Assignment 05
In the reading of “Are women Human? It’s not an academic question” by V. Spike Peterson and Laura Parisi, made me realize the position women were placed in, how unfairly they were treated, how a gender and sexual identity would be controlled and created in what was normal. Peterson and Parisi first defends Heterosexuality “to sex/affective relations between people of the so-called opposite sex” (133) and then defined heterosexism “the institutionalization of heterosexuality as the only ‘normal’ mode of sexual identity, sexual practice and social relations” (133). In other words through heterosexism it is clear that this was and is a tool created and implemented to create what would be considered normal (the norm), this was how it was preferred through the political and patriarchal system. From the beginning of a child’s life, the child would learn their purpose (the language), for example a child’s penis, which is considered the male dominance, this was the binary coding between masculine and feminine in which as a man (masculine) is defined by itself, this was clear that men were more viewed more human, in which the whole ordeal was androcentric.
It was considered that the norm was that men were the one in controlled, a woman was to bear for the children and comply with the needs of the men. Through heterosexism it became an advantage for the masculinity group reproduction, it promoted binary gender identities, such as it accepted a women’s subordinates to the males, it also promoted heterosexual relations with the males and children. But heterosexism however was also oppressive, both authors states “it privileges males/masculinity and male-defined interest of women qua women, and it denies/repressive all other sexual orientations and gender identifications” (138). This statement also represented that it not only denied women’s interest as a human being but also homosexuals and bisexuals, because of course that was not considered the norm within heterosexism.
Though three generation of rights, one of the many examples for instance, political and civil rights, women were excluded, because in reality they were not included in the human rights, therefore men embodied those human rights through the public sphere, but in the private sphere women were assigned to stay at home and comply to their women duties. Peterson and Parisi would also add on how women in the military would be denied war activities, they were at times excluded in combat which is still an issue today.
Gender inequalities was and still is an issue many women and men face today, women are still being treated unfairly and men are not able to be themselves freely because the norm does not include homosexuality. Although a lot has changed through the years, it seems that even with better changes the laws and rules are yet to be very conservative and old school.
