Answer

Proposal Pitch for Gender Discrimination

1.0 INTRODUCTION

            Gender discrimination is a common topic in many societies in the world due to the increased demand for equality and fairness (Cunningham-Parmeter, 2014). According to Marshall (2015), gender discrimination is simply discrimination based on one’s sex or gender and may involve; unequal pay for male or female workers in one workplace, pregnancy discrimination or sexual harassment. On the other hand, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) of the United States says that gender or sex discrimination involves the unfavorable treatment of people in a workplace or society due to the person’s gender or affiliation to an organization managed or formed by people of a specific gender (Clouatre, 2014). Ostensibly, gender discrimination is two-dimensional in the sense that it can either be men discriminating women or women discriminating men. In the United States, gender discrimination especially against women was prominent prior to the formulation of the Civil Rights Act in 1964 which sought to ensure equal opportunities and pay for all genders in the US. Despite these policies, Marshall (2015) observes that sexual harassment against women is still relatively high in American workplaces and homes, thus the need for stronger policies and tougher penalties for violators.

1.1 Research Question

            Have the gender discrimination policies formulated in the United States reduced sexual harassment against women at the workplace and at home?

1.2 Working Thesis

            Gender discrimination policies in the United States have failed in reducing and eliminating sexual harassment against women at the workplaces and homes, and should therefore be replaced by stronger and stiffer policies to ensure women in the society are appreciated and respected just like men.

1.3 Angle 

            Gender discrimination has been on a decline in the United States since the enactment of the 1964 Civil Rights Laws. However, sexual harassment has remained prevalent as it has taken new dimensions especially at the workplace. Unlike before, sexual harassment has become silent and difficult to spot as people have stopped using the previous aggressive techniques. Today, it is propagated through social sites and workplace meetings whenever people make comments about women. On the other hand, most victims have failed to report these cases while others have failed to recognize when they are being harassed thus allowing the perpetrators to continue undermining the efforts made towards eliminating gender discrimination in the United States.

2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW

            Gender discrimination in the United States has been witnessed for many years even before the enactment of the 1964 Act. In fact, research conducted to this point of the study indicates that women were mostly discriminated by men in the country especially when it came to political positions, ownership of property and adjudication of responsibilities especially at home. Nonetheless, continued civilization and civil rights grouped began campaigning for equality thus leading to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that contained policies that guided the distribution of resources and opportunities with the aim of reducing and eliminating any discrimination in the country. Although adopted unanimously and encompasses tough penalties for perpetrators, the laws have been overtaken by time as the gender discrimination acts have taken a new dimension.

            Clouatre (2014), Cunningham-Parmeter (2014) and  Marshall (2015) have also second the argument and based on their observations and believes, this research will discuss some of the new methods used by the perpetrators to discriminate against women especially through sexual harassment. Through these sources and more that will be collected during the research, I will be able to develop suggestions that could be adopted by civil groups, the government and other stakeholders in order to improve the country’s chances of reducing the vice. As the main recipients to the acts of sexual harassment, women will also be guided on how to detect acts of sexual harassment at the workplace as it has become more silent and uses new dimensions that were not used before. The women will also be guided on how to report these cases to avoid victimization and ensure the perpetrators are punished for improved gender equality.

            The primary or main audience will be the civil rights stakeholders who include: the government, civil rights groups (both local and international) and women in the society. My secondary audience is my university’s female professors and students who may have faced sexual harassment or are aware of it as they will be able to know how to detect or handle the situation whenever it occurs or has a probability of occurring. Finally, I believe my audience agrees to my arguments and by the end of my research, will possibly agree to my opinion thereby adopting and sharing it accordingly.

            Finally, based on the available evidence, gender discrimination in the United States is still being propagated through sexual harassment targeting women at the workplace and at home. The collected research also shows that these behaviors have adopted new techniques that make it difficult for women to detect in order to report or complain about. Besides, it is clear through the collected data that some women fail to report sexual harassment advances on them and this undermines the progress made towards eliminating gender discrimination. In contrast, other authors emphasize that the sexual harassment policies and laws are among the toughest in the entire gender discrimination policies in the country. Nonetheless, the behavior is still rife as shown by the available statistics. Accordingly, the available resources emphasize the need to discuss the issue on sexual harassment and the measures that can be taken to stop women from being harassed.

            In presenting my arguments, I will also seek additional information that will help to demonstrate the existence of sexual harassment in the United States. This will mainly be in form of statistical presentations that will compare the level of sexual harassment in the country in relation to other gender discrimination acts like unequal pay and pregnancy discrimination. I will also identify statistics, showing how the country is performing in relation to its neighbors and other countries all over the world in terms of sexual harassment. In conclusion, I will also review opposing literature in order to build a justifiable case from their point of view. Indeed, sexual harassment is a leading gender discrimination act that affects women in the US while at the workplace and at home.

3.0 CONCLUSION

            I propose that gender discrimination policies in the United States be stiffened and improved in order to recognize silent sexual harassments like that conducted in social media and work place meetings. On the other hand, women should also be informed on the silent sexual harassments in order to make them aware of the behaviors. Lastly, there should be discrete reporting procedures in every institution in order to encourage more women to report cases of sexual harassment without fear of victimization. These solutions will therefore improve the country’s ranking in terms of gender discrimination thereby promoting equal opportunities and fair treatment for all genders.

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