The Importance of Empowering Women

  As a rule, I generally try to avoid political labels, because labels imply a sort of rigidity in one's thinking. Once a label is applied, it generally tends to stick, especially when it is applied to oneself. Labels are generalizations, ways in which we simplify the world in order to make it easier for us to understand, and sometimes this is necessary, but when overused they lead to lazy or rigid thinking, stereotyping, prejudice, and in some severe cases, even outright Conservatism. But I digress. I only mention this before I go ahead and embrace the “Feminist” label, so that you might understand that this isn't some off-the-cuff position that I adopted because it seemed politically fashionable, but rather because there are very good reasons to be a Feminist, in the sense of the term that implies a deep support for the equal rights of all women.

  The fact that in many parts of the world roughly half the population lives in servitude and virtual slavery to the other should profoundly disturb us. And yet, this is the situation faced by women in countries everywhere, where “cultural norms” are used as justification for their humiliating, often brutal, and occasionally fatal subjugation to men. Cultural norms, I would strongly suspect, that have been dictated by generations of very highly privileged men, raised by their fathers to thoroughly believe in their own sex's superiority. As a Western male, I should mention that although I'm quite happy with the gender I was born with, I find the idea that men are somehow innately superior be frankly laughable, given how very keenly flawed we often prove ourselves to be, and how many exemplary and brilliant women I have had the privilege to know or read about. One thing the West has learned very well since elevating our women to the legal status of equals is that they really are equally capable, and while in general their aptitudes may differ slightly due to differences in the wiring of male and female brains, there are certain areas in which they consistently outperform men (anything requiring working in a team, for example). Treating women like property, hindering their education and affording them little more status than one would give to livestock is a contemptible practice, that demeans them and squanders their innate capacity to contribute to society.

  While tolerance certainly is a necessary ingredient in creating a healthy global civilization, it is also necessary to know when to draw the line, and to call a spade a spade. There is nothing politically incorrect in shaming countries that perpetuate atrocities against women – in fact I would argue quite the opposite. If your culture advocates or even condones throwing acid in the faces of girls who want to go to school, then it should be obvious to anyone with any moral sense at all that something is deeply wrong with your culture. When a culture reaches such a point, it deserves – nay, begs - for criticism, from within and without, and we are morally obligated to provide it, lest we commit a terrible sin of omission. One could only hope that such criticism might motivate a degree of self-reflection, so that a culture may, in the long term, choose to purge itself of such a sickness. Citing culture does not provide blanket immunity to moral questions, and if we wish to think of ourselves as moral creatures at all, then we must not be afraid to ask such questions. It is only through the power of conversation and public debate that cultures develop over time, and if there is any hope of moving such frankly primitive attitudes toward women out of the stone age, then the conversation cannot be indefinitely deferred in the name of political correctness.

  One might hear the argument made that cultural norms are all relative, but even a cursory look at actual sociological data would reveal this to be apologist nonsense. I believe cultural relativism to be a dangerous concept, used to justify too many human rights abuses in the past, particularly women's rights abuses. The fact is we all have certain emotional and social inclinations from birth, perhaps aside from sociopaths and psychopaths. These inclinations are cross-cultural, hardwired into our brains by evolution, and are then modified by our environment and upbringing, and so it is quite possible to argue that we do have a certain “universal morality”, that can be extrapolated from our natural, intuitive social impulses.  Organizations like the UN and Amnesty International already appear to recognize this to a certain extent, but it is important for us all to recognize this on an individual level as well. Those traits most common to societies around the world, a global average of social norms, if you will, could (and often do) guide us toward a standard for universal morality. If we want to refine this further, and find universal norms most likely to lead to positive social outcomes, then we need only look at those societies that score highest on indicators of social well-being, and weight their social norms proportionally when determining an overall average. I would be willing to bet very heavily that countries with equal rights for women would score very highly in such an assessment. They do, as a matter of fact, tend to do much better economically – having a population in which anyone can potentially become a member of the workforce tends to have this effect. This was a very large contributing factor the success of the U.S. Post World War II.

  This last point is one of the main reasons that I advocate women's rights – it is simply the most practical way to elevate entire societies out of poverty. Christopher Hitchens put it very well – we have a cure for poverty, one that works every time that it is tried, and that is the elevation of women. In many countries today, there are initiatives to provide micro-loans to women in rural communities, and this is happening because it is proving stunningly effective. These women, when given even the smallest bit of opportunity, have consistently demonstrated an ability to create successful small businesses. They overwhelmingly tend to become contributing members of the business community, repaying their loans at a higher rate than is typically seen in developed countries. Furthermore, as they do this, they help to pull their entire communities out of poverty by generating cash flow, hiring employees, and sharing their experience. This is the true face of the “job creator”, not the ultra-rich (and generally male) business executive. I'm pragmatic, and simply believe in providing support to those who have proven their worth to the rest of society, and in this case, it is the former, not the latter.

  Men have certainly had their time as leaders, and we see the results quite clearly when we look back at history – a propensity for war, materialism, and a general lack of flexibility in negotiation. We were the hunters, historically, and as such are inclined to territoriality and aggression – this is simply built into the wiring of our brains. Although we can (and often do) overcome it, it is only through great effort, typically, and many men simply do not care to expend this effort. If you doubt this, simply glance at violent crime statistics virtually anywhere in the world, and you will see which sex is more inclined to use violence when solving problems. Women, conversely, were the gatherers in early human societies, and as such are more inclined to working cooperatively, working together to find mutually beneficial solutions for problems facing the social group. In today's world, this is rapidly becoming the only viable means of problem-solving left to us. As we develop more and more catastrophic weapons, we will eventually have no choice but to give up war, lest the slightest conflict spiral out of control and lead to the extinction of our very species. In our history, armed conflict, distasteful as it is, may have served a purpose, but we simply do not have the luxury anymore, and as such, perhaps we should elect leaders who are less inclined to use it. In almost any situation, there are typically ways of resolving disputes that can allow both parties at least some benefit, and women, I believe, are simply better at finding these options.

Ensuring women are educated, given equal status, and a voice in social policy can change societies dramatically, and overwhelmingly, it is for the better. This was a difficult transition for Western society many years ago, no doubt, but it is one we can now look back on with pride and satisfaction, and I sincerely hope that in this century, we can help other areas to see the benefits of making this same transition. Too long have we shamed ourselves through the exploitation of women, too long have we wasted so much human potential, and too long have we allowed patriarchy and machismo to dictate how we live. A change in the status quo is long overdue – this is why I am a proud Feminist, and you should be too.