Gender Discrimination

WHILE POVERTY FAILS to discriminate on certain levels of human existence, its deleterious effects upon women over time and across the globe have been severely disproportionate as compared to men, especially in developing countries. This phenomenon, known as the feminization of poverty, is extremely significant in countries with transitional economies, as a result of the process of social and political transformation.

During the first decade of the 21st century, the United Nations estimated that a significant majority of the 1.5 billion persons who survive on $1 a day or less are women. Poverty's discrimination against women is not limited, however, to a lack of income and other concerns that are strictly economic. Other manifestations of poverty that affect women excessively include the areas of illness, hunger and malnutrition, inadequate housing, violence, limited or lack of access to education, and the inability to participate in basic aspects of civil, social, and cultural life.

Researchers suggest that the reasons for gender discrimination in the area of poverty are related to issues of power and dominance that often stem from traditional and rigid gender-specific rights, roles, and privileges that are assigned at birth. Such gender stereotypes often restrict women's access to education and resources that would allow them to enjoy a just standard of living. These disadvantages stem from centuries of deeply embedded patriarchy, or male advantage exercised as oppressive power over women and disadvantaged males. Feminism seeks to deconstruct the horrors of patriarchy to liberate women from the destructive cycle of poverty and violence.

In addition to providing adequate training and means for women to liberate themselves from poverty, feminism addresses some of the structural issues related to gender discrimination in this area. Most recently, feminists have noted that the inability to provide a gender perspective in national and international economic planning and analysis will result in the continued victimization of women.

Despite feminism's exposure of the disproportionate feminization of poverty, women continue to be among the poorest of the poor across the globe. Although historically women are at the highest level of participation in the global workforce, their wages still are significantly lower than their male counterparts’. This injustice is intensified by the fact that women bear the majority of the burden of family responsibilities, which often is intensified by lack of access to family planning and adequate childcare. Women work twice as many hours as men; however, they receive only one-tenth of the world's income, and own less than a hundredth of the world's property. In some countries, the loss of a husband results in a widow's loss of her land and possessions, since there are legal statutes that transfer inheritance to the deceased extended family, leaving his widow and children destitute.

Many other manifestations of poverty affect women disproportionately. In Africa, 55 percent of HIV-positive patients are women. In many developing countries, women who are pregnant, mothers who are nursing, and their children are at the greatest risk of undernourishment. In the United States, approximately one-half of homeless women are fleeing domestic violence. In Turkey, 58 percent of women are victims of violence. Of the approximately 875 million people worldwide who are illiterate, just over two-thirds are women. In terms of civil service, women hold less than 30 percent of the world's political, diplomatic, and bureaucratic posts.

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