Sexualization of Women through the Eyes of Hip Hop

Introduction
The Sexualization of women in various platforms has increased in the recent past. It has predominantly taken over the media especially in advertisements, commercials, magazines and most evidently, the hip hop music videos and songs. Women have always been seen as objects since we live in a male dominated society. In addition, women are continuously associated with promiscuity and dependency on men. This is evident in popular forms of media such as in movies, music videos and songs. The gender representation of black women in hip-hop culture is that of inferiority, promiscuity and sexual implication through the use of language and actions. Sexualization of women is manifested in a big way in hip hop music videos as well as in rap songs.

After they made their first appearance on media in the early 1980s, the proliferation of music videos has increased significantly. As this new music platform transformed to a more fundamental aspect of the music industry, the characters that women played have altered over time. Whether, in the role of lead singers or support dancers, women are sexualized now more than ever. Whilst sex appeal was once perceived as an additional benefit for a woman, nowadays in has turned out to be a requirement. Sexualized images are additionally vindicated when female hip hop artists portray typecasts, which are put across by the use of song and depicted through imagery by male hip hop artists (Watkins, 2006). Sexualization comes about as a result of sexually objectifying women. Moreover, flourishing female rap artists are appreciated by their sex appeal and activities that they portray. Male rap artists standardize these norms in that they associate being attractive with promiscuity and irresponsible sex.

Imagery is the strongest socializing factor in music videos. Male rap artists in music videos enforce inappropriate sexual acts on to females. This tends to dehumanize the woman as it inadvertently makes her into a sexual object that can be bought and sold. Fundamentally, in order for male rap artists to increase the volume of sale for their and get profit, they sexually objectify women since they carry on the idea that sex sells.

From the time when Africans were taken to slavery in the United States and Caribbean, the Sexualization of black females and women of color has been practiced over and over. Black females were portrayed as the complete opposite of their white counterparts who were perceived as guiltless, delicate, and in need of guarding. Black women were treated with animosity, both social settings and sexual approaches. They were considered physically able to bear the same workload as the male slaves, and always obtainable to their master for all types of calls. It was considered necessary to objectify black women in this manner so as to prove that there was a physical disparity, and any acts subjected to them against their will were justifiable (Rose, 1994).

The emerging eccentric society
An unconventional Hip Hop community thrives as women and men from of all diversity congregate to share the pliability of a society that labeled the creation of black Americans. The hip hop music has been associated with the black community over time. They originally used it as a channel to air the problems that exist within their communities. In the seventies and eighties, Grandmaster Flash, the Fab Five Freddy, and Sugar Hill gang introduced hip hop music to America (Rose, 1994). The expansion of the hip hop movement has been uncontrollable, and women have contributed immensely in the development. Nowadays, hip hop is a power to be reckoned with in popular music.

It enjoys a large consumer base which is often disputed. The popular perception is that 70-80% of the consumer base of Hip Hop is white. To the experts, these statistics do not consider those who are unable to afford to purchase records or those who procure mix tapes and pirated CDs. The truth is that Hip Hop is massive. It is a worldwide trend and has turned out to be a staple in fashionable music and Billboard charts, in the United States (Elena, 2012). Given the influence that of Hip Hop has gained over years, the representation of women happens to be an agenda that needs to be looked at intensely.

Over the years, the Hip Hop world has been under the control of men, although women are persisting to make progress and ascertain themselves as rightful participants within the Hip Hop music landscape. When hip hop came into place, women emerged to claim their place in the industry. In 1979, Lady B released her first rap record. Since then, artists like Salt-N-Pepa, who were the first all female rap group, MC Lyte, Da Brat and Queen Latifah emerged to justify the female place in the world of hip hop. These female rappers embraced their sexuality as women but also had to exhibit that they could thrive in a male dominant industry (Rose, 1994). They commanded respect as female artists in this male governed game.

Emergence of the sex sells ideology
In recent times, there has been much conjecture and scrutiny of the way women are represented in rap and hip hop videos. In many cases, women are scarcely dressed or wear low-cut and scanty tops, stockings, lingerie, and bikinis. On top of this, women often outnumber men while performing offensively for the cameras by touching themselves, the male rappers, or other women. This extremely sexualized fantasy world has set the customs for women on the music arena, forcing them to enhance their bodies and looks in order to be successful (Elena, 2012). This has been much attributed by the ideology that sex sells. This ideology has been carried on Not only in music videos, but in other industries, as well.

Today, female rappers and singers like Lil Kim, Foxy Brown, Trina, and Nicki Minaj are perpetuating the custom of female rappers, but with more observable sexual appearance than former female rappers (Elena, 2012).  Alongside female rappers, there are video vixens like Buffy the Body and Amber Rose who are regulars within the Hip Hop world. These dancers appear scantily dressed and shaking their bottoms intensely, and now more than ever, the representation of women of color in hip hop is extremely sexualized. With Rap being materialized and sold, the question turn out to be what role these women play in portraying the sexuality of women of black orientation and those of color. Presently within Hip Hop music three overriding images persist to surface: the video vixen, the extremely sexualized artist, and the cognizant singer presenting two different aspects; that of the extremely sexualized woman of color and the old-fashioned woman of color (Watkins, 2006). The two dichotomies are usually never appealing to each other.

Many videos emerge that perpetuate the Sexualization of women. In a video by Rapper Nelly’s infamously referred to as Tip Drill video, it openly depicts the sexualization of black women in Hip Hop and its culture. This music video contained naked women boogieing and humping throughout different scenes. However, Nelly’s video is only one of the many that portrays women as objects of sex in this manner ((Elena, 2012). The video vixen, from the beginning to the end, poses as an object of sexual desire.

This ideology has become noticeable in the manner that video vixens as well as female rappers are over sexualized. For the vixens, they have no voice or personal identity in these videos. They are simply objects of sexuality, and their presence in these videos has already been accepted as a norm. For the female rappers, their sexuality has been materialized and put up for sale to the masses (Cepeda, 2004). Even though the rappers have a say in their own music, their sexualized image is often associated with their brand. For instance, Nicki Minaj has continuously guarded her trademark stating that her sexuality is not a significant element of her identity, but one would plead to disagree after seeing her in her performance and videos.

Nicki’s famous figure depicts a similarity to Hottentot Venus-Saartjie Baartman . This infamous image was used as a form of misinformation in order to exhibit the disparity that exists among black women and white women. With the history in place, and having the notion that this body is not possessed by all black women, there are recurrent questions that come about; one, how does this repeatedly occurring images add to the increased sexualization of women of color and portraying them as items of sexual craving? Does the image of the likes of Nicki perpetuate the sexualized image for women of color? These questions can receive both objective and subjective responses, but the fact remains that increased sexualization of women has a significant impact in the modern society.

Effects that sexualization have on women
The negative depiction of women in hip hop lyrics and videos has an effect on the image of women. This over-sexualization represents the woman as being someone whose only concerns are sex and her looks. The women are also perceived as depraved and as beings that do not care about their welfare. These negative images expose women’s bodies to lust and sexual objectification. They also suggest that women are supposed to be concerned with only the yearnings of men and the fulfillment of their fantasies. Women who are distressed by the images begin to question their self-identity based on the opinion of men (Said, 1996). This makes the woman lose her self esteem and confidence making her insecure.

Despite the fact that this negative representation of women is humiliating and unsuitable, the main video viewers who are influenced by these images are the youthful girls. Young girls are forced to buy the misconception about true beauty and acceptance that these videos and music preach. They look at the video vixens and regard them highly which makes these youngsters desire to be part of the vixen community.

The Effects of Hip-Hop on Teenage girls
The hip hop culture that is preached in videos and music has adverse effects on young teenagers in a big way. Studies have shown that media depictions of women can manipulate girl’s mindset towards women, damage their body image, and intensify their value of body appearance in their lives (Said, 1996). Young girls’ mentality is manipulated by these women due to the interest that they seem draw from the men. The girls are deceived to think that in order to obtain attention from their male counterparts, they have to clothe, and a take themselves as the video models. That is why many young girls are rampant in trying out what they see in the videos. Their venture seems to yield results since they obtain the attention they seek from their male counterparts (Rose, 1994). Even though what they get is not actual respect but a subtle form of disrespect and belittlement.

The effects of these videos are already evident in various social media such as facebook and MySpace. Men of diverse ages are sexually magnetized to the pictures these young girls are posting on these sites. What a girl suggests when she posts a provocative picture on these sites is that she is ready for any sexual act, and she is proficient at it (Cepeda, 2004). She shows off her sexual abilities in a highly immature and irresponsible manner. The web presents girls with a potentially mysterious space to try out their sexuality without the fear of shame or threats of face- to- face meetings. The web always feels safe for the girls, rather than showing off in person to her audience. Potential danger lies in these web exposures. Many teenage girls have fallen victims of dangerous strangers after gaining their trust through a couple of chats and short messages. Many cases have been reported of girls getting kidnapped, raped and even murdered by strangers that they met online. These cases always emanate from identity crisis that these girls develop while seeking of attention by the opposite sex.

Conclusion
Both male and female artists will argue that they do not feel like the image of a woman that they depict as humiliating, but the truth is that it is. Given the enormous consumer base that hip hop enjoys, it is disappointing to continue reinforcing the sexualized imagery of a woman. It is impractical to disassociate this imagery from its off-putting history. This makes it quite hard to move forward if this dark past is not acknowledged. For female in Hip Hop, the staging of sexuality is materialized and put up for sale. Of course, they may portray different body pictures for women of color, but when they are persistently objectified it builds an irrational world for women and men of color.

Those people who buy these records should be aware that every video and songs is simply a strengthening tool of the way women of color should be perceived, and it carries on the tradition of women of color being brutalized and being treated as sexual objects. The rappers are always blamed for the continued sexualization, but the fact is that both parties, the rappers and women in these videos, are to blame. For the female artists, they should understand that sexualization is demeaning rather that empowering. The image that early female rappers depicted, that of a tom boy nature and showcase of their femininity in a non sexual way, should be embraced by modern day female artists. This way, they will try and mend the already tainted picture of the black woman and woman of color.

References

Cepeda, R. (2004). And it don’t stop? New York: Faber and Faber INC.
Elena, (2012). Woman and Hip Hop: The Video Vixen and Female Rapper. Retrieved on 11th November 2012 from http://aoinspiration.com/hair-beauty/woman-and-hip-hop-the-video-vixen-and-female-rapper
Rose, T. (1994). Black noise, rap music and black culture in contemporary America. Hanover: Wesleyan University Press.
Said, E. W. (1996). Representations of the intellectual, the 1993 Reith lectures. New York, NY: Vintage Books.
Watkins, S. C. (2006). Hip hop matters, politics, pop culture, and the struggle for the soul of a movement. Boston: Beacon Press.

Sexualization of women 10

Running head: Sexualization of women

Running Head: VERBAL COMMUNICATION: HOW MEN AND WOMEN COMMUNICATE DIFFERENTLY IN THE WORKPLACE AND WHY DOES IT MATTER?

Abstract
The way men and women communicate in the workplace is quite different. The big question is whether the style of communication really matter in any organization setup. Both genders have strengths and weakness when it comes to communication. Culture plays a great role in defining the way both men and women communicate at workplace. Some studies have shown that women’s style of communication is more encouraging than that of men, especially when the issues on discussion are a personal one. Communication is not just a way of passing information, but a way to persuade and influence individuals to act in certain manner.

The way men and women communicate in the workplace determine the success or failure of an organization. Effective communication leads to employees’ motivation. Effective communication influences performance of the organization. Actually, there is no right or wrong style of communication. It is the duty of a competent manager to strike the balance between both genders to maintain organization’s performance. It matters to understand how men and women communicate in the workplace.

Introduction
Verbal communication refers to passing of message through sound and language. The person relaying the message expresses the desires, concepts and ideas to the other through verbal communication. This method is vital when it comes to learning and teaching. Two types of verbal communication commonly used in the workplace are interpersonal communication and public speaking. Interpersonal communication is a two-way interaction where both talking and listening takes place. Public speaking, on the other hand, is where one person gives out message to a group of people. Communication, more so in the workplace, is often an invisible network which involves human interaction.

Men and women work together in the organization system, but differ in the way they communicate. Men assert status and authority when they communicate while women sustain social connection in their talk. This revelation suggests that there is a gender difference in communication. Men have their own strength and weakness in communication. The same apply to women. Some studies reveal that cultural stereotypes regarding gender reflect the actual difference between men and women (Barrett, 2006, p.69). The study will endeavor to explain different characters portrayed by men and women in the workplace and how it affects their performance. The study will analyze whether the expressed behaviors are important to managers and which steps should be taken to enhance good communication.

Communication in the Workplace
Communication is a vital in every organization. Working in an organization means interacting with other individuals. To coordinate organizational objectives and activities require effective communication. Good communication helps to counteract problems and build a strong workplace relationship. Men and women interact through interpersonal communication, where people express their ideas while others listen. They way men and women give orders in the organization are very diverse. Men and women differ in the way they perceive situations and, therefore, take different styles of communication. Communication styles change due to the following three situational factors: (i) sex of the person communicated; (ii) the topic under discussion; and (iii) status of the recipient.

Gender difference plays a major part in the way men and women communicate. Each gender portrays a definite pattern of behavior. Gender effects portray men as dominant and status asserting while women are collaborative, warm and supportive (Barrett, 2006, p.70). Men tend to issue directives while women follow men’s directives. Men interrupt other men when talking if they want to dominate the conversation. Women listen to other women before expressing their own opinions. Men tend to disagree on various issues but hold a higher percentage on task behaviour than women. Gender difference originates from childhood when children start developing a language. Little girls expressed themselves with words while boys used actions to pass their message.

How Men Communicate in Workplace
Communication among men is relatively different from women. Men normally use verbal communication to establish their dominance or status within their line of duty. They exude power and express themselves directly. Men are always available when needed. Men are insensitive to reactions and are too confident in their own opinion. They cannot maintain eye contact for long and this may make their subordinates raise questions about their judgment.

Men usually affirm their opinions and views by emphasizing on them. They tend to be more direct in exercising orders. They find it not necessary to offer much explanation to the points they make. They rarely use exclamation points or lexical surrogates in their messages as they are not essential to them. They do not like to be forced to share personal information. They feel comfortable to offer logical and rational ideas and opinions. Accuracy is what men look for and thus they talk mostly on facts and information. They look for solution to problems and believe that expression of disagreement is a signal for intimacy.

When applying social rules in dealing with subordinates, male managers tend to use formal authority to deal with a subordinate. Male manager’s communication is characterized by task-focus, dominance, challenge to other managers, and controlling behaviors of his subordinates (Singh, 2010, p.220). A manager will offer suggestion and challenge the subordinates to exercise it to see whether it will work. Managers use powerful language to show they are in command. A male supervisor resolves conflicts using his power and point of view. Most of the conflicts get solved through confrontation and compromise. The two approaches are vital in developing workers’ positive attitudes to conflict resolution.

Subordinates of both genders may be satisfied with their leaders regardless of their gender. However, communication styles play a key role in effecting the rules. Work satisfaction and productivity of workers vary with communication as well as the supervisor’s gender. Male supervisors score high on work satisfaction and productivity when they offer feedback in a positive tone even when the content was negative (Paludi, 2008, p. 25). This shows that male supervisors’ authority surpass that of a woman supervisor.

When men decide to talk about a subject, they rarely get out of topic. It is not unusual to hear them cease talking because they have exhausted the topic of discussion. They do not know how to connect other topics which are closely related to their discussion. They handle each task at a time. Men score very low in persuasiveness and assertiveness. This is because they do not concentrate on details. According to Karsten & Praeger (2006, p.12 ) men tend to communicate more about general principles and abstractions in public and impersonal fields and less about feelings and attending to other people. Men’s talk reflect the public scenery that males rule, and this create direct expression of hypothetical and intangible content in the service of mission achievement.

In order to gain promotions, men usually prefer to mingle with those people who are on higher rank than them. Interacting with senior executives provides an opportunity for mentorship as men take senior executives as their mentors. As upper management tends to be dominated by male individuals, this put men at an appropriate position to get promotion.
Men will always ask what they want. They are excellent negotiators. Most demonstrations that happen in organizations are lead by men. They know how to fight for their rights and they do not doubt their actions. Even when they are minimally prepared to do something, they always believe they can succeed. This strength makes them earn higher salaries than women.

How Women Communicate in Workplace
Modern women are now rising through ranks in many organizations. They hold same leadership posts with men and therefore carry the same responsibilities as men. However, there exist a large gap between the way men and women communicate in the workplace. The gap widens whenever a woman rise in rank in an organization. She will completely change the way she has been dealing with other employees.

Stereotyping affect the way people understand each other in the workplace. This belief asserts that women are always inferior to men and individual performance can be based on age, gender or color. Women like to treat their juniors as their children rather than workmates. They can underestimate the worker’s ability and offer judgment based on workers’ gender, race or age. Stereotyping can lead to poor communication and decrease in workers’ self esteem.

Women are excellent in socializing and their experience in this character makes them good leaders. They tend to show warmth and care towards their subordinates. They lay much emphasis on communication, cooperation and employees involvement. They do create an environment of empowerment to their juniors through rewarding hardworking employees. They rarely use punishment as a form of molding good character. They are very keen to point out workers who portray strange behavior.

Women are socially supportive than men. They usually form groups that contribute towards their welfares. They support their colleagues who have problems. They smile more often and are more likely to disclose their personal information than men. They are always lively and like to talk a lot on anything. They encourage others to talk and reinforce others’ speech through signs of agreement. Women prefer to communicate in a more mitigated manner which includes behaviors such as hedging, disclaiming expertise or adding tag questions to a statement (Barrett, 2006, p.71).

People are very sensitive when it comes to responses given to their messages. One way to monitor work identity is by evaluating the responses made when confirming or disconfirming something (Goodhall, et al, 2010, p.59). Women always like to comment on anything about any topic. They can comment about their colleagues’ way of dressing or how the managers behave in the office. Confirming a message influences the subordinate and the superior to act in the right manner. On the contrary, disconfirming a message may send a negative picture to the workers and consequently harm their identities.

Women have good listening skills and can effectively display empathy. To most women, talking is a form of conversation and a way to create connections and bargain relationships. Women use their unique style of conversation to show involvement, connection, participation and matching their experience and similarities with others (Daft, 2011, p.445). Women tend to talk in expression, using strong words that create deep understanding and meaning. They normally use emotions to reduce the harshness of negative feedback or alleviate a conflict. They are able to maintain eye contact for a long time.

The expectations that people have towards managers – such as being decisive, strong and dominant – are more inclined to men than women (Paludi, 2008, p. 24). Women therefore face a lot of challenges from their subordinates who are of opposite sex. Women fail to reach the top positions because they do not follow men’s way of communication. Men are traditionally believed to be holders of power in many organizations, and for women to hold organization’s leadership, they have to take on men’s way of communication. They have to push more on their ideas and opinions rather than listening to the needs of the listener.

Many women endeavor to be at the same level with men. They copy men’s styles of communication so as to achieve the same goals in the organization. This behavior is received with hostility by men who work under such women. In addition to use assertive ways of communication, women should also adopt an affiliative communication style in order to be accepted by both genders.
The problem with women in communication is that they are overly emotional and not authoritative. They lack confidence while exercising orders. Their statements of demand are so soft and can be perceived as silly or irrelevant. They do not get direct to the point when expressing or explaining something.

Does it matter How Men and Women Behave in the Workplace?
The difference exists between the way men and women communicate in the workplace. It matters a lot how both genders convey message to each other. The difference has a direct impact on the organization performance. Men may interpret women’s way of communication as soft and therefore fail to act on women’s instruction. Women on the other hand, may interpret men’s style of humor as hostile. It is through communication that women are perceived to be less competent than men. Male manager believe that women lack confidence in leadership and that is why they are not promoted.

The managers should evaluate the impact of communication in achieving the organization goals and objectives. There is no right or wrong style of communication. However, organizations should acknowledge the differences that exist between men and women, and organize some programs that will enhance gender relations. They should also be vigilant by not confining to any communication style. Men will continue working together with women in the workplace. This call for a need to break away from stereotyped communication to allow them to become more productive and eventually reaching their goals. Gender role theory asserts that people develop expectations for their own and others, based on what they believe is appropriate for men and women to behave (Karsten, 2006, p.194). Equally, people hold expectations about appropriate behavior from leaders who are within their organization. With such cases, what people expect with regard to gender and leadership will interact or, in some cases, conflict.

Workplace diversity can lead to miscommunication and misunderstanding, but can help in the improvement of both workers and organizations (Lehman & DuFrene, p. 24). Managers must take their responsibilities to communicate effectively with employees who are of different races, ages, abilities and genders. Managing a diverse workforce requires the manager to communicate with every individual and to assist employees to achieve their potential and consequently contribute towards organization’s goals. Poor communication will cause both sides to feel frustrated and angry. To avert such problem, many organizations have established initiatives to help workers to appreciate gender, culture and age differences of their co-workers.

Many organizations are facing problems of low productivity, low quality products and worker dissatisfaction. This is because they do not emphasize on teamwork. Teamwork has been proved effective in making organizations remain competitive globally. Teamwork brings individuals of different age, gender and abilities together. Decentralization in decision making allows individuals working as a team to communicate on one-on-one fashion, rather than using traditional methods of authority. Communication will be enhanced as employees will be able to communicate with each other openly without fear.

Conclusion
Organizations are made up of men and women. Communication is very crucial in dealing with both genders. It involves human interaction, and it is a way of persuading and influencing individuals to act in a certain direction. Communication style changes when the topic under discussion change and when the status of the recipient changes. The style of communication will also change when the other person’s sex vary. Men communicate verbally to establish their domination and status. They are always there and ready to help. They tend to like being in control of the behavior of the subordinates. Male managers use formal authority to deal with subordinate. Men know how to fight for their rights. They like to mingle with senior executives to get promotion and favor. They prefer senior executives as their mentor.

Women, on the other hand communicate to form a rapport. They do create a communication gap between them and the subordinate as they rise through ranks. They are less strict when administering rules. They like to comment on anything. They like to use tag questions in their message can also express emotion when passing messages. They are socially supportive and feel free to give out personal information. They like to express themselves in deep language and use emotional language to avoid conflict. They always strive to be like men though stereotyping and cultural beliefs distract their mission.

Different communication styles exist between men and women in the workplace. These differences will continue to exist as long as both genders work together. There is no right or wrong communication style. Organizations’ head should acknowledge these differences and avoid taking any side. The management should strive to enhance gender relations by organizing programs that will bring both genders together for a common goal. Teamwork should be emphasized as it provides the ground for interaction. For an organization to achieve its objectives, it should cultivate effective communication styles that are acceptable to both parties.

References
.
Barrett, M. (2006). Gender and communication at work. Aldershot [u.a.: Ashgate.
Daft, R. L. (2011). Understanding management. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.
Goodall, H. L., Goodall, S., & Schiefelbein, J. (2010). Business and professional communication in the global workplace. Boston, MA: Wadsworth Pub.
Karsten, M. F. (2006). Legal, psychological, and power issues affecting women and minorities in business. Westport, Conn. [u.a.: Praeger.
Karsten, M. F., & Praeger. (2006). Gender, race, and ethnicity in the workplace: Issues and challenges for today’s organizations. Westport, Conn: Praeger Publishers.
Lehman, C. M., & DuFrene, D. D. (2011). Business communication. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.
Paludi, M. A. (2008). The psychology of women at work: Challenges and solutions for our female workforce. Westport, CT: Praeger
Singh, K. (2010). Organizational behaviour: Text and cases. Chandigarh: Pearson.

How Men and Women Communicate Differently in the Workplace and why does it matter? 12

Why women cannot drive in Saudi Arabia and it has nothing to do with religion but society

Introduction
Saudi Arabia is probably the only country, in the whole world, to impose a ban to women not to drive. The ban dates back from the time the state got established in 1932. The government restricts women’s freedom, in practicing the fundamentals of Islam, from too much exposure to irresponsible sexual behaviors. The ban from driving has nothing to do with Islamic religion. This is due to the fact that other Islamic states allow women to drive. The driving ban is part of developing the Islamic culture and maintaining the Kingdom’s traditions. The society believes that giving women rights to drive will expose them to Western-styles and values, and this poses a serious threat to traditional values. The society has so many expectations on women. The society places women on the front position in interpretation of Sunni Islamic religion. Therefore, women do not have absolute freedom on their lives.

Women in Saudi Arabia face discrimination, in various aspects of life. Besides making nearly three quarters of population in the universities, they make only 5 percent of the total workforce. They do not vote or engage in politics. Perhaps not all women in Saudi Arabia would like to drive, but denying them their rights is against the international laws. Women, through women activists, have played a crucial role in pressing the government to give them their rights just like their male counterparts. The rationale of this study is to expound on reasons why women should not drive and the society participation in it. The study will also mention significant improvements on women rights in Saudi Arabia.

Why women cannot drive in Saudi Arabia
In Saudi Arabia, Islamic religion laws form the basis of human rights. The Saudi government has on various instances criticized for its rigidity on issues of politics, religion and women. Women are the most affected by these laws. One of these rules is that women should not drive themselves. The ban found its foundation on old fatwas (rules), imposed by clerics, to guide on social morals and gender segregation in the public. The rules got instigated by a stern explanation of Sunni Islamic laws. Many of Saudi Arabians believe that a woman’s role in the society is to take care of her family. Apparently, there is no other state in the world that bans women from driving except Saudi Arabia. One of the reasons why it remains so is that women activists have not yet pressed enough for the lift of the ban.

Some of the Saudi women do not want to push for the lift of the ban as they now got used to live with the ban.
The society has raised various reasons to enforce the ban. Some people believe that if the ban gets lifted, it will encourage pre-marital affairs that girls will always be moving out to look for dates. This will allow gender mixing and promote sex. Scholars claim that if women are allowed to drive, they will be exposed to harassment and abuses. Others believe that allowing them to drive will expose their bodies and they will start advocating for short skirts. Rights activists who hold conservative views suggested that King Abdullah should retain the male-only driving rules even if the kingdom experiences international criticism.

Another argument for the ban is that women lacks knowledge on situations like traffic jams. This situation can lead to women interacting with non-mahram (marriageable) males. Islamic laws discourage such kind of interaction. The law expects women to be pleasant and observe their hijab when dealing with people are not closely related to them. Women should always cover their face and should not to engage in conversations which are aimless with non-mahram. The society discourages women from interacting with male persons who are not related to them as this may lead to promiscuity and other irresponsible behaviors.

In every decision that a woman makes she expect to win endorsement from her male guardian. Allowing women to drive will lead to women leaving the house any time without any permission from their guardians. This provides a platform for rebellion as women will go against their mahram and drive to places where they think can get peace. The guardian has the rights over a woman in all features of her civil life. The guardian should choose the person who can take the woman wherever she needs to go.

A report from Saudi Arabia’s highest religious council indicated that if the government decides to lift the ban, women will defy their guardians’ rules and start moving out any time they want. This will lead to rise in prostitution, homosexuality, pornography and divorce. They also claimed that virginity would disappear in Islamic kingdom if the driving ban would be lifted. The reasons behind moral decline are that women will always be available if they get the rights to drive themselves. This behavior is likely to spur socialization among genders and pose a challenge to Saudi Arabian traditions and cultures.

If a divorced woman gets an allowance to drive, she can go wherever she wants at any time for whatever needs that she may have. She may decide to stay out till late because no one is controlling her. If people complain when young men stay out till late, then this can be quite dangerous to women. Allowing women to drive will also overcrowd the streets because women’s population in Saudi Arabia is more than men. This will deny young men a chance to drive when they require it most.

Women’s nature can breed hatred among themselves. They like to compete with each other, and they get carried away mostly by fashions and beauty. They can also start competing to purchase the latest model of cars just like they do to clothes. Their behavior on the road will not be different from the non-mahram drivers. The society is against such practices because women should not compete in anything. Instead, they should always consult their husbands when need arose.

Banning women from driving have led to protests by women activists demanding the government to lift the ban. Despite several arrests of the key organizers, these movements are not slowing down. Some are even threatening to go to the streets with their vehicles. The argument against the ban is that the government is making life extremely difficult to women, especially the working class. Most families employ drivers who take them to shopping and other places that they prefer to go. The situation leaves women with no other option, but to squander their time with men who they are not comfortable with. Lifting the ban would create more opportunities for women as they are also good drivers. However, there is no law that explicitly prohibits women from driving. The Kingdom is responsible for issuing licenses, but it has refused to give women driving licenses due to religious rulings. The fatwas, as they commonly referred to, assert that driving would allow women to have so much freedom which can lead to social chaos.

Improvements of Women Rights in Saudi Arabia
Life in Saudi Arabia is a function of the religious beliefs, traditions and rules. Unlike other countries, which have constitutions, Saudi Arabia follows the Quran as the utmost laws of the land. Women in Saudi Arabia have fewer rights than men. The law identify them as minors in the society due to the little authority that they have over their lives. According to the Islamic laws, all women, regardless of their ages, should have a male guardian who they consult in case of anything. The male guardian also acts as a legal guider. Decisions to travel, opening a bank account, joining a college, or getting married must be approved first by the male guardian. In Saudi Arabia, men can marry girls who are barely ten and this has hindered girl education in this society.

No woman should be found in the streets alone as law strictly observes gender segregation. Islam also discourages the mixing of women and men freely when they are unaccompanied. However, there is no evidence for this segregation. These and other authoritative rules have lead to a series of protests from women activists and lawyers, who want to challenge the Saudi kingdom’s strict rules. .
Under King Abdullah, the government actions are reasonably progressive. As by Saudi standards, King Abdullah has promised to look into women’s matter by creating more jobs for women. In 2008, the King built a new women university, which is the largest women university in the world. In 2009, the authority appointed the first female university head. This is also the year when the government appointed the first woman deputy minister to take charge of female student’s department in the education ministry. The king also promised to appoint women in Shura council.

Women have a legal right in Saudi Arabia to own land and other properties. Women can continue to retain ownership of their properties upon marriage, although the rights of ownership are still under restrictions by social norms. There is a law that prohibits women to own properties independently if a separation between unrelated men and women occur in all public areas. This law may limit a woman to gain access to any financial service when in need. However, law forcing women to hire a male manager when starting a business got abolished in 2005, so was the regulation requiring women to ask for permission from their unmarriageable kins (mahram) to start a business or seek a bank loan.

The law stringently restricted women in Saudi Arabia from movement. The law dictates that they should ask for permission to leave their houses, and they cannot move without the company of a male kin. They certainly gain access to certain public services only when accompanied by a mahram. When travelling outside the country, they also need an accompaniment of a male relative. However, women can now move freely in some hotels and rental apartments, thanks to a women-only hotel in Riyadh, which opened its doors in 2008.

Gender segregation in Saudi Arabia is limiting women a chance to engage in self- employment in rural areas where they can earn income. Some professions are deemed unsuitable for women’s health due to their nature. Nonetheless, A UNICEF report in 2007 indicated that young men are gradually helping their wives to get jobs outside their rural homes to supplement their income. Law schools have started admitting women since 2007 and women are now engaging other women to seek redress in Saudi courts. The government has stepped in to create jobs for women by advising all state-owned enterprises to create vacancies for women. In addition, more opportunities are opening up for women in private firms.

A major step towards freedom for women in Saudi Arabia is the promise made by King Abdullah that women will participate in the next general election. The King has given women an endorsement in voting and can also stand as candidates in nationwide elections come 2015. In 2000, the Interior Ministry began issuing women who had already attained the age of twenty two with identity cards. This marked a crucial achievement for women in Saudi Arabia, who have been pushing for the lifting of laws which affected their lives negatively. These laws include universal suffrage, strict guardianship laws and rights to drive. The latter two are yet to be lifted. The King has promised that the change is coming real soon.

Until 2012, Saudi Arabia was one of the three states that did not allow women athletes from competing in Olympic Games. Female athletes could not be allowed participate in Olympic Games so as to guard them from being exposed to people of mixed gender. The government succumbed to pressure from the International Olympic Committee by allowing its first female athletes to attend the London Olympic Games. This is a clear evidence that women rights are gradually becoming unconditional.

However, women freedom is just a promise which may not come true. The state attracted criticism for its sacrifice to women’s rights. The interpretation of this action is that the Saudi government is looking for a way to buy the conservatives. Although the clerics are against the protests made by women activists, the state is not willing to upset them.

Conclusion
Islamic laws recognize Women in Saudi Arabia as minors in their own country. Women cannot make decisions concerning their lives without a male approval. They possess little authority over their own lives. They have no freedom for movement and speech. They are well educated, but the Kingdom cannot allow then to work in the same place with their male counterparts. The Islamic laws restrict them to engage in self employment or gain access to loans in financial institutions. They receive a small percentage of resources compared to their male counterparts in time of separation. Women in this kingdom would like to be treated just like other women in Islamic countries.

The ban against driving to Saudi Arabian women will continue to disturb the government in many years unless something is done to that effect. Allowing women to drive will not change how the government views women. Nonetheless, it will be an opportunity to allow for a dialogue between women and the government, which will bring change to the country. The kingdom government has already made numerous promises that it will defend women rights. One of the promises is for women to engage in voting, in the coming elections, in 2015. The government should show its commitment in honoring the promises. Most women are now used to the ban on driving, but denying them their rights is denying all women equal chances as citizens under the Kingdom laws.

Works Cited
Social Institution & Gender Index. Saudi Arabia. Web. http://genderindex.org/country/saudi-arabia
The Wall Street Journal. Why Saudi Rulers Still Won’t Let Women Drive. Web. http://blogs.wsj.com/drivers-seat/2011/09/26/saudi-reforms-why-women-still-cant-drive/

Insert Surname 7

Women and Immigrants Workplace

Introduction
For ages, workplace discrimination has been an issue in American countries as well as other regions of the world. Over a number of years, immigration has increased as people look for greener pastures in other countries. However, equality at work place is something that has not been achieved, especially in North America, despite the numerous attempts to legislate laws to help do so. The most affected groups of people on matters of workplace discrimination include the women, immigrants, and racial minorities. The high rate of unemployment among women, African Americans and other minority groups has become an area of concern among researchers and other policy makers.

However, these researches and policies have ignored very important details related to the fate of women and minority groups who are already in the workplace. For instance, various institutional and social factors continue to challenge the outcomes of women and African Americans in the workplace. Black women and other mentioned groups face the challenge of institutional discrimination and interpersonal prejudice (Collins 56). This is because the women often suffer from poor working conditions, unsuitable tasks, and lack of participation in decision-making among other factors. This research seeks to find out different ways in which women, African Americans, and minority groups can fight discrimination at the workplace (�����������������������������������������������������������������F�l�o�r�e�s�-�G�o�n�z�a�l�e�z� �4�5�)�.� �I�t� �s�e�e�k�s� �t�o� �a�c�h�i�e�v�e� �t�h�i�s� �b�y� �a�r�g�u�i�n�g� �o�u�t� �t�w�o� �s�p�e�c�i�f�i�c� �c�a�s�e�s� �o�n� �w�o�r�k�p�l�a�c�e� �d�i�s�c�r�i�m�i�n�a�t�i�o�n�.� �
�C�a�s�e� �A�:� �G�e�n�d�e�r� �W�o�r�k�p�l�a�c�e� �D�i�s�c�r�i�m�i�n�a�t�i�o�n�
�I�n� �t�h�e� �U�n�i�t�e�d� �S�t�a�t�e�s�,� �t�h�e� �1�2� �w�o�m�e�n� �f�o�r� �g�e�n�d�e�r� �d�i�s�c�r�i�m�i�n�a�t�i�o�n� �o�f�f�e�n�c�e� �s�u�e�d� �N�o�v�a�r�t�i�s�,� �p�h�a�r�m�a�c�e�u�t�i�c�a�l� �c�o�m�p�a�n�y (Factsheet: North America 4). These female sales employees had gone to court for lower pay they received and promotional discrimination. In New York, jury upheld the allegations and awarded the 12 women punitive damages of $ 250 million and compensatory damages of $ 34 million. The company was also ordered to spend $ 22.5 million to institute programs and policies that would ensure equality in the workplace (Factsheet: North America 5)

Pay Discrimination
The second case introduces us to the gender discrimination, women being the victims. Job description of the two instructors is the same, meaning that they should also have the same terms of compensation. The fact that one person is compensated differently from the other is not fare. This case paints out a picture of what research reports on the job discrimination against women. Many countries of the world have different pay structures for male and females, with the female always on the lower side. However, other countries have put laws that guarantee equal compensation, something that is never followed by many employers. Research indicates that 117 countries have in place legislations that authorize equal pay (Factsheet: North America 1). It is also evident that most of these countries pay female workers 30-20% lower than the male workers. Fact sheet report (1) on North America’s pay gap shows 23 and 28 percent on the pay gap between male and female workers across all sectors.

Unequal Employment Opportunities
Women are less considered in most employment opportunities, unlike men. In certain times, women are denied opportunities at workplace because of pregnancy or expected pregnancy. Such an opportunity may be given to man who is less qualified just because he is a man. As much as all women are victims of employment discrimination, statistics show that minorities, immigrants, and African American women have most been affected. As indicated above, many countries have put in place civil rights that ensures equal employment opportunities as it applies to the pay; however, women have remained on the side of discrimination on the same. Studies indicate that men are highly represented in the employment market than women, something that begs for answers on equality.

This continues to happen irrespective of the educational qualifications that women have in various areas of specialization. As stated, African American women are highly exposed to employment than the white women. Research indicates that unemployment among the immigrant and African American women is almost double that of the white women on the same note, occupational bias seems to be affecting African American women as seen in their inability to secure white-collar jobs in comparison to their white counterparts.

Workplace Prejudice
This case shows an ideal example of prejudice against the women at workplace. Simply because the 12 sales women were female, they were discriminated against by getting lower salaries and lack of promotions. This case touches on the discrimination committed by the employers. It is important to note that other cases involve fellow employees of different races or origin. Research shows that minority, immigrant, and African American women are prone to workplace prejudice than the white women. Most of these women encounter prejudicial racial attitudes from the whites, something that makes them uncomfortable. Most of these cases also come in the form of discriminatory languages and behavior. An example comes from the health care setting where black nurses face lots of discriminatory prejudice from management and patients. In effect, this behavior leads to lack efficiency in terms of service provision (Vernez 54).

Case B: Racial Minority Discrimination
John is an African American who works as an administrative assistant in a company. After discovering that he received lower pay than an office manager with whom he thought they performed the same duty, he decided to file a charge. According to him, they were supposed to receive an equal salary out of the job description indicated. An investigation finds out that administrative assistant and office management dockets have different job descriptions, thereby ruling out similar salaries. However, the investigator finds out that all employees of the African American origin working within the company hold lower paying positions like secretarial and clerical ones. An interview conducted on all racial minorities within the company found out that there were no promotional opportunities that could give them higher positions and better pay (Keen and Michael 34).

When the employers are asked about the same, they say that racial minorities do not hold higher positions for lack of qualifications. According to them, no qualified minority applicants apply for the opportunities that come along. This answer s also found to be untrue as the investigators finds out that qualified minorities like John have applied for various positions in the past but with no success. The outcome of the investigation indicated that the management and employers knowingly pushed racial minorities into lower employee positions to deny those promotions and better pay.

Reporting of Discrimination
John decides to report the case after suspecting that his pay is lower than an office manager who he thinks does the same job as his. Later, his opinion is found to be untrue; however, more revelations that are shocking are unearthed on the job promotions and hiring of employees in the company. According to the findings, the employer keeps denying qualified minorities jobs in the pretext of non-qualifications. The problem that this case presents proves that many unfair treatments of racial minorities go unreported in North America. Almost 46% of African Americans do not report discrimination against them in workplaces. Most of these people have different reasons for not stepping up to report these cases.

One group feels like reporting may not help achieve anything, as no action would be taken against the employers. Another group feels do not report for the fear of being labeled as troublemakers or for fear of losing their jobs. For the above reasons, many discrimination cases go unreported as the affected feel as if the problem would be experienced at any workplace. Others also feel like their financial standard would be affected by losing their jobs. In Case A, the 12 sales women may have remained for longer period in the pharmaceutical company for fear of losing their jobs and source of income. However, they go out of their way to report a lawsuit against the company.

Lack of Recognition
The above case shows how minority racial discrimination takes place. An investigation undertaken in John’s company finds out that African Americans as well as other racial minorities are deliberately assigned lower paying employment positions. This is proved by a survey that finds out that all lower clerical, administrative, and secretarial positions. The whites are easily offered positions that are well paying within the company. Cases of racial discrimination against the African American have always been reported in many parts of North America. Many of such people believe that their origin has always dictated their employment opportunities. Many of the employed immigrants attest to the fact that despite their academic qualifications, they are unable to land high paying jobs. On the same, many immigrants believe that their backgrounds played a role in their hiring or firing at any point of their career lives. In connection to Case A, discrimination gives the women feeling of unimportance in the company. They decide to report because lack of recognition makes them lose a lot in terms of promotion to higher and well paying positions.

Lack of promotion
Employers of John’s company responded that racial minorities did not occupy higher positions because of inadequate qualification, something that investigation finds to be wrong. Records show that qualified minority candidates have in the past applied for high positions but with no success as the promotions are reserved for the whites. Reports by many immigrant minorities show that their diverse backgrounds have influenced their job promotions. Note that lack of promotion makes an employee stay at a position of no influence in the company. For this reason, the discriminated cannot take part in daily decision-making of the activities. In essence, immigrant workers, African Americans, and other minority races feel unappreciated for the work they do. Every employee is entitled to fare promotion, and lack of it may mean some form of discrimination taking place. Case A clearly presents lack of promotion as one of the reasons for their lawsuit against their employer.

Discussion
The above cases present some of the experiences on workplace discrimination. Since these cases continue to arise, there is need to find ways of fighting the vice. To face this problem, it is important to look at society’s rules, norm, and roles, as they are the pillars that define discrimination, especially against women. Irrespective of the anti-discrimination laws that have been put in place by countries like Canada and the United States, vases like the above are witnessed. Above cases, point some of the ways to help fight the vice. In Case A, the 12 salespersons decide to go protest low pay and lack of promotion. Case B shows John reporting a problem that leads an investigation that finds out discrimination against the minority races within the company. The next section shows some of the findings that can help all the affected groups, governments, and other private institutions fight the problem.

Conclusion
It is evident that minority groups have focused their attention on increasing their participation in the workplace and disregarded issues related to their voice and rights. Most of their activism efforts have focused on ensuring diversity, especially the participation of women in various professions (Vernez 54). However, women and other minority groups continue facing numerous problems and challenges that affect their performance and productivity in the workplace. Most organizations hire their services in order to conform to various regulations regarding employment procedures. The organizations do not consider the fate and participation of the minority groups once they have acquired positions in the workplace.

One of the ways in which women and African Americans can fight for their rights in the workplace is through communication. Communication will help them voice their concerns about work discrimination and prejudice to the relevant authorities. However, they should begin by improving their relationship with senior management officers within the organization. This will help in eliminating prejudice as well as increasing their participatory role. Lack of communication contributes to poor pay, low quality chores and other challenges facing women, African Americans and other minority groups in the workplace. Cultural artifacts and values are also tools that can help women and other minority groups in fighting for their rights in the workplace (Keen and Michael 34). The history of minority groups suggests they have strong qualities of perseverance and are motivated by goals. This should be a source of encouragement and power to express personal views/opinions.

Forming support group lobbies is another strategy that can help women, African Americans and other minority groups in fighting for their rights. However, the support groups should shift their attention from fighting for diversity to participation in the workplace. Support groups harmonize the diverse needs of members, which helps in increasing the avenues of increasing awareness. Most people often suffer from bias and other forms of discrimination because they do not express themselves through the appropriate channels (Gregory 45). Lack of communication and expression leads to lack of credibility, and authority of minority groups in the workplace. On the other hand, organizations should promote strategies and policies that will help the minority groups fight for their rights effectively. Globalization and other emerging business trends in the world call for the need for organizations to value their employees regardless of their race, gender or social status in the society.

Works Cited
Collins, Catherine F. Sources of Stress and Relief for African American Women. Westport, Conn: Praeger, 2003. Print.
Factsheet: North America, 2010-2012.
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��„Ðdà�¤��`„Ðgd’­��2B��ŒB��&C��ºC���D���X��=X��‹X��âX��&Y��PY��QY��RY��SY��UY��VY��XY��YY��[Y��Y��^Y��eY��fY��gY��~Y��Y��€Y��Y��‚Y��ƒY��„Y��…Y��îßîßÝßîßîßÑļ¸¼¸¼¸¼¸¬ŠŠyŠu¸Ä���������������������������������������������������������������������������h»��!h’­�CJ�OJ��QJ��aJ�mH�nH�u%j����hUv%�h¾’�CJ�OJ��QJ��UaJ�hUv%�hâ!ú�CJ�OJ��QJ��aJ��hÃz�CJ�OJ��QJ��aJ��hwá��j����hwá�Uhæ–�hL|Î�CJ�OJ��QJ���hÅ�CJ�OJ��QJ��aJ��Uh/æ�h”Fp�CJ�OJ��QJ��aJ��”h/æ�h”Fp�6CJ�OJ��QJ��]aJ�Press, 2003. Print.
Keen, Christine D, and Michael R. Losey. Emerging Issues in Human Resources: Looking at the Workplace of Tomorrow Today. Alexandria, VA: Society for Human Resource Management, 2004. Print.
Vernez, Georges. Immigrant Women in the U.S. Workforce: Who Struggles? Who Succeeds? Lanham, Md: Lexington Books, 2009. Print.

Surname 9

Issues of race and gender in the USA

The issues of gender and race have been an everyday concern in the USA since a long time back. Gender disparity has been apparent in all developmental aspects in the United States. In economic, social and political aspects, the issues of gender and race have been evident where gender inequalities have been evident as well as racial discrimination. From the 18th century, the female specie has been left out in many activities such as economic and political development whereas men have been given much priority to beat the top of major and important leadership and developmental hierarchies.

Racial discrimination has also been a serious issue in the USA especially with the increased migration into the USA. There have been so many people of different races and it has been evident that some races have been discriminated against such as in finding good jobs, enrolling in good schools, attending to some social gatherings such as churches and recreation centers as well as getting favors such as scholarships and other kinds of sponsorships. There have been phrases such as ‘race card’ and ‘race baiting’ that clearly show that the discrimination is truly practiced in the USA. These issues have created structures at work and other leadership positions to have concentration of the favored races as well as gender. Many organizations are headed by men while some races that are favored comprise the highest composition in the working institutions.

Currently in the USA, when the issues of gender and race are brought up, libertarians seem to be disconcerted and only brush the issues with economic suggestions. Unlike in the 18th century, these issues of gender and race discrimination have improved with time. However, these discriminations are still manifested in some areas even in these current times. For instance, it was evident in the latest political elections where news and commentary would vary when it came to different candidates in terms of gender and race. Editorial cartoons and candidates’ posters would also come in different shapes and sizes based on gender and race differences.

Surname: 2

Managing Gender Differences in the Workplace

Introduction
Hiring a diverse labor force may appear extremely beneficial to any organization that desires competing on an international platform. However, the issues that are encountered while trying to combine the disparities of age, ethnicity, and gender are more than can be assumed. Gender management has been deemed as the stronghold of men only. Men have continued dominating the rank of top leadership though there is tremendous augmentation of women’s involvement in the labor force. Management entails engaging workers, convincing them to follow, and being in command of them and thus the feminization of administration is unavoidable as well as the participation of women in administration.

Managing Gender Differences
This essay analyzes management as masculine and tries to find out if management by women differs from that done by men and why people believe that women wil�l� �m�a�n�a�g�e� �p�o�o�r�l�y� �a�s� �c�o�m�p�a�r�e�d� �t�o� �m�e�n�.� �N�o�w�a�d�a�y�s�,� �t�h�e� �m�a�j�o�r�i�t�y� �o�f� �o�r�g�a�n�i�z�a�t�i�o�n�s� �a�r�t�i�c�u�l�a�t�e� �a� �d�e�s�i�r�e� �t�o� �p�r�o�m�o�t�e� �d�i�v�e�r�s�i�t�y� �w�i�t�h�i�n� �t�h�e� �w�o�r�k�p�l�a�c�e� �(�V�u�k�s�a�n�o�v�i�,� �2�0�1�2�)�.� �H�o�w�e�v�e�r�,� �d�e�s�p�i�t�e� �t�h�e� �s�i�n�c�e�r�i�t�y� �o�f� �t�h�e�i�r� �o�b�j�e�c�t�i�v�e�s� �o�f� �e�n�c�o�u�r�a�g�i�n�g� �g�e�n�d�e�r� �d�i�v�e�r�s�i�t�y� �i�n� �t�h�e� �w�o�r�k�p�l�a�ce, organizations are still held back by the dominance of men in management positions. Attributable to the existing notion that management positions can be handled more effectively by men than women, the dominant group in the labor force has for a long time been men. This has made it easy for men to acquire management positions because of their numbers in the labor force surpassing that of women.

However, the number of women in the labor force has gradually increased with time as people accept that management cannot be judged by gender but the competence of the manager, be it man or woman. In this regard, women have given the majority of men tough competition for top leadership positions in organizations. Mixed gender labor force has made it crucial for managers to build up useful practices and policies to manage productively. The introduction of some procedures like flextime alternatives is adequate to draw and maintain a lot of women in the labor force and management positions (Ibarra, Carter, & Silva, 2010). A thorough modification of the operating practices and a significant cultural revolution will play a key role in increasing the number of women in the labor force and give them a good chance to rise to management positions.

In the past, the management erred by striving to control both male and female employees in the same manner. It is significant to note that men and women carry out the same task in dissimilar points of view, and a combination of the different views gives rise to quality products and services (Helfat, Harris, & Wolfson, 2006). The aim of every successful manager should be to comprehend the gender differences and remove the hindrances brought out by the clash.

Thesis Statement
Management necessitates engaging workers of mixed gender and the participation of competent managers, both men and women. In a mixed gender labor force, managers ought to understand the perception of equal but different. Managers must also take time to study the dissimilarities and similarities of men and women in the labor force and apply this awareness to promote excellent working environments (Helfat et al., 2006). Some time ago, management positions were described as ranks focusing on accuracy, neutrality, wisdom, and power and all these attributes were associated with men. Thus, management positions were considered to be founded on masculinity and deemed a rank for men and not women. Nevertheless, with mixed gender labor force and change of mindset, this has gradually been eradicated and women have continued to increase in management positions.

References
Helfat, C. E., Harris, D., & Wolfson, P. J. (2006). The pipeline to the top: Women and men in the top executive ranks of US corporations. The Academy of Management Perspectives, 20(4), 42-64.
Ibarra, H., Carter, N., & Silva, C. (2010). Why men still get more promotions than women. Harvard Business Review, 88(9), 80-85.
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Violence and Hatred against Women: The Role of Lyrical Content of Songs

The Link between Lyrical Song Content and Violence and Hatred against Women
Violence against women has been a thorny issue in the society for many millennia. This misbehavior has resulted in discrimination, physical, and psychological injuries to women, rape, and in extreme cases death. Causalities attributed to this misbehavior are wide ranging and diverse, due to the dynamic nature of society and the changing global trends. However, one causality that has been the subject of recent studies is the link between violence and hatred against women and the lyrical content of the music industry. This link will be the subject of this discussion and will analyze how lyrical content can indirectly influence people (both men and women) to embrace violence and hatred for women as a normal societal norm.

There are several genres of music that have developed over the years, such as rap/hip hop, house, reggae, country, and rock, among others. Each of these genres appeal to both genders and have witnessed immense growth over the past decades, to become globally popular, listened to, and downloaded. However, the lyrical content of the music produced is usually themed using different topics that the artists believe would appeal to their intended audience. This has culminated in the use and abuse of lyrical content that can be deemed as unappealing to society, but acceptable among their fans. For instance, the hip-hop industry has witnessed an increase in stereotyping women as merely objects that should be used to serve the needs of men .This form of discrimination has resulted in lyrical content having objectified messages that promote hatred for women, especially in their role as equal members of the society.
For instance, different artists, such as Robin Thicke, Snoop Dogg, and others have signified women as objects that should be used simplify to satisfy man’s sexual needs. This message has resulted in women behaving as suggested by these artists and wearing skimpy outfits in a bid to satisfy these perceptions that have been insinuated by the artists. This is blatant disregard for the rights of women and is tantamount to discrimination and hatred for women and girl’s role in society as equals.
Violence used in the lyrical content of music is also high. Artists, such as Marilyn Manson, Eminem, Rihanna, and Snoop Dogg, have integrated violent messages/lyrics in their music. For instance, the song ‘Love the way you lie’ by Eminem and Rihanna suggests that men should hurt women, and that the woman loves being hurt (physically or psychologically). Other notable lyrical content that advocates for violence against women are like‘Bitch am gonna kill you’ by Eminem. This song promotes violence against women and also personifies the woman through hatred using the word ‘bitch’.

Studies have indicated that there is a direct relation to the lyrical content of music and societal degradation and love for violence. In America, it is believed that violence against women is on the increase, and that a majority of the women have become accustomed to this form of violence. For instance, in South Africa, statistics indicate that a quarter of all men admit having raped a woman during their lifetime. Globally, objectification of women as mere sexual objects is also on the rise and is considered as a form of hatred against them. However, one notable conclusion is that lyrical content should not be considered as the only avenue that promotes violence and hatred against women, since there are other more influential means being used.

Running head: VIOLENCE AND HATRED AGAINST WOMEN 2

Rape Culture

(a).
A terrible 12 minute video of youthful men in Steubenville, Ohio in India shows about a ruthless, extensive mob rape of a 16 year old girl that occurred in August last year. This clear video shows a young girl dragged and then taken unconscious from one individual to another as she is repeatedly violated and raped by members of the school. However, the school officials tried to conceal the details and blunt the effects of this misdeed.
Another case happened in Mumbai where a 23-year-old journalist was raped. It was in 1992 when she was covering a report about the destruction of a mosque in northern India. Though it was not really rape, she was attacked and was sexually assaulted. Somebody dragged her into a ditch outside the mosque that pulled her shirt off. Luckily, a passerby jumped in, wrestled against the attackers and saved her. In court as she was testifying against the victims, their lawyers asked her questions which implied that she was responsible (Gupta 23).
(b).
In some circumstances, women are accountable for taking part in risky behaviours, which can result in being rape victims or sexual assault. Young women, especially students engage themselves in dangerous situations, such as alcohol risks and the type of friends they walk around with. According to the statistics on violence and the article, the highest rate of rape or sexual harassment in schools is carried out by non-strangers against school students. The report shows that rape has become normalized to an extent that it is as a result of being a young woman, especially sexually active girl in the society. Another assumption is that, young generations are more prone to rape cases as compared to grownups, so the most cases happen while in school. Very few rape cases are reported to police. This may be due to fear of being victimized by the criminal injustice where they are taken as if they were responsible. On the other hand, the statistics show that young girls are more prone to sexual and rape harassment as compared to men (Carr 10).
(c).
The reason as to why violence is so prevalent in the society is because few people want to report the case only to become traumatized and stigmatized unlike how the suspects are treated. Therefore, the ruling institutions of the society become responsible, as they do not play their role as required.
Sometimes women are required to provide for their families against every kind of difficulties, because the responsibility of being the main source of income falls on them with their men being on the battlefield. However, they are forced to find a means of living in the face of stark risk to their existence. When they do not make any means to find a living, lack of food kills them together with their families. They forced to go out and look for help and sexual violence looms over their minds. As a result, women’s bodies become battlegrounds.
Women need to be equipped with education and take their place in the society as lawyers, doctors, politicians, journalists and more. With that, they will be able to sign up for social justice movements in order to terminate the developing unemployment and inequality in the society. Similarly, women should avoid engaging themselves in risky behaviours, which can lead to being victims of sexual or rape assaults.

Works Cited
Carr, Jouston. Campus sexual violence. Resisting violence against women 594(2005): 3-15
Gupta, Ruchira. Victims blamed in India’s rape culture. CNN, 28 August 2013. Web. 4 November 2013.

Surname 3

Women Image as Portrayed by the Media

The demand for women to look in a way that is totally embedded in the media is on the rise. The body Images of women are everywhere. The images of women are selling almost everything; from food to cars. These media images are seen on television advertisements, magazines, and billboards. More often than not, there has been a continual interest in body image of women. The research done on the bodies of women has affected the eating patterns of women, and their self-esteem. The paper will discuss how women have to look skinny, and how it affects them in their lives (Worell, 2001, p. 704).

How women have to look skinny
The thin women body model is prevalent. It looks as if every thin woman image is everywhere in society, be it magazines, TV, or billboards. Conversely, the thin women portrayed by the media houses are not even our neighbors, friends, or family members, but images of women that cannot be attained easily in the society. The media portrays only models that are stylish enough to do their make-up. Majority of the women are not able to live up to these images because they cannot pose themselves in ways that the media poses their models. In reality, the media portrays the image of women in an impractical approach. In the past, advertising has included conventional and unlikely body images of women. The models encourage focus on the appearance and body shape of a woman (Worell, 2001, p. 705).

For media to construct reality for its audience, they portray women as spending more time in behaviors that will make them look physically attractive. The media have also made it socially acceptable to have a negative opinion about heavier women. In the same note, media have never portrayed heavy women leading ordinary social lives. They portrayed them as objects that are not fit for love and sexual desire. The media has also gone ahead to portray women with a thin body as attractive people leading sensational lives but women with heavy bodies as miserable and unable to lead an attractive lifestyle.

Effects of media on women lives
The portrayal of women’s image by the media affects women in several ways. Media exposure reduces women satisfaction about their body shape. When they realize that they are not the way media portrays them to be, they resort to extreme measures such as dieting to achieve the thin ideal body, and smoke more to organize their weight. Some of them have gone an extra mile to put themselves in reconstructive surgeries. The media unreservedly means that beauty has social advantages and benefits. The body image of women has been adversely affected by exposure to research findings that equate beauty and social benefits (Grogan, 2008, p. 134).

In most cases, women are misled that attractive people receive the social benefits that are associated with beauty while unattractive people do not enjoy those benefits, and it made women believe that they are going to get social benefits. Women have been forced to spent large amounts of money on beauty products to get the image of the thin ideal. In addition, the daily portrayal of women’s image on television, billboards, and in magazines lowers the self-esteem of women. It can also lead to clinical eating disorder behaviors (Grogan, 2008, p. 134).

Conclusion
Media images of the perfect body have been portrayed to women for a long time. Even though the idyllic body image has changed recently, women have for all the time tried to achieve that ideal image. The media exposure reduces women satisfaction about their body shape.

References
Grogan, S. (2008). Body Image: Understanding Body Dissatisfaction in Men, Women, and Children. New York: Taylor & Francis.
Worell, J. (2001). Encyclopedia of Women and Gender: Sex Similarities and Differences and the Impact of Society on Gender, Volume 2. Amsterdam: Elsevier.

WOMEN IMAGE AS PORTRAYED BY THE MEDIA 2

Barriers women face in advancing their careers

Introduction
Women face many barriers in their carrier advancement. Some of the barriers are personal limitations while others are culturally imposed. However, many challenges are caused by the later prejudice that pitches women against men with a view of looking down upon the former. The major challenges that women face owing to cultural and professional prejudice include discrimination and stereotyping. This paper explores the two barriers and their prevalence in organizations. The paper also describes how professional women have overcome the barriers to succeed in their career pursuits. Thirdly, the paper also describes measures that organizations should embrace to overcome these barriers for women advancement.

Invisible barriers to women advancement
Discrimination
Gender based discrimination is rife in many countries. It is majorly caused by conservative cultural beliefs that women are less productive when compared to their male colleagues. This cultural belief is high in Asian countries such as Korea and the gulf region. In the later, discrimination against women is perpetuated by the Islamic beliefs that placate male dominance. Gender based discrimination at workplaces is equally high in Canada. A demographic review and assessment of Canada reveal a big inequality gap between women and men owing to gender based discrimination. Women efforts to succeed in life are confounded with wage discrimination, employment discrimination and promotional discrimination (Feminist Alliance for International Action, 2008).

The most affected women are single mothers. By the year 2000, 25% of all Canadian lone mothers were in the category of low wage earners (Statistics Canada, 2008). In general, women were less likely to advance out of the low paid workers’ category (Saunders, 2006).The statistics Canada (2008) also revealed that the overall women income in Canada fell by 16% between 1980 and 2005. All this underscore the barriers women face in getting employed and getting improved compensation terms. Gender discrimination in employment in Canada is evidenced in the high poverty levels among women (Statistics Canada, 2008). Women’s efforts to succeed in Canadian politics are greatly frustrated. For instance, by 2012, women representatives in Canadian parliament were only 25% with Manitoba province having the highest representation at 31% (Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action, 2012).

Other forms of discrimination that Canadian women face stem from sexual harassment. By the year 1998, 47% of working Canadian women had faced sexual harassment by their male seniors at their workplace in one way or another (Neville, 2000). Sexual harrassmsnt ranges from requesting sexual favors in return for employment for those who apply for jobs to sexual favors for a favourable perfomance rating. Male managers employ partiality in reviewing the performance of female employees. Some female employees are requested for sexual favors in return for promotion and salary increment. Those who refuse to comply with the demands risk demotion and stagnation of career growth. The most affected are single unmarried ladies. They are targeted because of their vulnerability and marital statuses.

Women also face systemic discrimination in their carrier growth and success. Many organization’s high responsibility positions indireclty discriminate women. For instance, sales managers of many multinational corporations are expected to travel around the world in execution of their job mandates (Agócs & Burr, 1996). Such positions are far fetched for women employees who cannot travel freely because of family commitments. The positions are only suitable for single unmarried women who have no family responsibilities of looking after children. Systemic discrimination in many countries also present themselves through male dominance in many organizations. Many women shy away from applying for positions in organizations dominated by male employees. Not many women are free to interract and socialize with a group of men. Therefore, most female job seekers will shy away from organizations dominated by male employees (Jain et al., 2008).

Many telecomunication organizations around the world expect employees to put in extra hours into the night to meet strict project deadlines. This professional expectations have promoted gender discrimination as women shy away from such organizations. This happens because of cultural expectations and domestic duties of women as mothers. This culture is particulary rampant in Korea (Agócs & Burr, 1996). Korean culture expects women to remain custodians of their homesteads despite their job expectations. Domestic duties of looking after children is given a higher priority than job expectations. In view of this, many Korean employees prefer to employ male than female employees.

Stereotyping
Another rampant barrrier that frustrates women’s efforts to succed in their career aspirations is stereotyping (Jain et al., 2008; Davies, 1998). In this case, stereotyping entails creation of a false assumption and perception about the capability of women. The effects of stereotyping to career advancement of women are two-fold. The first one regards women reaction to the perception. Some women have accepted and resigned in their effort to excell in their careers because of stereotypical perception that sees them as ineffective and less productive. They concur with the perception and prejudice that they cannot compete with men (Davies, 1998). The second effect is the dwarfing effects of male prejudice. Many conservative organizational male managers look down upon women.

This cultural prejudice frustrates women’s efforts in succeding in their careers. Stereotyping of women in employment ranges from on boarding to promotion. Regarding recruitment, many organizations harbour cultural prejudice that women are less productive when compared to their male colleagues. In view of this prejudice, such organizations prefer to employ men than women. In addition, employed women are paid low salaries and wages as compared to their male counterparts because of this stereotype. The stereotypes also apply in promotion. Male managers who harbour the belief that women are less effective and less productive managers fear to promote them in managerial positions.

In other organizations, it is argued that women cannot put in extra time to meet strict work deadlines because of their domestic responsibilities. This cultural prejudice has hindered the prospects of women to rise in managerial positions. By 2008, female employees in Korea held only 8% of managerial positions in public and private organizations (Phatak et al., 2009). This was the case despite the ministry of gender’s efforts to promote diversity and inclusion in organizations. When asked why he prefers employing male employees, one executive director of SK Telecom (a Subsidiary of SK Holdings) said that he does not employ women because they are not capable to work beyond normal working days to beat strict deadlines (Phatak et al., 2009). This prejudice has created gender disparity in employment. Many organizations employ many men than they do for women. The most affected group of women in North America is women of colour. Racial discrimination is still rampant in North America. While women in general are discriminated in employment, the most affected are women of colour. Despite their high professional qualifications, their job qualifications are discounted. The last decade has seen a significant rise in the number of women taking up managerial positions. However, the racially discriminated group are still endangered (Khosla, 2003; Galabuzi, 2004).

The efforts made by women to overcome the invisible barriers
Despite the rampant discrimination and stereotypes that have frustrated women’s efforts to succeed in their carries, there is a notable increase in the number of successful female professionals today. This has been partly caused by the efforts of feminism movement to promote gender diversity and inclusion in private and public sectors. For instance, the Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action (FAFIA) has fought hard for women equality in employment in Canada. The movement advocates for inclusion and gender diversity in public and private sector, alleviation of poverty and unemployment in lone women. Its effort has borne fruits in both public and private sector. This is seen in the significant rise in the number of female executive managers in Canadian corporations (Galabuzi, 2009). The effort of feminism has also borne fruits in other parts of the world. For instance, the brave fight staged by feminist activists in the Norway has increased female board members of public limited companies from 8% in 2002 to 40% in 2009 (Fagan, et al., 2012).

The rising presence of women on the board of public companies has played a significant role in changing human resource management policies that favoured men initially. This has promoted gender diversity and inclusion in many organizations. Secondly, successful women have role modelled other women to overcome career advancement barriers.
Another strategy that has been employed by women to overcome barriers to career advancement is stretching their performance beyond men. A perfect example is the case of two women in Korea working for SK Holdings. They include Choi Dong and Park Myung. Dong Joined SK Telecom research department in 2005. She was the only female employee of the department. Owing to the cultural prejudice that women are less productive when compared to men, Dong was overlooked and often given light assignments only (Ihiwain, April, 21 2008).

In one occasion, Dong proposed a project to change the marketing strategy of SK Telecom. Her male manager ignored it because of cultural prejudice that a woman cannot originate a successful idea. The manager only yielded and supported her project after her unyielding persistence. The implementation of her project increased the company’s profits leading to her promotion as the head of marketing department. Park Myung Soon became the manager in charge of Business development department in 2006 after displaying exemplary performance in her duties. She was the only female employee in her department. She was promoted into managerial role after displaying a consistent 120% performance capacity of her male colleagues (Ihiwain, April, 21 2008). The two women used their managerial positions to lobby for change of human resources policies to accommodate the employment of more women. In 2009, one of the executive managers affirmed the tremendous contribution of female employees to the success of SK holdings. He contemplated on promoting more women into managerial positions with the hope of increasing organization’s performance.

The unyielding efforts of women in high public and private positions have shown that they are female employees are equally competitive as male employees. The profiles of people like Joyce Banda (The current Malawian president), Hillary Clinton, Condoleezza Rice, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (Liberian President) and Reeta Roy (The current president and Chief executive officer of MasterCard Foundation) is a motivation and inspiration to aspiring female professionals. The above individuals have proven that women can do better than their male colleagues. They act as role models to female professionals who admit that they are less productive compared to their male counterparts.
How employers can reduce barriers to women career advancement

Employers can play an important role in reducing the barriers to career advancement by implementing a recruitment and retention plan that promotes gender diversity and inclusiveness. The recruitment plan should aim at addressing all forms of employment discrimination that limits advancement of women (Morey, 1998). Such discrimination includes wage discrimination, recruitment discrimination, promotion discrimination, sexual harassment and stereotyping of women (Feminist Alliance for International Action, 2008).

Table 1 shows a perfect recruitment and retention plan that promotes inclusion and gender diversity in public and private companies. The first human resources approach is expansion of gender diversity. The employment strategy is recruitment of people from diverse backgrounds and gender inclusion. The goal of this human resources approach is to change the organization by changing the outlook and composition of its workforce. The change in outlook will improve the visibility of women in many organizations (Barak, 2011). This will reduce gender disparity in employment.

The second human resources approach is gender diversity sensitivity. The main human resources strategy is training of employees on gender sensitivity and inclusion and effective communication between female and male employees. The main goal of employee training on gender diversity and inclusion is to overcome gender adversity and promote performance-based collaboration (Barak, 2011). Increased sensitivity to gender differences in the organization will change organizational behaviour and relationships.

The third human resources approach is organizational cultural audit. The human resources strategy employed in cultural audit is carrying out cultural survey and generating changes to address cultural deficiencies (Barak, 2011).
The fourth human resources approach is strategic approach for achieving high performance. The strategy is to integrate human resources policies and the overall business strategy. The main goal of this strategy is to drive high organizational performance through cultural and gender diversity. Gender and cultural diversity should be embraced as a collective strength to the organization.
Other measures through which employers can alleviate barriers to women career advancement include addressing wage disparity, and rewarding employees based on performance. There are wage disparities between male and female employees in many countries in Europe and North America with female employees occupying bottom-earning category (Statistics Canada, 2008).

This disparity is based on the prejudice that female employees are less productive when compared to their male colleagues and thus should be paid low wages. Employers should harmonize employee wages to reflect their productivity and position. That is, female employees are just productive as their male colleagues and thus they should be paid equal salaries and wages. Secondly, employers should employ affirmative action in promotion of employees into managerial positions. Having female employees in managerial positions will help in safeguarding the interests of female employees. The presence of female employees in managerial positions of organizations also improves the general visibility of women.

Another important role that employers can play in alleviating female employees’ barriers to carrier advancement is integrating professionalism in organizational relationship and management. Many female employees are victims of sexual harassment by their male seniors. Male managers demand sexual favours from their female subordinates in return for promotion and wage increment. This culture is rampant in many organizations with poor professional ethics. This conduct frustrates the efforts of many female employees to advance their careers. This is because one who refuses to comply with such demands risk demotion or career stagnation. In view of this challenge, organizations should develop corporate relationship ethics that values, dignifies and respects female employees (Phatak et al., 2009). This will promote the confidence and commitment of female employees to high performance and career growth in the organization in question.

The cultural stereotype that female employees are less productive and effective than male employees arises from family commitments that are purported to reduce commitment of mothers to their jobs. Many male dominated organizations have concerns about releasing lactating mothers early to attend to their babies at home. This worry has affected chances of women getting jobs in such organizations. In order to address this barrier, employers should develop human resources practices that balance employment and family commitment. This can be implemented by developing day care social and children clubs at workplaces where mothers can leave their children there while working. Lactating mothers should be given short breaks to attend to their children while working. The proximity of mother to their children and babies will solve the anxiety and worries of mothers while working. While the strategy is expensive to an employer, it promotes commitment of female employees to the organization. Availability of such facilities makes employees feel that their employer is concerned about their plight. Human resource practice that balance family and job commitment will improve the visibility of female employees in organizations.

Conclusion
This paper underscores that discrimination and stereotyping are real invisible barriers to women career advancement. Gender based discrimination is still rampant in the world. Politically, many countries are still conservative in their election of leaders. The conservative perception that women cannot lead effectively frustrates women’s effort to advance politically. The Canadian parliament has only 25% female members of parliament. Discrimination and stereotyping is also evident in wage disparities, lack of women visibility on boards of many public and private organizations and high poverty levels among women. Majority of bottom earning class in North America comprise of single mothers and female casual workers. Other forms of discrimination include sexual harassment and unfair treatments.

This paper has described how gender based discrimination and stereotyping frustrates women’s efforts to advance in their careers. Also described in the paper are the efforts made by women to improve their visibility in organizations. Such efforts include mass demands through feminism movements and using exemplary performance records to justify that they can be more productive as compared to men. The Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action has fought for gender diversity and inclusion in Canada leading to tremendous changes in women visibility in the Canadian public and private sector. Choi Dong and Park Myung (female employees of SK Holdings) are examples of women who used high performance records to challenge the perception that men are more productive when compared to women.

Lastly, the writer describes various ways through which employers can reduce the invisible barriers to women advancement. The first strategy is adapting a recruitment and retention plan that improves the visibility of female employees in the organization. The second strategy is harmonization of wages and salaries and rewarding employees based on their performance. Employers should also employ human resources practices that balance family and job commitments. Such practices will help in unlocking full potentials of mothers and lactating female employees. Lastly, employers should develop an organizational culture that promotes respects for one another and positive corporate relationship among employees. This should serve to reduce sexual harassment that many female employees face at their workplaces.

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Running head: BARRIERS WOMEN FACE IN ADVANCING THEIR CAREERS 1