Charly Dwyer

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Lack of Women in Tony Abbotts Cabinet sends a dangerous message…

September 22, 2013 by Charly Leetham Leave a Comment

For heavens sake!  I’ve worked many long and hard years to be considered an equal amongst my male counterparts and for equal representation of women in our world – business and otherwise…. and now I find out that some 50 something year old bloke has decided to upturn all that we’ve worked bloody hard for.

I’ve held my opinion until now – I wanted to make sure it wasn’t a knee jerk reaction, but the more I think on the actions taken by Tony Abbott in the Federal Government arena, the angrier and more disillusioned I get.

Let me see if I have this straight:

  • We are SUPPOSED to have Gender equity in our workplaces
  • Much work has been done to improve the representation of Women in Corporate and Senior Management roles
  • Boards have defined targets for women’s participation

and yet, Tony Abbott seems to think it is appropriate that 1 in 19 Cabinet positions has been allocated to women (5%), the Office for the Status of Women be abolished (I read that somewhere but can’t find that reference) and that he take the position of the “Minister for Women”.  Is he kidding?

Were there just not enough women to appoint to the Cabinet?  Oh yes, Mr Abbott “says” the appointments were based on merit – but I think not.  Apparently Abbott admits he is disappointed to have only one woman in his cabinet

According to The Australian on September 16th, Abbott states:

Nevertheless there are some very good and talented women knocking on the door of the cabinet and there are lots of good and talented women knocking on the door of the ministry.

and

You can expect to see as time goes by more women in both the cabinet and the ministry.

as some wit quipped on my facebook feed – it’s a good thing they turned the Glass Ceiling 90 degrees (sorry, I couldn’t find the actual reference).

And why take the role of “Minister for Women”?  Oh yes, “This will ensure that these key whole-of-government priorities are at the centre of government.” as well as Indigenous affairs, deregulation, national security and relations with state governments … the other roles that Tony Abbott has taken responsibility for.  Of course Tony Abbott will be able to give all these topics the attention they deserve…

I enjoyed Crikey’s piece this week titled “Crikeys Fantasy Cabinet, with Four Times The Number of Women” – it pointed to some highly qualified women within the Liberal party and highlighted why Abbott could just be wrong in only appointing 1 woman to his cabinet.  Let’s take a look at some of the women that Abbott decided were not satisfactory to provide stability or showed sufficient merit and experience.

Julie Bishop remains as Foreign Minister – and is nominated for speaker.  Yep, Julie got the gurnsey – well done Julie, well deserved I’m sure.

Dr Sharman Stone –  has a PhD in business and economics, and has worked professionally for a university. Stone was first elected in 1996 and was minister for workforce participation (and a parliamentary secretary on finance and the environment) in the Howard government.

Sussan Ley not only flies a plane around her regional electorate, she is trained in tax law and accounting, and co-ran a farm for many years.  Ley has held a front bench position since 1994

How about Marise Payne, who was in the ministry before the election?  Payne, formerly a public affairs adviser in the finance industry, has been in the Senate since 1997 and has held various posts.

Lack of experience Mr Abbott?  Let’s see, each of these Women have between 15 and 18 experience and have been representing their constituents in all that time.  Each one is imminently qualified as well.

Of course, failing to meet even the meanest of gender equity targets is nothing compared to taking the role of “Minister For Women” and not appointing a Woman to the role.  What COULD a woman bring to this position and ensure that the issues are at the “centre of government”?  Oh yes, that would mean you would have to respect that woman and listen to her opinions …. Yeah, I’ve made a leap of logic here and my cynicism is showing but I just don’t get it.

Let’s look at some stats (yet again):

  • In Australia, Women make up approximately 50% of the population
  • According to the Workplace Gender Equality agency, February 2013 Gender Workplace Statistics At a Glance:
    • Women make up 45.7% of the working population
    • On average, Women earn 17.6% less than their male counterparts (and this is an increase in disparity from 17.4% in February 2012 and 17.2% in February 1996 – we’re going backwards! ref: The Conversation)
    • 87.8% of women aged 20-24 have attained year 12 qualifications or above, compared to 84.1% of men in the same age bracket
    • 15.4% of directors in the ASX 200 are women
    • 52 ASX 200 companies do not have women on their boards (26%)
  • In politics, women comprise only 30.3% of all Australia’s parliaments

Well, that last point was true until Abbotts little gem this week.

Oh yeah, let’s not forget that countries like Afghanistan and Iran have been female representation in the cabinet – how embarrassing for us?

Equal representation means we have to work at it – we have to be prepared to shelve our pre-conceptions and make some tough decisions to ensure that we reach gender equality in our Government and Businesses.   Excuses like “appointments were based on merit” can not be accepted… we need to question and object to these decisions when the gender equity balance is so unbalanced.

I’m pretty disappointed by this weeks actions, as I know many other women and men are.  How sad to think we live in 2013 and have 5% female representation in our parliamentary cabinet… What’s next?

 

 

Filed Under: Feminism & Equality Tagged With: australian federal government cabinet, feminism, gender equity, tony abbott

Words and Actions Have Power

August 25, 2013 by Charly Leetham Leave a Comment

How much thought do you give to the words you use, your own actions and even the images or statuses you share on your social networks?

For a long time, I’ve been saying to myself and my family “Words have power” – meaning that the words we use when speaking to each other and our own self talk have the power to shape how we perceive ourselves and others.

However I hadn’t, until recently, thought about how these words and actions can support and reinforce sexism and inadvertently support bullying and other undesirable behaviours.

The Words We Use and Sexism

In a facebook discussion recently, it was pointed out that the much of our language subconsciously supports sexism. Let me explain:

There are times that I find myself saying “oh, don’t be such a girl” when someone complains about pain… which is just madness!

There are times, I hear boys (and men) told to ‘harden up’ because admitting you need help is something only a woman would do – and it’s unacceptable for a male to ask for help…

Let’s not forget the references to the female menstrual cycle – when a male complains or has an “off day” sometimes a derogatory comment about it “being that time of the month” is made…

Or how about the saying “Don’t be a big girl blouse…”?

Each of  these statements imply that the female sex is inherently weaker or lesser; or that displaying feminine traits is unwanted because it means that you are displaying weakness.

Words Have PowerIs it appropriate to taint our young men and women (boys and girls) with the feeling that this behaviour is somehow undesirable?  I really don’t think it is – and it’s something we have to be really conscious of when speaking to our children (and others).

I can’t explain how stunned I was when I realised just how damaging some of our statements can be – and how I have, unwittingly, supported this with my own language over the years.

Yes, I’m aware of it now and I am changing it.  I’m also making sure that I “call the behaviour” when I see my hubbie, young ones and their friends exhibiting the behaviour.  Of course – they are encouraged to call my behaviour and they do!

Our Actions Have Power

Whilst you might think that this section has something to do with our actions in the real world, I’m actually going to discuss our actions on Social Media networks and how these actions can unconsciously support bullying and other inappropriate behaviours.

Let me explain.  On the Destroy The Joint facebook page, they shared the following on Friday:

Kelly Martin Broderick, a student in Maryland, US, took part in a campaign by her university’s feminist group to post a picture online with a sign saying “This Is What A Feminist Looks Like.”

Unfortunately, somebody stole the pic and turned it into a meme on a pretty hateful Facebook page (that we have decided not to link to, because why give them any more traffic?), along with the words “That’s pretty much what I expected.”

To respond, Kelly has taken matters into her own hands. She’s written a great article for xoJane: http://www.xojane.com/issues/my-picture-was-stolen-and-turned-into-a-fat-shaming-anti-feminist-meme

And she’s started a Tumblr to which you can submit a picture showing the world the diversity of what a feminist can look like. You can see the Tumblr athttp://wearewhatfeministslooklike.tumblr.com/

Kelly says: “There is not one type of feminist. Feminists are not a monolith. We are diverse and unique. We don’t fit into every stereotype. We are all different. “

How despicable – stealing someone elses image to make fun of them.  Classic bullying behaviour and it most certainly should not be tolerated.  Every like that image (or post) got from that page was essentially a vote for this hateful behaviour and opinion.

However, how many of us see something that we think is funny and ‘share it’ without thought to whether or not we’re unconsciously supporting similar behaviour?  I saw someone share something that made me cringe – I don’t think they thought about what they were sharing in terms of the wider consequences of the statement they were making – I believe it was done thinking that ‘generically’ it was funny.

Let me explain what I mean… There are a heap of images shared that disparage or make fun of weight, height, shape or dress style.  Often these images are shared in the shape of Memes or simply have text overlaid in an attempt to use humour.  This humour is often a personal attack against the subject of the photo themselves.  If this was of your friends – would you share it with the comment LOL, ROFL or even simply LIKE the post?  Any one of these actions put the post into your feed and by implication can be seen as support.  Is this what you want? Or would you be up in arms about it?

Be Mindful

be-mindfulBefore speaking or saying something; before sharing something – be mindful of the potential statement you are making.

It’s time to think about how our words and actions have the power to perpetuate stereotypes, sexism, hate speech, bigotry, misogyny or similar?  If so, how can you reframe your statement to be more positive or more supportive?

I’m not saying that you shouldn’t share something for fear of how it will be received by others – I’m saying you should be mindful of how your actions and words can unwittingly provide support for something you find distasteful.

You can become part of the solution….

 

 

Filed Under: Feminism & Equality Tagged With: perpetuating sexism, sexism through language, words have power

I’m a Feminist and Damn Proud Of It

July 5, 2013 by Charly Leetham Leave a Comment

I am so sick of hearing the term “feminist” being used in a derogatory fashion… It seems to me, and this is from my own perspective so others may have a different experience of this, that a woman who steps up to speak for herself, pays for a lunch herself, expects to be treated equally in her community and receive the same rate of pay as her male counterparts is ‘vilified’ as being a ‘feminist’.  The term feminist is often used as an insult and a put down… a way to make a woman feel bad for speaking up for herself and being independent.

Strong words?  Yeah, they are. Are they ‘universally’ true, no – but I believe that the word “feminism” has been subverted to a rather distasteful term.  So much so that, until recently, I shied away from applying the term to myself – now, I just simply don’t care.

[box type=”note” size=”large” style=”rounded” icon=”none”]I believe in equal rights for everyone.  I believe people should be treated the same regardless of their gender.  Therefore, I AM a feminist[/box]

I was stunned how our country responded to having a female PM.  Whether or not you like her politics, what has her gender; marital status; whether she has children; or her weight / shape ever have to do with her policies and ability to actually govern or lead our country?  Rather than debating policies, we were distracted by the never ending crap that was dished out about her personally.  We’ve never asked our male leaders if their partners were lesbian or deigned to delve into such a personal issue; we have most certainly had (extremely) overweight male politicians – but did we hear any debate on whether they were fit to lead us or participate in the leadership of the country – NO!  So why is it different because our PM is a female?  The real answer is it shouldn’t be and that fact that it was, is disgraceful.

I recently entered a discussion on the following statement:

Boy Scouts is a sexist organisation. Girls Scouts is a “valuable protected space” for girls.
I feel that this issue pretty much exemplifies my feelings on feminism.

The ensuing discussion highlighted to me, how much the role of “feminism” in our society is misunderstood – what gender equity really means and why there is still the need for “positive discrimination” and “affirmative action”. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Feminism & Equality

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