Sexism is still alive and well

During a debate on the gender pay gap Polish MEP, Janusz Korwin-Mikke made a comment that shocked a large portion of the world, “Of course women must earn less than men because they are weaker, they are smaller, they are less intelligent. They must earn less, that's all." Fortunately, the President of the Parliament immediately handed down sanctions that according to the European Parliament were “unprecedented in severity”. Korwin-Mikke was handed a 10-day suspension and will also lose dis daily subsistence allowance for 30 days. He has also been banned from representing the parliament for one year. But for some people, this was simply not enough. In under a week almost a million people signed a petition directed at the parliament to suspend Korwin-Mikke.

It is powerful to see how many people feel so strongly about equal rights but it is unbelievable that a man representing his country at the forefront of a large government can make these remarks about women. Inequality in the workplace is nothing new but it has been encouraging to see the women’s movements that have swept the world over the past year. The course of females in power took a turn when a woman almost became the president of the United States, proving to many that women are not weaker, smaller, or less intelligent.

Unfortunately his comment is part of a larger trend of disparaging comments about marginalized groups across the world.There have been lots of shocking (to some) political moments in recent history. Populist takeovers such as Brexit and the Trump election have ignited a fire in many people who felt left behind by globalization. Unfortunately this has also ignited a fire in many extreme right wing groups whose comments are a disturbing reminder of outdated ideology.

The issue at hand is that people of power are openly making remarks that would have last been heard during Nazi times. Donald Trump is the current sitting president of the most powerful nation on earth and has attacked women an innumerable amount of times. When speaking about men changing their children’s diapers he said, "There’s a lot of women out there that demand that the husband act like the wife and you know there’s a lot of husbands that listen to that," Trump said, "So you know, they go for it." In more recent history, Donald Trump was caught in a firestorm when an audiotape was leaked of him talking about groping women he said, “When youre a star, they let you do it”. He later went on to try and defend himself by calling it “locker room talk”.

It’s important to discuss possible justifications to these types of comments, for it goes without saying that these politicians have their defenders. While these comments are extremely outlandish, Donald Trump and those who have made similar comments receive endless support from so many. Many people feel that woman and the marginalized are too sensitive and politically correct and people do not seem to mind these comments. Donald Trump has attacked women so extensively yet still 55 percent of white women cast their ballot with Trump having their vote.

I find this all to be disgusting. I have grown up in a household of three sisters, my mother and father. I have always been told that I am just as good as any man around me and that while being a woman does come with challenges (as seen above) it is our job to be confident and prove these men wrong. I feel empowered after hearing comments like these to make my mark on the world and on the work place on which I will soon enter. Women have always been oppressed and unfortunately still are. Many men have a superiority complex and feel that they are more dominant than women. I have grown up with a mentality of equality and if one day I have a daughter I will make sure she knows that no one can bully her into think she is less than the boy sitting next to her in class.

Comments like these anger women and with that comes more determination to prove people like Korwin Mikke and Donald Trump wrong. The world has evolved a lot in the last decade but we still have a long way to go. Women make up half of the population, and it is clear that this world can not function without them. The age of oppression must end and I hope that with unintelligent, yet anger inducing comments like these being made, more and more women start standing up for what they believe in and their own rights.