Opinion By J1 Reporter Eve Steele

UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT: EXAMINED BY EVE

Think of the first word that comes to mind when you hear the word “woman.”

Now ask yourself if it was a positive or negative word.

When it comes to women and their daily lives, they are often shunned to the side or represented in secretly misogynistic ways, ones that many individuals would not notice at first glance, and most likely, even after repeatedly analyzing the subject.

Even though most may not notice, it does not mean that others don’t, or that they are any less diminishing to the gender as a whole.

When I visited Denver, Colorado on vacation for a concert, I personally detected a sexist bathroom sign, as it depicted the woman wearing an apron on the door as a server, while the men’s bathroom door was decorated with a man wearing sun glasses, spinning a pizza.

This situation may not seem chauvinistic at first, but after looking deeper into it, you can see how it shows the woman in an old-fashioned light, serving the people, while the man is shown as a cool guy, just there for kicks and fun.

Even after seeing the main point of anger about these signs, some may wonder why it is a big deal in the first place. This scenario is “that deep” because it shows how the little things add up to more widespread issues, as it “trains” our minds to perceive these ideas as normal.

This mental “training” may also be another reason why these signs go unnoticed. It has been observed that particular people do not even know that they are being misogynistic when they actually are.

Women even find themselves struggling with internalized misogyny, including dumbing themselves down for a man or putting fellow women down to build their own self up.

The phrase “I’m not like other girls” often comes up in conversation about this topic. Saying this phrase may not seem harmful, but it is. It encourages others, including other women, to look negatively on a certain trait of a woman, which hurts how women are recognized.

Unfortunately, the mental training that women are somehow less valuable, intelligent, industrious, and so much more has been around since before we can remember. However, that does not mean that we cannot change how we think as human beings.

The feminism movement is not about women gaining more rights than men, but about equality of both genders. Being a feminist has somehow put a negative light on those who claim the title, which is crazy to think about, as all feminists are trying to do is receive equal rights and mindsets.

One mindset many feminists have been attempting to get rid of is the term “boys will be boys.” This phrase is commonly communicated to excuse the male population’s behaviors, and it should not be permitted or encouraged. This is a major example of how society has trained their minds to automatically think less of women.

Women as a gender make up 49.7% of the population, and we need to stand on those grounds. Although there is a 0.3% disadvantage being literally equal in our society, we should not let it stop our fight. We deserve equal rights and mindsets, and the retraining of the entire world’s brains. Noticing the little things is the most important part of this movement, and I encourage all to open their eyes and ears to casual sexism.

Misogyny is a daily challenge for women all over the world, but it is an issue that creates unity and empowerment to women everywhere, motivating many to push back on it when possible.

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