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Posted: May 13th, 2021
Women’s Rights between Russia and the United States
Introduction
Russia and the United States are two powers that are in an eternal race for the championship not only in matters of technology but also in the struggle for women’s rights a hundred years long. Both countries have exhibited different cultural aspects concerning perceptions of women and women rights. Women rights are entangled in social and cultural norms of a society. Most societies across the world treat women based on their cultural and social perceptions. A gender stereotype is more visible in Russian society than in the United States. In spite of there being a policy adopted by the Russian Federation on gender equality, there are adequate facts to show that gender inequality remains a significant problem. The Russian administration failed to adequately establish conditions that would support true equality of all gender.
History of Russian Women Rights
Russian women were among the first who achieve suffrage. The women’s movement in Russia set an example for feminists in America. Women suffrage in Russia occurred when over 40,000 women showed their voting rights. The development of the Russian league for women equality played a central role in advocating for women voting rights and enhancement of equal treatment of men and women in Russian society. Hundreds of women demonstrated their hunger for voting rights and other fundamental rights by subscribing to different women’s organizations across Russia. Members of the league began to create awareness among women in St. Petersburg about the essence of their voting rights. The league sent a letter to Prince Lvov, but he failed to review it (Erofeeva 1933). On the 19th of March 1917, women marched through the streets of St. Petersburg where women demanded their voting rights.
Russia achieved women equality before the United States. Historical changes from communism to a democratic society significantly altered the rights of women in Russia. Evaluation of women rights in Russia was best demonstrated by the changing social connections in the post-Soviet-Russia that were defined by gender norms. Moreover, state role in shaping gender inequality was seen as a crucial instrument in evaluating the subject of gender inequalities which undermined women rights (Karen 7). Gender-based issues, in particular, were used to define roles in employment opportunities across Russia. The United States, on the other hand, attained gender equality long after Russian women fought for their rights to equality in society.
From a historical perspective, the Soviet Union established equal political and economic rights for both men and women before the United States. Russia had women taking part in politics before the United States. The main driving force for the policies of equal political rights for both women and men in Russia was the financial needs, and little was done to change social norms that led to the view of women as household caretakers (Women’s Rights in Russia 121). Gender inequality in the Soviet Union developed due to the social constructs whereby, heterosexual family structure was dominant. As a result, women who were sexual minorities in society were subject to marginalization.
Women rights to property ownership were first developed in Russia than the United States. The development of liberal economic markets led to the development of women rights to property in Russia during the Soviet-Union times. These changes reinforced government commitments to uphold gender equality by supporting women Right to property ownership. However, Inequalities are predominant in Russia as they are based on the dominant gender norms. Men and women are subject to specific gender identities. The norms still play a significant role in enhancing imbalanced association among men and women (Sklar 150). Based on the social model, women remain subordinates as they encounter unequal treatments in health as well as economic aspects.
Moreover, women have high levels of vulnerability towards domestic violence. During the Soviet rule, Women would work in industries, and the current feminist discourse did not exist. However, Russia has remained a patriarchal and a conservative society where, despite women having equal economic and legal privileges with men, the society has clearly defined the gender roles which at times constrict women.
Women from both the United States and the Russian Federation have over the last century attained significant achievements following their long struggles for their rights. Research on women rights in Russian and the United States has shown that women in both nations have increasingly become critical economic pillars. Women have become an active part of the civil societies and hold powerful administrative posts (Post 135). In comparison to one century ago, women’s rights have advanced significantly. With women rights advancement, the female status in the society has also improved where women acquire education, have economic rights as well as political rights. The United States has increasingly embarked on embracing the rights of women by facilitating democracy and creating platforms for women to become more competitive in society.
History of American Women Rights
The women suffrage was a movement inspired by the Russian women suffrage to fight for women rights. Women wanted to acquire the rights for voting their fellow women. However, it took over 100 years for the social activists and reformers to win the rights. The campaign for women suffrage started some decades before the civil conflict (Polouski 80). During this time, the American society was characterized by religious movements, anti-slavery groups, temperance leagues as well as moral-reform organizations within which women played crucial roles.
After the civil war and formulation of civil rights, the constitution termed an American citizen as a woman raising questions of suffrage and women citizenship. Some women suffrage advocated for a belief that the civil war provided an opportunity for them to put pressure on lawmakers to enhance true universal suffrage through their refusal to uphold the 15th amendment (Mickenberg 229). Through their progressive campaigns for universal suffrage in the U.S constitution, women rights were provided in 1910 whereby, some states like Idaho and Utah allowed women to vote.
Similarities
Rights to Education: A historical reflection on women rights in the United States and Russia signifies significant strides made in the fight against gender inequality including women suffrage, education as well as inroads in equal workplace opportunities with their male counterparts. Russia and the United States have created laws that provide women the rights to education. Women in both Russia and the United States have made significant progress in fulfilling their academic goals by attending taking advantage of their education rights. However, through advocacy, public awareness and litigation, the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) project for the rights of women facilitated the changes in women rights as well as continuous reforms within education sector to give women equal rights to education as men. Women gained their rights to education in Russia first.
Employment Rights: Similarity between Russia and United States is visible on employment laws on women. Employment legislation and workplace laws that discriminate against women from certain jobs and permits their extraction from posts due to pregnancy and return to work after giving birth have for long created significant differences in the income of women, economic security as well as opulence. Both Russia and the United States have not established strong employment laws that protect women against discrimination. Employment rights on women were first developed in Russia and then the United States.
Since the 1960s, Russia has attained remarkable levels of women employment. As a result, the profile of women labor activity has changed over the years. Today, Russia exhibits a high number of employed women which signified the great achievements on the subject of women’s rights for the last century. Similarly, the United States has recorded a remarkable growth in women rights which is evidenced by the high number of women serving at various levels.
Divorce Rights: In both Russia the United States, divorce rights have been created to allow women to abandon partners who violate their rights. However, divorce rights give men an upper hand in both countries as women have a little say on matters divorce. Women in Russia and the United States are subject to reduced dignity compared to men in American society when it comes to divorce rights. Due to lack of strong and neutral divorce laws in Russia women are subjected to domestic violence as they fail to give equal protection.
Rights on Gender-Based Violence: Both Russia and the United States exhibit high levels of sexual assaults, domestic as well as intimate partner violence. Besides, women in both nations are subject to human trafficking. The Russia and United States lacks well elaborate gender laws against sexual assault on women. This has led to the advancement of both vulnerability and susceptibility of women to abuse in both Russia and the United States. Gender-based violence safety of women is somehow compromised in various institutions and social environments like employment and incarceration. In Russia and the United States, there is normalization of sexual assault at early adolescence. Research has illustrated that about a quarter of all women in an intimate marriage experiences gender-based violence.
Rights to Equal Treatment: Similar to the United States, Russia is a member of several global as well as regional human rights agreements that directs safeguarding, respecting and abiding by human rights for all people within its territory. The 19th article in the Russian constitutions mandates the enhancement of equal rights for both men and women. Nonetheless, Russia has failed to enact comprehensive policies that uphold gender equality. There is a lack of a broad definition of what pertains discrimination, and the law expressly prevents any form of gender-based discrimination based on sex. Over the last couple of years, cases on gender-based violence have demonstrated the lack of clear principles that protect the rights of women against discrimination. The Russian courts have always held that the constitution’s issue on gender equality is based on general principles that fail to generate an apparent cause of actions through which individual rights are secured against any form of discrimination.
Differences
Political Rights: Russia was the first to achieve political rights for women. Despite the significant accomplishments of women rights and the existence of similar challenges today, there remain visible gaps that differentiate the levels of advancements on women political rights in Russia and the United States. There are more women in the government positions in the United States than in Russia. The U.S government has given much more political rights to women unlike in the Russian Federation. For instance, much more women are in senior government positions like ministries in Russia compared to the United States (Skiles 655). This shows that Russia has advanced its women rights than the United States by creating grounds on which women can compete fairly with their male counterparts.
Rights to Liberty: The rights to the liberty of women were first adopted in Russia and followed in the United States. Even today, the rights to women liberty are stronger in Russia than in the United States. Women in Russia have more freedom to do their will than in the United States (Arutunyan 4). This is mainly supported by the fact that gender equality is much upheld in Russia through the establishment of civil rights that support the welfare of women. In the United States, women often face discrimination and unequal treatment. The American society is yet to attain total equality for men and women to enable women to make personal decisions without being subject to men.
Personal Opinion on Women Rights
Voting Rights: Women rights to vote are some of the fundamental issues that marked the struggle of women in both Russia and the United States. 1917 and 1920 marked the years in which women were granted their voting rights in Russia and the United States respectively. The women struggle for their rights under women suffrage was a remarkable beginning but considering the challenges relating to gender inequality in contemporary society, much more need to be done. In the past, women in Russia and the United States were treated as second-class citizens; they were restricted from voting to decide the person they would charge with decision-making and directly impact them. As a result, women acquired significant achievements due to their unity aimed at convincing both Russians and Americans to accept women voting rights.
Employment and Political Rights In spite of the progress that women have made in the fight for their rights, it does not imply that women in both Russia and the United States have achieved equal rights with men. Research shows that only a few women hold executive offices in both nations. Besides, only 10% of women are ranked as top earners in Russia and the United States. Gender inequality is evident as women have limited chances of taking part in economic forums, employment, education as well as politics. The inequality gap between men and women arises due to low levels of women empowerment as stipulated in the 2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay For Me Without Delay Universal Gender Gap Report. About 75 percent of the gender gap has been bridged. Both countries have a large number of women in professional and technical areas. Political empowerment remains a crucial area in which women have been primarily empowered thus raising their stake from about 27 percent to 32 percent in the government positions.
Economic Rights: Wage discrepancies remain a crucial issue as a large number of women receive fewer wages than men for similar tasks. In most cases, women are obligated to look for part-time jobs as low wages often pulls them out of their workplaces. To enhance gender equality in Russia and the United States, researchers have pointed out several approaches. First, there is a need to increase the number of women in leadership positions in both the political and corporate sectors. Secondly, there is a need to encourage women to fight for equal wages and promotions as their male colleagues at work. Lastly, the Russian and American administrations should create systems that are effective on matters of gender-based violence, discrimination and domestic violence to strengthen the rights of women in society.
Conclusion
In conclusion, women rights are fundamental to the promotion of equality in society. Women rights were obtained in the twentieth century after a long struggle by feminist movements in Russia and the United States. Women rights today are institutionalized and enhanced by the law in both Russia and the United States. A comparison between Russia and the United States is much characterized by similarities than differences on matters women rights. It shows that Russia was the first nation to undergo women suffrage which inspired the American women to fight for their voting rights. As a result of prolonged struggles, women have obtained much more rights including education, employment, political and economic rights. Both Russia and the United States have significantly transformed women rights through the development of economic and political empowerment programs. However, much still need to be done as gender inequality remains a significant challenge in both the United States and Russia. Women need to fight for more rights to improve their status both economically and politically.
Work Cited
Arutunyan, Anna. Women’s Day, anyone?(women’s rights in Russia ). Moscow News, March 10, 2006 – Write a paper; Professional research paper writing service – Best essay writers, Vol.4212(8), p.4(1)
Erofeeva, Lyubov Vladimirovna. “Traditional Christian Values and Women’s Reproductive Rights in Modern Russia—Is a Consensus Ever Possible?.” American journal of public health103.11 (2013): 1931-1934.
Karen Freeman. US science societies: Women’s rights boycott shadow. Nature, 1982, Vol.298(5869), p.7
Mickenberg, Julia L. “The red taboo in American women’s history: on not seeing revolutionary Russia.” American Communist History 14.3 (2015 – Research Paper Writing Help Service): 221-230.
Polouski, Susan; Benito, Lawrence. Reflections on human rights/women’s rights in Russia. Social Policy, Fall, 2007, Vol.38(1), p.80(3)
Post, Dianne. “Women’s Rights in Russia: Training Non-Lawyers to Represent Victims of Domestic Violence.” Yale Hum. Rts. & Dev. LJ 4 (2001): 135.
Skiles, Courtney M. “Gender-specific prison reform: addressing human rights violations against women in Russia’s prisons.” Pac. Rim L. & Pol’y J. 21 (2014: 2024 – Essay Writing Service. Custom Essay Services Cheap): 655.
Sklar, Kathryn Kish. Women’s Rights Emerges within the Anti-Slavery Movement, 1830-1870: A Brief History with Documents. Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2000.
Women’s Rights in Russia. Emancipation of Women ‘ has run through five editions in Russia… women in Russia. Now and then only you can find an… -doc: document WOMEN’S RIGHT3 IN RUSSIA. Women’s Suffrage Journal, 01 August 1873, Vol.IV(42), p.121
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