Patriarchy

This weeks topic was patriarchy and sexism. I feel like these topics can be connected to last weeks topic of prejudices. As defined by Tatum last week, prejudice is a preconceived judgment or opinion, usually based on limited information. Nowadays prejudices can be found everywhere which leads to things like this. As stated in class and by many of you in previous entries, women have come a long way in many aspects in society. They are pretty much equally implemented in the workforce, in many colleges there are more women than men, and women are attaining positions that were once considered only for men. But still, in spite of all this progress and advancement sexism is still a real issue today.
Prejudice comes into play because in some way or another, prejudices against women are inscribed in the minds of young boys that only develop and worsen over time, even in this modern era. For example boys are taught that dolls are for girls, cars are for boys, things like boys don't cry and boys play rough. These things, while at first look are trivial, become the basis for sexist comments like "you throw like a girl" or "come on man don't be such a girl". Johnson describes that traits like control, strength, efficiency, competitiveness, coolness under pressure, logic, forcefullness, decisiveness, rationality, self-sufficiency and control over any emotion that interferes with other core values, are all traits possessed by males. While qualities associated with women are: inefficiency, cooperation, mutuality, equality, sharing, compassion, caring, vulnerability, a readiness to negotiate and compromise, emotional expressiveness and intuitive ways of thinking.
Everyone at one time or another is taught those things, or something very similar and at some level believe in them. Because of this people have their prejudices. Women even have them against themselves. Johnson states "To see herself as a leader, for example, a woman must first get around the fact that leadership itself has been gendered through its identification with maleness and masculinity as part of a patriarchal culture." This is something that shouldn't happen. It's backwards thinking.
In my opinion everyone should get rid of these preconceived notions of what men should be like and what women should be like and what positions fit them before we can actually move ahead with equality. I think in the future it'll be easier because where we are today the older generation still has memories of days when minorities and women were oppressed. While it still exists now, we have come a long way. We are moving away from our conservative past into a more liberal future where everyone is becoming more or less equal. We just have to get rid of the old way of thinking. In a way social equality is an evolutionary trait that will come to us with time.
-Adolfo