Gender inequality is a social phenomenon studied by sociology that happens when there is discrimination and/or prejudice against another person because of their gender (female or male).
This discrimination is observed mainly with regard to the professional sphere (female people with lower salaries than male people; both exercising the same function).
There is also discrimination when there is creation of family hierarchies (women subordinated to a male member), especially with regard to domestic tasks.
For some international institutions, the fight against gender inequality is directly related to the human rights.
These institutions consider that it is necessary to guarantee that all citizens have the same civil and political rights, regardless of race, social status or gender.
Gender Concept
Despite being a subject increasingly discussed by society, the concept of gender still entails many doubts.
It is common, for example, to have confusion between the concepts of gender and sex.
What is gender?
According to the traditional concept, the word gender can be defined as a synonym for the word sex, that is, a female person is also female.
In fact, it is a social concept that indicates cultural and social aspects associated with a particular gender.
It is important to mention that the particularities of each genus are not stony. They can vary, for example, depending on a given cultural reality.
Some habits and customs can be considered characteristic of a certain gender in one place and another gender in a different place.
An example of this is the use of the skirt, which in most countries is characteristic of the female gender, but which in Scotland, for example, is also part of the reality of male individuals.
In other words, we cannot say that wearing a skirt is an exclusive feature of the female gender.
Another relevant factor with regard to the concept of gender is the gender identity of an individual.
know more about gender.
What is gender identity?
Gender identity is the way an individual identifies with the sex to which they belong biologically, and may or may not conform to this biological factor.
A person born biologically female, for example, may not feel comfortable socially and identify more with the male gender, thus choosing to live in accordance with this identification.
We can say that gender defines an individual's sexual identity.
know more about gender identity.
What is sex?
The sex of an individual is related to the biological scope, that is, it defines the sex with which a person was born, regardless of the sex with which that person identifies.
This mainly encompasses biological characteristics common to a particular sex, such as, for example, the reproductive system (male or female), certain physical characteristics (such as musculature, voice, ...)
Gender inequality in Brazil
In Brazilian society, gender inequality is still a phenomenon that is part of the reality of different social segments.
It was found, for example, that Brazil occupies the 90th place in the ranking of the World Economic Forum, responsible for analyzing equality between men and women in 144 countries.
Even more worrying than the poor ranking is the finding that Brazil has dropped around 11 positions in this ranking in recent years, which shows that there has been a setback in the process of fighting for gender equality.
See below some highlights in this analysis, which refer to factors related to the possible causes of gender inequality.
know more about gender equality.
Maternity
Motherhood is considered one of the biggest gender-based prejudices.
THE Getúlio Vargas Foundation (FGV) carried out a study with 247,455 women who were on maternity leave between 2009 and 2012 and followed the professional path of each one until 2016.
The study concluded that half of the research participants were dismissed within two years after the end of the leave, thus showing that the possibility of dismissal of new mothers is 10%.
Politics
Taking into account the world scenario, Brazilian politics is still considered somewhat sexist.
A 2017 report of the World Economic Forum shows that Brazil went from 86th to 110th place in the ranking of "Political Empowerment". In government ministries, for example, only 2 out of 28 ministries were occupied by women.
In 2009, the Law of Elections (Law nº 9,504, of 1997) established that “each party or coalition will fill a minimum of 30% and a maximum of 70% for candidacies of each sex”.
However, some parties present female candidates only to comply with the law, that is, without any real interest and investment in their candidacies.
Disproportion between dedication and encouragement
Another area where gender inequality becomes clear is the educational context.
Although the female gender overlaps the male gender with regard to attendance in studies, the International Program for Student Assessment shows that, in Brazil, males perform better in areas such as exact sciences and science biological.
The OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) states that these skills do not are related to innate characteristics, but rather to cultural factors and gender bias in the Brazil.
It is believed that there is a greater incentive given by teachers and parents to the male gender with regard to the areas of mathematics, for example.
A survey of the IBGE (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics) of 2016 revealed that the attendance rate for women in high school is 73.5%, against 63.2% for men.
This shows that there is a greater dedication of time on the part of the female gender.
This higher rate of attendance on the part of the female gender is also maintained in access to Higher Education and completion of graduation.
Labor market
Although the schooling rate of the female population is higher than the schooling rate of the female population. male gender, women face an unfavorable scenario in the search for a job and in the assignment of their salary.
A survey by IBGE showed that in the second half of 2017, the average salary for women was equivalent to 87% of the average salary for men.
Unemployment also points to a disadvantage for women: the unemployment rate for women was 13.4%, while that for men was 10.5%.
Harassment
Harassment has been, at least at some point, part of the reality of most Brazilian women.
Sometimes in the form of disrespectful comments, sometimes in the form of physical harassment (especially on public transport).
Sometimes, harassment ends up gaining greater proportions, thus reaching physical violence.
As a result, in 2006 the Maria da Penha Law came into effect, which aims to support women victims of aggression.
Fight for equality rights
O feminism it is one of the great forerunners in the fight against gender inequality.
The concept of feminism is often related to the concept of machismo, as a kind of synonym.
Contrary to what many people think, while machismo actually preaches the idea that men are superior to women, feminism does not advocate that women are better than men or who have more rights than they do.
In fact, the struggle of the feminist revolution is for the right to equality; it is for females to have the same political and social rights as males.
Many of the rights acquired by women, such as the right to vote, are the result of the feminist struggle.
The fight against gender inequality is also a fight against patriarchy, which institutes a male-dominated society, where women play secondary roles.
know more about chauvinism and feminism.
Curiosities
See below some important milestones in the history of the fight against gender inequality in Brazilian society.
right to vote
The first female vote in Brazil took place on February 24, 1932.
The right to vote became a right of Brazilian women in 1932.
Prior to that, voting could only be exercised by females who: 1. if single or widowed, had their own income; 2. if married, they had the husband's permission.
In that same year, women won the right to hold positions in the executive and legislative branches.
The day February, 24, the day of the first female vote after women won the right to vote, was established as part of the official calendar of the federal government as the Women's Vote Winning Day in Brazil.
right to study
Rita Lobato Velho Lopes, first woman to complete Higher Education in Brazil
In 1827, women were allowed to attend studies. However, the authorization covered only Elementary Education.
Later, in 1879, the female gender was also authorized to attend Higher Education.
Despite the achievement of this authorization, all women who chose to follow this path were the target of a lot of prejudice and discrimination.
In 1887, Rita Lobato Velho Lopes she was the first Brazilian woman to complete a university degree, having completed a degree in medicine at the Faculty of Medicine of Bahia.
know more about preconception and discrimination.
Autonomy for married women
According to Civil Code of 1916, the woman was considered incapable of performing certain actions, such as, for example, receiving an inheritance, thus being dependent on her husband's authorization to do so.
On August 27, 1962, the Status of married women, a law that contributed to the emancipation of women, allowing married women to have more autonomy and no longer needed authorization from their respective husbands to, for example, work.
Through this statute, women were also guaranteed the right to request custody of their children in the event of marital separation.
This statute certainly marked the beginning of progress towards the achievement of the right to equality between the sexes guaranteed later by the 1988 Constitution.
Gender and ethnic inequality
Studies in different contexts show that within the scope of gender inequality, it is possible to note a disadvantage that affects people of the female gender and black ethnicity.
In the educational context, the percentage of females who complete elementary school corresponds to 21.5%.
However, when analyzing the ethnicities of these 21.5%, only 10.4% correspond to women of black ethnicity. Even so, it consists of a number higher than the percentage of 7% corresponding to black men who complete this segment of education.
In the labor field, according to the 2017 IBGE results, the unemployment rate for black women corresponds to 15.9%, while that for white women corresponds to 10.6%.
Harassment and violence are also two factors most commonly suffered by black women.
See the meaning of racial prejudice.
Gender inequality in sport
Gender inequality in sport can be observed at an early stage; in a simple attempt to practice a certain sporting activity, for example.
Sometimes, sports complexes make available groups to practice certain sports, such as football, only for males.
The same happens with gymnastics groups, mostly available for females.
This classification of sports as “men's” and “women's” ends up generating a prejudice that sometimes makes it impossible for anyone who wants to practice sports.
Inequality is also clearly perceived with regard to sponsorship and encouragement of sports.
Men's football, for example, is highly visible around the world. During the World Cup periods, all games played by the Brazilian men's soccer team are broadcast.
The Women's World Cup, for example, is rarely mentioned by the television press and its games are rarely broadcast.
Brazil X Sweden at stake in Maracanã. (Author: Agência Brasil Fotografia/Creative Commons)
Gender inequality in the world
In 2017, the World Economic Forum registered an increase in the gender inequality index.
The survey estimates that the average salary, for example, corresponds to around 80 thousand reais for men and around 46 thousand reais for women.
In the world ranking of gender equality, Iceland, Norway, Finland, Rwanda and Sweden occupy the first places, while Iran, Chad, Syria, Pakistan and Yemen occupy the last, respectively.
See below some data from UN Women on gender inequality in the world.
- Females represent two-thirds of the world's illiterate population.
- Women represent only 21.8% of the world's national parliamentarians.
- The probability of a woman holding leadership positions in business and companies is less than the probability of men achieving the same.
- Three-quarters of trafficked persons are female.
See also the meaning of gender ideology and racial inequality.