A mighty leap of logic
By Kath Gelber
"During the past ten years in Australia men have become the second sex." This proclamation headed up the Bulletin's cover story in its April 25 edition.
It's becoming an all too familiar refrain. In fields as diverse as health, secondary education, life expectancy and sexual harassment, we're being told that women are doing better than men. So what's all the fuss about discrimination? It's time to get real.
The Bulletin article comments that men are more likely to suffer certain deadly diseases than women, and are less likely to succeed intellectually. It claims women outperform men in their studies, and are more able to find jobs.
Of course, such statistics mean very little on their own. Comparisons with previous years would be necessary even to examine first year enrolment statistics. Is it true that women are graduating in equal numbers with men? Are equal numbers of women entering postgraduate studies? Are women still concentrated in particular areas of higher education — such as teaching or the arts — so as to ensure that their future occupations will reinforce patterns of sex segregation and wage inequity? What are the patterns of full-time/part-time and permanent/casual jobs in terms of gender segregation?
The answers to these more meaningful questions present an altogether different picture for both women and men in Australia today. Life, in general, is getting more difficult. While it is true that women are making some progress in some areas, it is also true that both men and women are experiencing difficulties.
The purpose of the Bulletin article is to draw the conclusion that there is "no longer any reason for women to be considered disadvantaged". This is surely a mighty leap of logic.
While it is true that boys are more aggressive, troublesome, hyperactive and so on, this doesn't mean they face more difficulties than girls. It means they face different difficulties. Both boys and girls and men and women face difficulties in enjoying a full, creative, meaningful and productive life in our society for exactly the same reasons.
The society we live in exists by utilising the skills and human potential available to make a profit. This means maximising output and minimising costs. The result is the social cost, a system in which alienation and oppression are endemic, and not only among so-called "minority groups" which face particular forms of oppression — women, blacks, gays, lesbians and so on.
This system relies on exploiting the majority of people. That's what causes violence, aggression, and competition for the decreasing pool of jobs. That's why it needs changing.
The solution is not to attack programs that defend women, or blacks or other "minorities". The solution is for the majority of people to demand a new society. Clearly this isn't the Bulletin's intention.