Abdoul Galiou Dabre Gender Identity Project

Gender and decision making is still a critical subject when it comes to social construction. Despite most international conventions stressing on the importance of participation and equitable access when making decisions, studies show some communities still disregard other genders based on gender identity. In some settings, feedback from men is likely to considered and utilized when making decisions on issues (Rao & Tilt, 2015). In some cases, women are likely to follow decisions made by men as opposed to women. These cases possess a question about what influences decision making based on factors such as sex, race, class, and other identities.

Growing up in a village setting where people value culture and social norms in decision making allowed me to encounter a particularly rememberable case. I was raised by an aunt who worked against odds to ensure I got the basic need, including education. In my community, women are not entitled to own hereditary or communal land. My grandparents owned more than 30 acres and had three children (two sons and a daughter). Since my aunt was not married, we stayed with my grandparents until they all died when I was at a tender age. When the time came for the division of family land, she was left landless since our norms never recognized women as part and parcel of beneficiaries. My uncles sub-divided the property within them and never allocated any land for my mother to use.

My aunt then decided to approach family members in a bid to get some piece of land to enable us to sustain ourselves. This plea fell on deaf ears as none was able to hear her since she was a woman. She then tried to approach the local authorities and elders. My uncles were summoned to make their comments before the community land committee. My aunt’s arguments were simple; she is not married and has children to raise. My grandparents never left any will, which should have also guided on the proper way of sharing the land. My aunt received support from other women who were single parents. Unfortunately, during the ruling, the land community followed my uncles suggestion which said one acre of land to be bought outside the family land and given to my aunt. Upon further inquiry from the state authorities, the decision of the community land committee was upheld. By advocating for equal rights when making decisions, he was branded feminists and regarded as someone who does not honor the cultural norms.

Whenever issues arise in my community, the elders set a date for a public hearing, and this is where decisions are made based on the peoples suggestions. Unfortunately, women who attend these forums are not allowed to speak. Only men are allowed to give their suggestions and to participate in decision making while women are supposed to listen and adapt the final rulings. Women, in this case, are classified as children and cannot give sound judgment. This case extends to the family setting where fathers have the final say when making any decision for the family. For instance, when determining economic activities such as farming, a man is the only allowed when making this decision. Although women are allowed to access education, their place and role in society are still defined and fixed.

According to psychological theories, individuals’ identity is not set at birth naturally but is developed through an experience such as childhood interaction (Levien, 2017). In my community, there are cultural and social norms that everyone is expected to subscribe to and adhere to. When children grow, they develop a finite mindset that defines the specific role of an individual in society. In my community, people grow up knowing that women are not entitled to own a piece of land. They also develop a mindset that depicts women as inferior and cannot participate in decision making without a factual basis. When they grow up, these people will continue practising the same norms without enquiring. In my case, my aunt was denied land-based on gender, and her arguments were disregarded without a real basis. In this kind of setting, girls also grow knowing the defined role and remain submissive to the man without valid reasons.

Biological theories suggest that some things are natural and cannot be changed. In this case, being born a male or female naturally outlines your role in society. One of the theory shows men brain is distinct from the females. For instance, men can confront challenges better than women, while women wired to more empathetic and detail. From this theory, people in society classify being born a girl or boy will naturally define your role (Ilie & Cardoza, 2018). This can be one of the reasons when my aunt was not even heard during the land case dispute. She is expected to get married elsewhere and giving them rights to own hereditary land is not right. This theory, when not approached well tries to disadvantage and rule out others in the decision-making process.