Position Paper #3 - Depictions of Women and Minorities

The past hundreds of years have been bleak and inhumane for women and minorities. Of all 195 countries in the world, it is still illegal for women to vote in 2 of those, and 10 more countries that make it nearly impossible to vote. In 2020, the pandemic revealed how bad gender inequality is in all aspects of our society. One statistic showed that women were 24% more likely to lose their job, than men. At the current pace, it will take 250 years for women to earn pay equal to that of men. At the 2021 Commission on the Status of Women, Secretary-General António Guterres stressed that "We need to move beyond fixing women, and instead fix our systems." Which is a statement I could not agree more with. As depressing and real as all of the above information is, I would like to focus on the positive growth we've seen for women around the world. According to US News, these are the best 5 countries for women based on a survey taken earlier this year. 

Starting with number five, the Netherlands was ranked because of its progressive approach to equal rights for women and girls. On the Government of the Netherlands official website, it puts a big emphasis on its human rights policy. It pledges to improve the position of women by, enforcing UN Resolution 1325 on women. This resolution reestablishes the important roles women play in "the prevention and resolution of conflicts, peace negotiations, peace-building, peacekeeping, humanitarian response, and in post-conflict reconstruction" and "stresses their importance and full involvement" in all efforts to maintain peace. The Netherlands government also focuses on fighting violence against women, prohibiting child-marriages, encouraging political and economic presence by women, and accomplishing gender equality between women and men. The Netherlands is just the beginning of examples of countries that treat women as humans. Let's continue onto number 4.

Netherlands

Coming in at number 4 of the best countries for women, is our neighbor, Canada. The Canadian Government's website has many links that take viewers to the different things they are doing for women. For example one of the links on their Women and Gender Equality page is titled Indigenous Women's Circle. Through the link, you can learn more about Canadian Indigenous Women leaders and how they alongside the government are working to make a better future for women and indigenous people in Canada. Their three main priorities are "increasing women's economic security and prosperity; encouraging women's leadership and democratic participation; and ending violence against women and girls." Another link, titled Youth Working Group on Gender Equality, focuses on how young Canadians are taking action to change gender inequality and work towards a better future. Also, Canada recently invested over 100 million dollars to support women that were affected by the pandemic. The funding will allow recipients to launch new projects that increase women's and girls' participation.

Canada

The third best country for women listed is Norway. According to their government website, the aim for Norway is to expedite the equality for women's rights by increasing opportunities available to women and girls. They also want to make a big emphasis on promoting women's right to self-determination and further their empowerment. In 2016, the government put into play an act with the lengthy name "Freedom, empowerment and opportunities. Action Plan for Women’s Rights and Gender Equality in Foreign and Development Policy." This act sets the framework for its gender equality efforts. This act is based on the plan of action they previously adopted in 1995 as the World Conference on Women at Beijing. The government has stated that gender equality is to be "incorporated into all aspects of foreign and development policy." In 2019, the Norwegian government also adopted the "International Strategy to Eliminate Harmful Practices." This aids through global programs and encourages eliminating harmful practices in education, health, and human rights.

Norway

Number two on the US News list of best countries for women is Denmark. In accordance with Denmark's Government website, Denmark women usually work and pursue careers outside the home while raising a family. Because of this, the country provides a considerate parental leave and tax-subsidized daycare. About 40% of the government is represented by women. In 2011, Denmark welcomed their first female prime minister, Helle Thorning-Schmidt. As of recent years, Danish women receive more advanced university degrees than men. This progress is likely to continue in future years. Recently, an OECD survey showed that Danish men do more housework than in any other country in the world. Which is a win in my book. Denmark has now formed a committee, Education and Gender Equality, to provide a solution "to ensure that both girls and boys are able to develop their abilities on equal terms and participate in Danish society." Forth. coming growth in Denmark only seems to be optimistic.

Denmark

The last and number one best country for women in the world is Sweden. Firstly, I would like to address that Sweden has formally declared itself a feminist government, devoted to a feminist foreign policy. The EU average of women in government is 32% and the average of North American women in the government is 26%. Sweden has the highest percentage of women in governmental positions, 47%. In 2021, it created the Swedish Gender Equality Agency. Its goal is to work towards an environment where everyone with ideas can be heard. Since 2006, Sweden has never ranked lower than 5th on the Global Gender Gap Report. Also, in Sweden, each and every reported rape is registered as a separate crime, unlike other countries. The Swedish government's most important tool in gender equality is gender mainstreaming. Basically, this is making everything accessible for women without discrimination. For example, men are offered 3 months of parental leave, along with parental leave from the mother. Stereotypical gender roles are discouraged. The improvement Sweden has seen in the past few decades is one to watch and learn from. I think they set a great example of how not just women, but also men should be treated. 

Sweden