Dialectics of sexism: Sexism is the oldest form of institutionalized oppression. The roots of sexism have long been obscured by the dialectics of history. Different races have been oppressed for centuries at a time, but the subjugation of the female sex by the male has gone on for thousands of years. This is the basic difference between racism and sexism which must be taken into account when trying to analyze the underlying structure of sexism.

Eons of time and the dialectical interactions of civilizations have served to hide the caste oppression of females by means of ancient traditions, refined and modified or exaggerated and rigidified; customs of origins so remote they haven't been rationalized for centuries; ingrained psychological attitudes and many other factors, render sexism elusive to define.

Sexism can't be revealed by any superficial or traditional examination of society. There is no class analysis, study of imperialism, colonialism, racism, or caste systems that fully expose the concept of sexism. To understand the superstructure of sexism today, female liberation must re-examine the foundations of civilization.

-Betsy Warrior, "The Dialectics of Sexism," No More Fun & Games; A Journal of Female Liberation, Issue Three. Cell 16, Cambridge, MA. 1969.

Here we are, 36 years later. The ERA has been defeated, and any attempts to revive it are attacked by the right and the left. Women's reproductive rights are being taken away state by state. A woman's sovereignty over her own body and right to make personal decisions regarding her own health, life and welfare are being attacked by the radical right. Women who serve in the military are raped, with the only official response to be that they (the women) face disciplinary sanction or unfavorable reports in their records. Women who stand up for themselves are called witches and worse. Women who are successful in business are attacked and lambasted in the press. Women who have children are punished in their careers by business that recognize little or no maternity leave -- that is if they even get hired -- and are attacked for staying at home to raise the kids and needing public aid, or attacked for working three jobs and essentially raising their kids in daycare. Women who are raped and press charges face the unique challenge of needing to provide evidence other than their testiomony to garner a conviction -- a requirement that does not exist for any other violent crime. One-third of the women in this country have been or will be sexually assaulted -- and the trends are continuing, so you men who scoff at this, consider that your daughters face the same likelihood. Women pay more for healthcare and more for dry cleaning, while making 72% of what men make. As a result, women receive Social Security benefits substantially less than men receive. Teenage girls are denied basic sexual education and are prevented (by law in many states) from obtaining any birth control without explicit parental consent. Women are ignored, ridiculed, sneered at -- or idolized and put on a pedestal to measure up to some objectified ideal fantasy created by men. And when women speak up about issues that concern women, men dismiss those very things as unimportant. Why? Because the men have determined that these issues are not important to them, and therefore are not important.

And so I ask again, not expecting any answer: Why is it again that women's equality is not a priority for the progressive political agenda?

About author

media girl also blogs at other places.