19 lines
1.3 KiB
Markdown
19 lines
1.3 KiB
Markdown
**Patriarchy** is an ideology and practice that produces what we
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commonly recognize as sexism. But it goes well beyond individual or
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systemic prejudice against women. It is, first of all, the false
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division of all people into two rigid categories (male and female) that
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are asserted to be both natural and moral. (Many perfectly healthy
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people do not fit into either of these physiological categories, and
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many non-Western cultures recognized - and still do, if they haven’t
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been destroyed — more than two sexes and genders.) Patriarchy goes on to
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define clear roles (economic, social, emotional, political) for men and
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women, and it asserts (falsely) that these roles are natural and moral.
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Under patriarchy, people who do not fit into or who reject these gender
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roles are neutralized with violence and ostracism. They are made to seem
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and feel ugly, dirty, scary, contemptible, worthless. Patriarchy is
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harmful to everybody, and it is reproduced by everyone who lives within
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it. True to its name, it puts men in a dominant position and women in a
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submissive position. Activities and characteristics that are
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traditionally associated with “power,” or, at least privilege, mostly
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belong to men. Patriarchy gives both the ability and the right to use
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violence almost exclusively to men. |