In her documentary Marilyn Waring argues that the economic system is largely blind to the benefits of the work that women do in most societies, rendering the entire economic system that the most powerful countries in the world operate under, fundamentally sexist. This article from the New York Times is a report on gender inequality in France, which underlines many of Waring's arguments from the documentary. Legislation in France is ostensibly supportive of women's rights, allowing generous benefits and maternity leave (to a degree unheard of in the US) to French mothers. The French government also provides free nursery schools, family allowances and huge tax breaks for families with children. This pro-domesticity government position seems to indicate a progressive point of view of the French government on the real benefits of the work women and mothers do, but society doesn't follow suit. While 82% of women are employed, they are still evidently doing nearly all of the house work and they lack representation in Parliament where 82% of seats are occupied by men. The expectation that women are meant to continue to accomplish all of the domestic tasks that constitute "not working" while also working full time jobs, indicates a continuing lack of acknowledgment of the genuine value of this kind of productivity. Statistics illustrating this continuing level of inequality show that "forty percent of French mothers undergo a career change within a year of giving birth, compared with 6 percent of men. Both parents have the right to take time off or reduce their hours until the child turns three — but 97 percent of those who do are women." The picture is confusing in this case. Legislation supports women's equality, but society doesn't become essentially less sexist. What has gone wrong in this situation--why are French women essentially doubling their workload and their husbands lives are almost unaffected? This article argues that even though the government in France is acknowledging the value of domestic work, society disagrees in practice.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/12/world/europe/12iht-fffrance.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&hpw
Very interesting article Tess, and excellent question that you ask about how laws may change but how do you change people's behavior? I am hearing the same thing here in Barbados with discussions about violence against women, where laws in the Caribbean are changing to penalize violence against women but it involves change at all levels of society -- with individuals who are victims/survivors of violence and those whom they accuse as perpetrators, the police and courts, the legislatures/congress, etc....so it can't just be a change in the laws alone that will create real change at all levels.
ReplyDeleteMsrgie