People always get told that “it could be worse”. If you’re a human living in a 1st World country, you’re told that you don’t need to fight for your rights, because you’re not “really oppressed” like the people in other countries and you should be glad with what you have. But you know what? This is what people all over the world are told, no matter where they live, what gender they are, who they love or their political views. No matter who you are you’ll always be labeled by who other people think you should be. Even in countries like Germany or the US we’re still far away from equality between all humans: Our world is full of sexism (not only against women), discrimination and stereotypes that keep people from being who they want to be. If a woman sleeps around with guys, she’s a slut – If a guy does the same, he’s considered as manly and successful. If a man cries and shows his feelings, he’s considered as gay or feminine – If a woman shows her feelings, it’s absolutely normal and acceptable. Even little children are confronted with stereotypes everyday: Blue is for boys, pink is for girl. Boys play with cars, girls with Barbie dolls. If a boy wants to play with Barbie dolls people will think there’s something wrong about him. I think that gender stereotypes are stupid. They were formed hundreds of years ago even if many people don’t want to admit it; they’re still stuck in our heads. These stereotypes say that a man has to be strong, manly and emotionless; he has to make a lot of money. An ideal woman stays at home, cares for their children, is quiet and sweet. These stereotypes may not be that present in reality anymore, but in our heads they sure are.
Also in our society it’s still really hard for gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender people to come out and be socially fully accepted. The US laws contribute a part to this social wrong too: For example the USA doesn’t allow gay and bisexual men to donate blood and 13 States still ban gay marriage. Also there is still a lot of discrimination and harassment against LGBT in the workplace: At least 13 percent of gay and transgender workers have experienced some form of discrimination on the job, 26 percent of transgender individuals were even fired because they’re transgender.
We don’t recognize sexism and discrimination anymore because it has become a part of our daily, normal life and we need to stop this normalizing. We should listen less to what society tells us and listen more to what our heart tells us. We need to stand up for our rights and stop sexism and discrimination because we’re living in the 21st century and these conditions are inacceptable.