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Comment 7 � #EdUni
Hey! Men have problems too
Since an unjust anti-abortion law led to the the death of a woman in Ireland and Steve Moxon told a Parliamentary Select Committee that women are incapable of competing with men in the workplace, women’s rights have once again captured the country’s attention this month. In this same month, however, International Men’s day (IMD) was held on November 19 to contemplate and reconsider the need for men’s rights. Male empowerment is a highly controversial subject and is seen by many to be a backlash against feminism and the emasculation of the modern man; yet, this campaign identifies many pressing concerns. Although, as Ally Fogg states in his article, every day seems to be International Men’s day, it would be wrong to see this day as another attempt from a male-dominated society to subjugate women’s rights and their drive for equality. A statistic that conveys the need for immediately re-evaluating men’s rights is that at least one male an hour is the victim of a sexual crime in London, yet only 11% of sexual crimes against men are reported to police. This reveals a clear need to consider male rights alongside women's. The date has been recognised as International Men’s day since 1999
closeyourtextbooks.blogspot.
Thomas Lacey discusses the importance of acknowledging men's issues in achieving gender equality
EQUALITY: Men argue that their role as parents is often played down when it was established in Trinidad and Tobago, although it has only been celebrated in the UK since 2008. The traditional strand of men’s rights is based around fatherhood and the gender inequality of parenthood. IMD takes men’s rights further than this and seeks to readdress the gender balance in all aspects of life. As the IMD website states, “Men make sacrifices every day in their place of work, in their role as husbands and fathers, for their families, for their friends, for their communities and for their nation.” The day is as much about recognition as it is empowerment and rather than providing a male opposition to International Women’s day, it aims to serve as an equivalent.
To segregate issues into strictly gender-defined boundaries is to negate the inextricable bonds between men and women. One of the main arguments, as mentioned earlier, is that equal rights for parents of both genders are required. This could be partly achieved by giving fathers paternity leave in addition to maternity leave for the mother. Currently, the mother’s rights take precedence and the government fails to acknowledge a father’s different but equally important role in a child’s life. Studies have shown that children who have a paternal role model throughout their early developmental stages fare better both academically and socially. This combination of views and the
removal of the stigma attached to postbirth leave benefits both genders and demonstrates the necessity of a wider ranging assessment of gender rights. In spite of this, it is difficult to separate the extreme male rights activists such as the website theantifeminist.com from the more moderate movements such as the National Conference for Men and Boys. The former is a hysterical reaction to feminism which often presents the government and the media as male-hating, militant feminists, intent on destroying what little manhood the male gender has left. They argue this and opt to ignore the fact that these institutions are, for the most part, presided over by men and instead focus on how they victimise the male gender. The latter party aims to make sure “equality works for everyone”, including men and boys. This is a modern and insightful way to readdress gender issues and see how they affect both men and women; this approach is taken by International Men’s Day and strives to bring about total gender equality. In a world which has been dominated by men for centuries, gender equality is clearly a necessity. However, male rights must not be ignored as this will only hinder the drive for true equality of the sexes.
The Catalonian catastrophy catalonianewstate.blogspot.com
Jonny Ross-Tatam argues independence could prove disasterous for both Catalonia and Spain
PRIDE: Catalan independistas rally to promote a break from Spain On the November 25, Catalans, who inhabit the north-eastern Spanish region of Catalonia with a population of 7.5 million, are to have a quasiplebiscite on their future in the Spanish state. If the conservative Convergence and Union party (CiU) win, then the Catalans will have supported the promise by its leader, Artur Mas, of an independence referendum in four years. Yet despite the flag-waving, nationalistic fervour which has recently erupted in Catalonia, independence holds bleak implications for both Catalonia and Spain. The main argument adopted by the 'independistas' (supporters of independence) is an economic one. They point in particular to Catalonia’s fiscal deficit of 16 billion euros, the difference between what it pays to Madrid
and what it gets back, which makes up eight per cent of the region’s GDP. The cost of independence, however, would be greater. Due to stringent EU membership regulations, there is likely to be a significant time period between Catalan independence and their entry into the European Union. The fear of losing the benefits of EU trade tariffs, therefore, has caused many multinationals to consider moving away from Catalonia if independence is secured. Catalan business leaders have already voiced warnings against independence, for example Josep Pique, chairman of Barcelona based Vueline airlines, who has even said it would be a “disaster for companies”. This view seems to be affirmed by the business confederation of Tarragona, a city in the south of Catalonia, which believes that GDP
could decline by 20-30 per cent as the loss of the EU trade tariffs would reduce competitiveness. It is also likely that the Catalan economy would suffer a Spanish boycott on all their goods, as happened in 2004 due to Catalan separatists’ opposition to Madrid’s Olympic bid. Furthermore, amidst all the antiSpanish rhetoric, the independistas have seemingly forgotten that the Catalans had to rely on the financial aid of the central government in Madrid, who gave them five billion euros earlier this year, in order to stay afloat. The Catalans could expect no such help if they were to go it alone.
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The arguments seem so stacked against Catalan independence that it is difficult to believe that Artur Mas genuinely desires it.” Catalan independence also harbours detrimental consequences for Spain. She would lose her industrial heartbeat and most affluent region, which makes up around 20 per cent of the national economy. Such a loss, as economists at Deutsche Bank have pointed out, is likely to tip the Spanish economy over the edge, forcing her to seek aid from the European Stability Mechanism – Europe’s permanent bailout fund. Such an event would not only be damaging to Spain, but also to the whole of Europe, by prolonging the Eurozone crisis. It could also be conjectured that Catalan
independence may trigger a domino effect that would lead to the collapse of the Spanish nation. As Luis Garicano of the London School of Economics says, “Once Catalonia is out, the burden on the other rich regions increases, and they will want out”; España, therefore, risks becoming ‘Ex-paña’. Secessionist politicians in the Basque region are aware of the implications for their own independence drive; the senator of the Basque nationalist party (PNV) has said that Catalonia is “smoothing the way” for the Basque region. The unwavering opposition to Catalan independence from the central government in Madrid suggests that they are also aware of the bleak implications it holds for the rest of Spain. The foreign minister, Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo, has even said that a Catalan independence referendum would be an “illegal coup d’état”, conveying the seriousness of the situation. The arguments seem so stacked against Catalan independence that it is difficult to believe that Artur Mas genuinely desires it. In fact, it is likely that Mas does not want independence at all and that he is shrewdly riding on the crest of nationalist fervour in order to ensure victory in these elections. Indeed, he only decided to support independence after seeing 1.5 million independistas turnout on Catalan national day on September 11. This nationalist fervour has been a useful smokescreen in deflecting public anger over the austerity measures onto the ‘Madrid bureaucrats’ and ‘lazy’ poorer regions.
Indian textbook tenderises meatlovers In India, a newly released textbook named New Healthway has sparked controversy with its flatout ridiculous content. The book is aimed at those entering secondary school and is designed to help them learn important things like how to keep healthy and hygienic and, you know, other general ‘life stuff ’. It aims to do this by making statements such as “[meat eaters] easily cheat, tell lies, forget promises, they are dishonest and tell bad words, steal, fight, turn to violence and commit sex crimes”. This chapter, entitled “Do We Need Flesh Food?” certainly has some interesting opinions. Opinions being something that probably shouldn’t feature in textbooks. No ethnicity is safe from the textbook’s bizarre and downright fallacious comments. In a good old spot of Brit-bashing, the textbook states, “the Arabs who helped in constructing the Suez Canal lived on wheat and dates and were superior to the beef-fed Englishmen engaged in the same work.” Eskimos are said to be “lazy, sluggish and short-lived” due to their reliance on meat for subsistence. Despite being a country where Hinduism makes up 80 per cent of the religious demographic, the textbook also throws in a fundamentalist Christian attitude towards omnivorism, asserting that Adam and Eve lived only on fruits and nuts. Perhaps more worrying are comments made by online readers which potentially reveal true western perspectives regarding this issue. On the United Press International website, the anonymous individual 'Dan' states: “I’m a meat eater, and it pretty much describes me to a T!” The worst part of the entire story? India’s government has refused to take any action. They argue that schools can use whichever texts they want (though admittedly this text is not an obligatorily curriculum-assessed one). This apathetic approach to misinformation is unsurprising: while the entire population density of Europe doesn’t even come close to paralleling India's, the education budget of England alone is around ten times greater than India’s at £62 billion. On a more positive note, the publisher has discontinued the textbook and issued a press release apologising for the controversial content. Although they do note that the writer was a Principal and Education Director at a school in Tamil Nadu, the 11th largest of India’s 28 states. Good education can’t trickle down fast enough. Alex Shedlock