My project relates to the topics of feminism and gender equality. The main purpose of this project is to present the idea that females are just as equal as males, if not superior. This all coming from a male himself who believes the female gender is indeed the superior gender. My project is a comic illustration that tells the story of my sister on her being a woman (underdog) and her journey towards joining the military with her experiences of completing basic training. As well as a few skits introducing my mother and how much of an impact she had in our lives (my original reason for believing females are the superior gender) as being the main parent who raised us. Included in the comic are few skits of my father and him being a bad parent and representing the weakness of the male gender. The effects of patriarchy over takes a few situations in the comic as well. You will see how much of a development the belief of equality between a woman and a man evolves as the comic goes on.
We live in a world where men are seen as the dominant alpha male and over power women who are to be known as weak and nowhere near a males level. This assumption is a conceptual issue that anti-feminist (mainly men) and certain individuals believe to be true. With this project, I plan on changing this assumption of these certain individuals and prove to them that females are just as important and equal to a male. I will speak upon my life experiences and how I came to this belief throughout the skits of the comic.
The photo above represents a moment in my life where my baby sister was born and I did not want her because she was not a boy. The moral behind this is that even at a young age boys are seen to believe that they are better than girls. It is not their faults, for sometimes it depends on how the parents raise them. It is hard to believe but it can be said to be a natural instinct as well as just a phase depending on the person. As I grew older I began to value the world and my sisters for what they truly were, so eventually I grew out of that phase. There are certain individuals who do not pass this phase as kids and as they adult it seems to become worse. Because of this we have anti-feminist and men who do not believe that women live up to their level and see them as weak.
When my sister announced to our family that should would be leaving for the military, it was full of pure un-equality between a man and a woman and a total amount of disbelief. Every single uncle, aunt, cousin and even my self at one point did not think she was capable of completing this task because she was a woman. Everyone thought of the army to be a 'male's job'. In the latin culture, women are raised to be basically be house wives to care, clean and cook for their husband and kids. Men are taught to protect and bring in the money for their wife and kids. Because of this assumption everyone automatically believed she was making a terrible decision.
I was selfish and naive until the actual day came and my sister was officially leaving for basic training. I honestly did not show affection to her decision until the day she left. I felt like a total jerk because of it but she realized that I truly loved her because I broke down in tears and told her to not leave. I was scared for her and could not believe she was about to be gone for about 2 1/2 months. Because I am a male, I tend not to show as much emotions like women do. This can be seen as a sign of patriarchy. Patriarchy is the single more life-threatening social disease assaulting the male body and spirit in our nation.
Deep down I knew she was leaving but I did not want to accept it because I knew my emotions would get the best of me and I did not want that to happen. The one thing that made me feel better about the situation was seeing the determination in my sisters eyes of her knowing she would complete this journey.
The skits above are from stories that my sister Perla told me about her experience in boot camp through the letters she sent and when I saw her during the graduation. Words cannot explain the difficulties that were experienced by her, but it is indeed an accomplishment that everyone will look upon her and see her not just equal to a regular male, but superior because joining the army is no joke! In the military gender is meaningless. Men and women are to complete the same tasks no matter if one is stronger or more athletic than the other. They are treated as equal human beings in an environment were survival and teamwork is the main objective. If man in the military ever saw a woman as less then themselves, their assumption automatically changed once the process of basic training began.
It is crazy how such a dramatic experience in my sister's life is what changed the mentalities of so many individuals and family members who only saw her a young girl who could barley fend for herself. She is not seen as the hero of our family and everyone who doubted her is extremely proud of what she accomplishment. The amounts calls and messaged she received on the day of her graduation were endless. All the people that doubted the abilities of a woman before have now reawaken their beliefs because of what my sister did.
The issues of feminism and gender equality may never fully be solved because there will always be certain individuals who have their reasons to not accept the equality of a woman and a man, however; if more women like my sister for example strive for a better tomorrow and accomplish goals in their lives that take a lot of guts and dedication, these certain individuals will begin to see these actions taking place and eventually women will earn the respect of all people. Women are extremely important in this world. Without them no one would even exist. So to all the females out there, I salute your for your intelligence, determination and of course beauty. Just keep fighting because one day you just might all become be the alpha fe(male).
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Statistics Chart as of July 27, 2017
Women Active Duty
Military Statistics
|
Number
|
Percent of Branch
|
Total number of women
serving in the military
|
214,098
|
14.6 %
|
Army
|
76,694
|
13.6 %
|
Marine Corps
|
13,677
|
6.8 %
|
Navy
|
53,385
|
16.4 %
|
Air Force
|
63,552
|
19.1 %
|
Coast Guard
|
6,790
|
15.7 %
|
Women Reserve Military
Statistics
|
Number
|
Percent of Branch
|
Total number of women in the reserves
|
118,781
|
19.5 %
|
Total number of women in the National Guard
|
470,851
|
15.5 %
|
Work Cited
Castillo, Andrea. “The Problems with 'Patriarchy' – The Ümlaut.” The Ümlaut, The Ümlaut, 16 Apr. 2013, theumlaut.com/the-problems-with-patriarchy-9b8a52f9c5d7.
Contemporary Women's Issues (NJCU Database)
EBSCOhost (NJCU Database)
“Gender Equality.” United Nations Population Fund, www.unfpa.org/gender-equality.
Hooks, Bell. Understanding Patriarchy. Louisville Anarchist Federation Federation, 2010.
Infobase (NJCU Database)
“The Five Main Issues Facing Modern Feminism.” New Statesman, www.newstatesman.com/v-spot/2013/05/five-main-issues-facing-modern-feminism.
“Women in the Military Statistics.” Statistic Brain, 24 Sept. 2017, www.statisticbrain.com/women-in-the-military-statistics/.
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