Reflecting on the History of Women

I’ve made a conscience effort to truly contemplate and study the story of women this month since it is nationally recognized as Women’s History Month. I expanded my studies beyond just the recent feminist history, which in my opinion is a definite highlight of our history to this point, to include our history since the start of written record.

However, this was not as easy as it would seem since the vast majority of surviving records are his-story and are very short on the details of her-story. In an attempt to keep women “in their place,” those who have followed the Judeo-Christian religions destroyed most records of the significance of women in early history. This is clearly seen in the Bible when numerous times the Jews are told to “completely destroy the nations” who worshiped these other gods, of which many were actually goddesses.

It’s significant, I think, that at one point in history females shared the title of divinity with males – and at times reigned as the sole divinity. This part of our history shows woman in all her glory, not as the fallen creature of the Bible who must forever submit to a subservient position to the man because she supposedly ate a forbidden fruit and coerced him to do the same.

It’s time the truth was known. Not the presupposed “truth” garnered from what we have always been told is reality. That reality is severely lacking in the other half of the story. We see reality as we have always been taught to see it. If someone teaches me from young that a certain color is blue, and subsequently others then reinforce that teaching in my family, community, church, government, school, etc. – then I will believe the color is actually blue.

But what if they are all wrong? What if blue is really yellow but no one wants to challenge the errant teaching because the one who said it was blue in the first place claimed to be speaking on behalf of God? In the end though, just because everyone believes this color to blue does not make it indeed blue. In fact, it is still yellow.

That is exactly what has happened in feminine history. Only this teaching has gone so long without being challenged, for fear of being ostracized or even at times killed, that it is now accepted as truth. In the process the real truth has been lost.

What is the real truth? What is reality? The truth is that “in the beginning” woman was indeed equal to man. She was just as intelligent. She was just as capable of dealing with life’s hardships. She was man’s partner, not his property or his slave. It wasn’t until she was denied basic human rights that she was demoted from equality and it wasn’t until she was denied an equal education that her intelligence was called into question.

What is the truth? The truth is that we have been taught that yellow is actually blue. We have been force fed a lie to the point we have hung our heads in original-sin guilt and accepted our plight as second rate citizens – as long as men have granted us at least that much. However, if that is all the fight we have left in us, our future will look much like our past.

We are at a significant point in history. For the last century, women in America have paved the road for us to work outside the house, vote, and even have equal legal rights with a man in the court system. Don’t take this for granted ladies, these are rights we did not have just a few short decades ago. And just as quickly as these rights emerged after thousands of years of degradation, they can slip back into oblivion with just a few court decisions.

Men have always been the ones to govern, but now we have that privilege too. Yes, at this point it is still a privilege we have been granted and can loose if we don’t take advantage of it by being active in governance and the voting process.

Our history is veiled and our present is fragile at best. Let’s make our future and our daughter’s future strong. Let’s equip them with a history worth telling and a mentality of true equality by finally standing against that old lie and teaching them the real truth.

Celebrating Women

After thousands of years of abuse, educational deprivation and being treated like property, women are finally getting the opportunity to blossom like the beautiful flowers that they are. The entire month of March is dedicated to the strength and intelligence of the woman. It’s time to stand tall, to dance uninhibitedly and to give a dainty applause to the other half of the human race.

According to a pullout in the March 12, 2005 issue of The Washington Post, there are 14 women in the U.S. Senate, 65 women in the U.S. House of Representatives and four women serving the U.S. Cabinet. There are also eight women serving as Governors. I’d say that women are finally having a say in the world. The whole “hand that rocks the cradle” thing is nice, but it’s also just a phrase used to pacify the demand of the woman to be an equal voice of reason concerning decisions that effect her. The pullout also said that one of every four doctors in America today are women, and that number will be growing soon with half of all medical students being female.

It’s about time we got recognized for something more than just beauty. The beauty of women has long been acknowledged. However, by giving a woman recognition for just the shallow shell of a fading attribute and no more is just as demeaning as giving her no recognition at all. Though many men still find it hard to reconcile beauty and intelligence in the same female, there is no doubt at all that women will soon be on equal par with their male counterparts – in relationships and in the office.

We’ve sure come a long way baby, but we still have such a long way to go. The same Washington Post pullout, which was created and edited by women, termed their section, “A Few Who Made a Difference.” This celebration of women has become a spotlight for just the exceptional women - the doctors, legislators and activists. What about the everyday Jane? She is just as spectacular as a Susan B. Anthony or a Mae Jemison. We should be celebrating all women. We should be celebrating the stay-at-home moms and the women working at the local Wal-Mart too.

Women are faced with the daunting task of juggling family, house, relationships, and career. Though I feel this was much easier when communities were tight clans of trusted family and friends who helped with childrearing and the day-to-day dramas of life. Today, many women are not only alienated from their families because of cross-country moves, but they are also juggling a demanding career that most likely still produces guilt for time stolen from the family. I often wonder if men ever struggle with this same guilt while they build their careers. There are also many women who are raising their families alone. The father sometimes abandons her and other times she chooses for her own well being to end a bad relationship. Either way, it is not easy to raise a family alone – yet so many women do it everyday. These women are some of the strongest women I’ve ever come across and I applaud their fortitude and sheer will.

Women are beautiful. I’ll give that much to the stereotypical chauvinists. We are beautiful on the outside AND on the inside. We are also so much more. We are meek yet highly intelligent. We are masters of organization and free spirited lovers of nature. We are the nurturers of the young and the hardnosed bitches of the boardroom. We are serious about building a financially solid future yet have no problem spending a hefty chunk on a pair of quality shoes. Are we a paradox? No, we’re just a multi-faceted life form capable of a variety of roles at the same time.

So here’s to you woman! I lift my cup up in your honor. You can be anything you want to be now. That is an awesome statement that your mother or grandmother could not have said with the surety that you can say it. Our future looks just as bright as our past is dark. Ching! (wine glasses clinking together) Have a great Women’s History Month.