Friday, January 13, 2012

Economic Inequity: A Feminist Issue?

I visited both sites, http://www.pbs.org/peoplelikeus/ and http://cwcs.ysu.edu/, and explored them for awhile, like the assignment said. On the PBS site I immediately went to play the games but only one worked on my computer.  It was the one where you picked things to go in your living room and then you get put into a class based on that. I ended up in the middle class which is what I am and I wasn't very surprised. However the choices are very limited to what I could pick because for some options I didn't like any of them. Also on the PBS site I read some people's stories. I read about Ginie Sayles, who Amanda had posted about.  However I was drawn to an interesting story of a woman named Val because her story had an ending that made me really think.I'll sum Val's story up in my own words but click here to read it yourself.

To start Val is not in the documentary PBS is producing. Instead she is just someone who has told a story about her life. Val comes from an Italian family that always told her to follow whatever she wanted. She went to college, dropped out, married a guy then divorced him until she met her eventual husband, Tom. During the whirlwind of a time before she met Tom, her parents supported her emotionally and financially. However Tom was a wealthy man so when Val and Tom married, Val didn't need her parents financial support anymore. In fact Val tried to compensate them for the money they had given her. Her father refused to accept any money or gifts and Val feels awkward around them now.

I took from that story that sometimes money can tear  families apart, which is something you would not know by watching tv or listening to the media. We live in a material world and money is seen as a must have.





On the Center for Working Class Studies website, there is alot more information to shift through. I found it ironic that their mission is nationally based but much of their research is focused on Ohio because that is where they are located. Don't get me wrong, they have all kinds of literature and different authors who wrote on the working class and they do great work. I clicked here to learn about a law that actually would and should have had only Ohio statistics because it was a state law. This portion of the site was great. It was cool to learn about the 2005 Tax Overhaul and learn how it mainly had a positive impact on the wealthy people and corporations. If anybody finds links relating to other states laws like this on the site can you post them.

On to the main question why is economic inequity a feminist issue? The concept of feminism, while it means different things to others, generally calls for equality. Not just equality for women but equality across the board. There are feminists, who hate men, dislike people of color, and do not like people with disabilities. Those people do not want equality, they want superiority for women. That is different than my definition of feminism but those people are entitled to their opinion. Economic inequity implies that there are haves and have-nots, people with money and people without. However under a capitalist society there are always going to be haves and have-nots so the problem of economic inequity cannot be solved. It is a problem for a lot of people, not just feminists, but feminists do have a share in the problem.

Points To Share


If capitalism is the problem to economic inequity should the system be changed? I don't think it should but there are times you wonder what could be better than the system now. I mean there a lot of little things that could be changed and made better but I'm talking about a significant change to the system. If anyone has ideas feel free to leave them in comments.

13 comments:

  1. Val's story was very interesting to me as well! I wasn't too surprised when her parents wouldn't take the money because I don't think my parents would take it from me either! They probably felt a bit disappointed because supporting her and being there for her is their job!
    Great post though!

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    1. Thank you. I completely agree when you think of Val's story from the parents perspective.

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    2. I was struck by Val's story too!!! And the weird thing is, my parents are the same way as Val's, like very proud about working for what they have, but they always say that when I get rich and famous (lol), I'm going to pay off their mortgage and help them to retire. They would have no issue taking my money, despite how strongly they believe that everyone should work hard to earn a living.

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  2. I agree that money can very easily become an uncomfortable issue when dealing with family. I don't know if you watched the video of the couple from Staten Island. They were gearing up to get married and while both from Staten Island, the man was from a working class background and the woman from an upper-middle class background. Both had very clear different perspectives and priorities. I'd hate to jinx them, but they're not looking so good long term. As far as your points on capitalism, I don't want to be considered a communist, but I found some of Karl Marx' writings on socialism and communism, though radical were still interesting. With all the dirt associated with Marx, I was surprised to find positive intentions behind his arguments. It's important to keep our minds open when addressing a flawed system. A closed mind will never solve anything.

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    1. I think being called a communist was so scary at one point that that fear has never gone away. People are afraid of thinking of a system that is like socialism or communism because of that fear. Every system has flaws and those systems have some major ones but a mix may work. People are just afraid because of what has happened in history. I'll have to see if I can find the Staten Island couple.

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    2. Good points, Mike and Shennen. Marx looks good on paper, but he neglects to acknowledge inherent flaws in human nature, and therefore his ideologies fail when put into practice. Capitalism may seem problematic because there is financial inequality, but it is that inequality that keeps us all driven to succeed. The promise that there IS inequality in our system is the driving force for us all to be the best that we can be. I am, of course, speaking strictly in regard to financial inequality, NOT sexist inequality.

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    3. I completely agree capitalism drives ppl to work hard.

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  3. when you mentioned that money is a must have and tears families apart I could only think of one thing. I thought of ourselves as dogs fighting for a meal and practically killing each other, even if we are already full, and are just hoarding the food because we are glutenous. The big Pitbulls are the dogs that control the food because they are big, strong, and the majority(overpopulation). Whereas the smaller Bishons and Poodles have no power, are less populated(minority) and cannot get the food to live. This metaphor is what social class reminds me of. Except people are not glutenous, they are greedy, and selfish. I'm not sure you'll see the connection I made, but your post was good none the less.

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  4. Mike you had very interesting points to share. The story about Val was very true. Parents support their children as best they can and want nothing in return. Money can tear families apart like you said. One family member might not want the others charity. For your points to share I don't the system will be changing anytime soon unfortunately, but only time will tell.

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  5. I think instead of changing the entire system, I agree with what Obama said in the speech that Dr.Bogad listed on her blog, where Obama states "Middle class families shouldn’t pay higher taxes then millionaires and billionaires" which I agree with 100 percent, and hope that he actually does change that, which he said he plans on doing.

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  6. I love that you put the madonna video on here. Madonna being someone who is so admired by many saying were living in a material world and i am a material girl is such a strong message. shes basically saying money is the most important thing, and all her fans will buy into this. love your post!

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  7. Madonna's video was a great pick to put on your blog and how she shows the world the wrong message. Great Post!

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  8. I really liked your blog Mike. I wanted to comment on something Jose said in his comment, about us all fighting as viscious dogs. It's so true. How has money turned us into this money hungry, "dog eat dog" society. You know it's bad when money can rip aprat a family. In Val's story, I thought a major part to look at was the fact that she didnt look for a rich man. She fell in love with a wealthy man, and because of her money she tried to now give back to her parents who were to "proud" for it. But pride is a scary thing. So now its not just money ripping apart a family, it's also pride. Great Post Mike! P.S. I love the modanna video, I've seen it a million times and think it's absolutely rediculous lol Great choice!

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