THE GLASS CEILING

The Glass Ceiling: Are women treated differently?

The Glass Ceiling: Are women treated differently?

Overview of Issues

Since the landing of the Mayflower, the fabric of American society has shifted with increased scientific advancements which have affected the daily lives of Americans. While these changes have boded well for the level of human comfort, there still remain certain aspects of American society that have resisted progress. The Age of Reason denounced the concept of the Divine Right of Kings and introduced to us the concepts of individuality and human rights. These ideologies led the country now known as the United States of America to declare its independence from Britain in 1776. The American British colonies' bid for autonomy result- ed in increased freedoms, yet those freedoms have tended to apply to a restricted class of citizens. Historical data reveal to us that American men have had a longstanding claim on the reigns of power and influence; although there is a slight shift in the status quo, the overwhelming tendency is toward a male-dominated society. The ensuing result is that women are, and continue to be, second-class citizens with restricted physical and intellec- tual freedom when compared to that afforded to men.

Research Supporting One Side or View

It is undeniable that there exists physiological differences between men and women. This truth is used to justify the unequal treatment of women on all levels of human interactions. The uneven treatment is clearly reflected in the attitude of the American legal system toward the female gender. And the prevail- ing historical attitude of men towards women would have us believe that physiological differences limit women in their choice of career, their intellectual maturity, their credibility, as well as their ability to be effective contributors to the advancement of human society and that these differences warrant that women be treated differently from men. Thus, this attitude defines a view of women in which their "role" is that of keeper of hearth and home while that of the man is to provide for and protect this "weaker sex"--a view which continues to define different social roles for men and women. In that spirit, protective legislation for women was born out of Muller v Oregon in 1905. The case involved a laundromat owner who was fined $10.00 for requiring a female employee to work more than ten hours. He appealed this fine to the Supreme Court which ruled against him on the grounds that a woman's "physical structure and proper discharge of her maternal functions...justif[ied] legisla- tion to protect her from greed as well as the passion of men" (qtd in Mezey, 1992, 14). Yet protective laws seem to be more advanta- geous to male interests than female interests. Leo Kanowitz would disagree with me on this, for he is of the opinion that the lack of similar protective legislation for men is injurious to their health and accounts for the greater number of widows than widowers. (Kanowitz, 1981 29).

In many respects, the degree of freedom women enjoy, or ...