Benevolent Sexism

When I talk about feminism in school, I often receive a lot of questions. 

One question I want to answer now is this:'Why do you talk about feminism when you have no personal experience of gender inequality?'

Even though I do have experiences of gender inequality, I usually reply with: 'Must someone have mutilated me before I know that female genital mutilation (FGM) is a bad thing?' Obviously, the boy's answer will be 'no' and that usually rests my case.

However, today I want to paint a picture that I feel that many people have either decided to ignore or simply do not see. The perfect example for this will be to describe the politics that goes on in a school club called 'The Junior Achievement Club' (popularly tagged as just 'JA' on the school premises).

Those who are allowed to run for official positions or even belong to this organization must be in year eleven.No problem with that. 

Now, there are the posts of President, Human Resources, Marketing, Finance etc and the officials voted into these positions are allowed to select their own sub-officials.

The JA club is what I like to call a microcosm of Nigerian politics because of the obvious gender inequality and electoral malpractices.However, my focal point will be on the matter of gender inequality. 

Firstly, the position of 'Human Resources' is reserved only for the girls. 'How is that a problem?' you ask. Good. If we deny that there is no gender inequality, how come a special position has to be reserved for the girls? If the people who made it that way knew that if that position was not reserved,no girl will be an official, doesn't that mean that they are aware of the conspicuous power imbalance?

We think we are being done a favour but the reservation of that post is only a subtle way to make the girls shut up. 'At least they even have one post reserved for them, they cannot complain.'

If there was no racism will there be a television channel just for blacks in the name of BET? Would there have been Black History Month? If there was no homophobia will there be LGBTQ+ centres on school campuses? The answer is a resounding 'NO.' These things have been set up in recognition of the fact that MARGINALIZATION exists.But have these things stopped the marginalization? You already know the answer.

Now back to JA. That position was not reserved in kindness to 'les femmes.' By setting aside that post the issue has not been solved but it is painted like it has. If it really has been solved why is it still so difficult for a girl to become the JA president? 

I asked a couple of boys and as they scratched their heads while looking for justification, the best they could mumble out was the fact that the 'stress will be too much on us.' Strike two. Our physical abilities have been muddled up with our emotional status. They make it look like things have gotten better but they still hold us back with their preconceived notions of femininity. This is what I refer to as 'benevolent sexism.' Some girls also hold themselves back and further worsen the state of things by choosing to remain comfortable with mediocrity.

Benevolent sexism is still very much alive and kicking. If people see you as one too weak or hormonal to be a president of a mere school club and you think you are being done a favour by having a position reserved for you, then you are an accomplice of deeply rooted sexism. If you throw away your genuine ambition to be the club's president and settle for being a sub-official, you are also an accomplice. In the spirit of being un femme libre, it is of utmost important that you demand for your liberation and not settle for less.