place to stay or just so they do not get made fun of or hurt, etc. It goes to show that if our society didn’t impose gender roles and expectations on us, they wouldn’t have to hide who they are.
As a solution, our society has to become more accepting and break away from traditional gender roles. If a woman chooses to dress more masculinely and has short hair, she should be able to. Or, if she wants to dress feminine and has long hair, that is okay too! The same goes for men who are stay-at-home dads that cook and clean for the house, men that chose to wear make-up or men that work to support their family. A person’s sense of gender identification and gender role should be based on what they want to identify as and how they chose to express it. It doesn’t matter what kind of person we are, we can match our given sex at birth, but we can also choose to be different.
Thank you. In the future, snapshots should not be words, unless you are sharing a specific experience.