Index
It is a person who dislikes women, flees from their treatment, or does not trust them.
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, a misogynist is someone who hates, dislikes, or has prejudices against women.
Unfortunately, these same people are generally unaware that there is a prejudice against women, which probably increases their misogyny.
In a post on Quora entitled “How does it feel to be a misogynist?” (Inspired by the previous thread called “What does it feel like to be a misanthrope?”) Three people, who appear to be two men and one woman, have offered their answers to that question.
Given the tendency above that many people who harbor prejudices are not aware of their biases, it is not surprising that the publication lasted a week, and there are so few answers. But despite the lack of information, the magazine still has some conclusions.
What is misogyny, and why should it matter to you?
The day after the election of Donald Trump, Merriam Webster reported that the “misogyny” was one of the main words sought that day, along with “racist,” “intolerant,” and “xenophobic.”
This is not surprising, considering that Trump has repeatedly denigrated women and referred to them as “pigs, dogs, and vagabonds.”
As evidenced by Merriam Webster’s trend report and much media coverage, sexism and misogyny have become hotly debated topics.
What do these terms mean?
We must define them to have difficult conversations about how we eliminate misogyny and sexism.
Let’s start by defining three key terms:
Patriarchy, sexism, and misogyny. These terms are different mechanisms used to suppress or limit women’s opportunities to make them secondary or subordinate to those of men. These terms reinforce each other but also differ in crucial aspects.
Patriarchy:
A social structure characterized by male domination and female oppression.
For example, before women could vote or participate in a position, the United States functioned as traditional patriarchy. Although women are no longer legally prevented from assuming leadership roles, the legacy of this system can be seen in the current low rates of women in leadership.
Today, only 20% of members of Congress and four percent of Fortune 500 CEOs are women. In this way, the United States still operates as patriarchy.
Sexism:
A belief system or discriminatory attitude about women of all races and sexual orientations considers them inferior to men or less capable of performing specific tasks or jobs.
That is sexist when a man assumes that a woman would not be an excellent public official or a CEO because men are better leaders.
Misogyny:
Misogyny is darker and angrier than sexism. Misogyny adopts sexist attitudes, acts hostile or violent, and is often revealed through degrading or degrading comments.
For example, if a woman gets a job above a man and the man responds by calling the woman a series of gender vulgarities, that is misogyny.
It’s not just that these terms exist independently. These terms, and these phenomena, operate in tandem and combination with other structural forces of oppression.
Class, race, gender identity, and sexual orientation combine with sexism and misogyny to produce different, often more dangerous, variations of oppression and prejudice.
Misogynoir, coined by the black feminist Moya Bailey, describes the racialized misogyny faced by black women and transmisogyny – the influence of transphobia and misogyny, coined by Julia Serano – describes transmisogyny and nonconformist gender on the feminine side of the spectrum. Gender.
The widespread violence against trans women and the “bathroom bills” that prohibit trans women from using restrooms for women (putting them at risk of further violence) are examples of misogyny in our current society.
Trans women of color are disproportionately white of this violence. Transmisogynoir refers to the unique intersection of misogyny, racism, and transphobia that black trans women face.
Defining these terms is essential to designing solutions that address them. For example, a law that prohibits gender discrimination when making a hiring decision can be an effective strategy to combat sexism in a particular field.
But more may be necessary to repair a work environment infected with misogyny and a more profound hostility towards women.
If misogyny prevails in our workplaces and labor markets, sexist attitudes may falsely consider the discriminatory payment as fair for the value and capabilities of women.
Impact on women
Misogyny can prevent women from exercising their rights to equal pay due to justified fear of retaliation for asking for a salary increase or promotion.
In this way, misogyny is an endemic part of our laws, institutions, and social norms, most of which were formed hundreds of years ago by men who believed that women were relegated to the home and acted to enforce that belief.
But it is not just a relic of the past. We are discussing a health care system that separates women’s crucial health care needs from primary health care provided by an insurance system.
Laws throughout the country and at the federal level are explicitly designed to make abortion less accessible.
In conclusion
The conclusion is that people who identify as women face sexism and misogyny daily. And if we want to combat it effectively, we must understand what these terms mean and how women of different races, social classes, and sexual orientations experience them.
