Gender and decision making is still a critical subject when it comes to social construction. How people ascribe various gender roles to both men and women has been a hot topic, especially in the era of feminism. In most cases, families are led by men, and they are the breadwinners of the family. This makes them have power over women, making it difficult to have a say in the decision-making process. In most settings, girls grow, knowing that their duties are house chores while male children are educated and trained to be leaders in society. Many biological theories agree with this idea by suggesting that somethings come naturally, such as being male or female (DeFrancisco et al., 2013). This makes gender roles naturally acquired, and trying to change gender roles is a taboo in many communities. 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 be considered and utilized when making decisions on issues. In some cases, women are expected 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 interesting case. I was raised by a single parent who worked against odds to ensure I got the basic needs, including education. In my community, women are not entitled to own hereditary or communal land. My grandparents owned more than 30 acres and had four children (two sons and two daughters). Unfortunately, for some reasons I had to live with my grandparents and aunt who was a twin sister to my late mother. 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, my aunt was left landless since our norms never recognized women as part and parcel of beneficiaries. Furthermore, women are not allowed to own any property or piece of land in the area. My uncles sub-divided the property within them and never allocated any land for my aunt to use. This left my aunt homeless and a squatter in her own land.
My aunt then decided to approach family members in a bid to get some piece of land to enable us to sustain herself. 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 a child 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 uncle’s 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 public hearing, and this is where decisions are made based on peoples’ suggestions. However, this committees are made up of men, making it biased for women. Unfortunately, women who attend these forums are not allowed to speak. Only men are allowed to give their opinions and participate in decision making while women are supposed to listen and adapt to 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. Women are allowed to access education, but their place and role in society are still defined and fixed. This is because of the power that the community has given men, making it easy for them to rule over women.
According to psychological theories, individuals’ identity is not set at birth naturally but is developed through an experience such as childhood interaction (DeFrancisco et al., 2013). In many communities, 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 an individual’s specific role in society. In many communities, 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 practicing the same norms without enquiring (Eisenberg, 1996). 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 men without valid reasons.
Social scientist 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 (Foss et al., 2013). One of the theory shows men brain is distinct from the females. For instance, men can confront challenges better than women, while women are wired to more empathetic and detail (DeFrancisco et al., 2013). From this research, people in society classify being born a girl or boy will naturally define your role (Foss et al., 2013). This can be one of the reasons 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 (Eisenberg, 1996). When not approached well, this theory tries to disadvantage and rule out others in the decision-making process.
In conclusion, theories in gender suggest that some things occur naturally, such as a person’s sex. Since one cannot choose to be male or female, gender roles occur naturally where women have specific duties, and men have other different roles (Foss et al., 2013). In many settings, women are low in the hierarchy of authority, making it hard to contribute to society. In my aunt’s case, she never received justice since she was a widow and nobody to protect her. This made it easy for my uncles to grab her share of land, leaving her homeless. Girls should not grow with a mentality of being submissive to men even when they are being oppressed. Women should not be controlled like children, but should be allowed to be free and contribute in decision making. Gender roles should not just be assigned according to someones sex of birth, but through the skills acquired in the learning process.
References
Andler, M. S. (2017). Gender identity and exclusion: A reply to Jenkins. Ethics, 127(4), 883-895.
DeFrancisco, V.P., Palczewski C.H., & McGeough, D.D. (2013). Gender in Communication A Critical Introduction, Second Edition. Sage publications, Inc.
Eisenberg, N., Martin, C. L., & Fabes, R. A. (1996). Gender development and gender effects.
Foss, S. K., Domenico, M. E., & Foss, K. A. (2013). Gender Stories: Negotiating Identity in a Binary World. Langrove: Waveland press.
