The Supreme Court issued its decision in the Dukes v. Wal-Mart sex discrimination case yesterday, a frustrating ruling that doesn’t challenge the existence of bias, but that exempts the company from accountability.
The notion that men and women sure are different is at the center of best-selling books, at least one Broadway play, and pretty much all episodes of “Everybody Love Raymond.” But as much as it can be mined for humor, it can also be pretty damaging. While there is some truth to the whole “men are from Mars women are from Venus” kind of thinking, the solution isn’t, as ab-only programs would have us believe, to accept these behaviors as innate and unchangeable and let either sex (though let’s face it, mostly men) behave badly as result. Instead students should be asked to question the nature, validity, and origin of these gender stereotypes, and to explore how stereotypes affect communication within friendships and sexual relationships.
This winter, the Supreme Court will hear arguments in a number of cases that could expand or curtail women’s ability to challenge discrimination in the workplace.
Are transgender people protected from employment discrimination based on existing law protecting Americans from sex discrimination and sex stereotyping? A federal court says yes.
The National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) is one of the most closely watched social initiatives in India. While the scheme has the potential to be effective in the alleviation of unemployment and poverty, it is imperative is to study women’s participation in the social auditing of the NREGA.
