Religion trumping freedom

[FireIceTalon]

This weeks newsweek int. features an article about murder of women in Italy.
This has to do with the fact that men can't manage the modern day equality of men and women.

Of course they can't, even the ones who desire to. You cannot reform things like male chauvinism or patriarchy out of capitalism.

I don't think this has to do with capitalism. It has to do with a very old-fashioned religiously inspired mind set. If it had to do with capitalism it would happen in Holland (we invented share trading), or Denmark....more secular but very capitalistic countries.. Instead this happens in places like Afghanistan, and yes also Italy

So men and women are treated as complete equals in Holland and Denmark, in all aspects of life (politically, socially, economically, and within the family structure)? What is women's pay like compared to men in these nations, and how are they treated socially? Are there no reactionary attitudes in general towards them? These aren't rhetorical questions, btw (well, the last one sort of is ). I want to honestly know, because perhaps things are indeed different there.

Here in the USA, capitalism definitely plays a role in contributing to the gender inequalities. Women are paid only .75 cents on the dollar compared to men, less likely to be promoted, and in general have to work much harder to have the same equality of opportunity as men do - and even then there is the so-called "glass ceiling" problem for women. Sexual harassment in the work place is still fairly common too. And that is just in the job market. Culturally, women are still stereotyped and discriminated against in many ways. If a guy sleeps around a lot, he is considered "a pimp" and is phrased for it, but if a woman does it, she is viewed as being a whore and is usually scorned. Complete double standard. And even though it is getting better, women with tattoos are still viewed less favorably, while with men it isn't a huge deal at all. A lot of the reactionary attitudes towards women here have a religious origin, but they are legitimized and necessitated not by religion, but by the capitalist system, state apparatus, and its culture.

Prostitution being illegal is also an attack on working class women. Not that I think prostitution is a good thing, it isn't, but in capitalist society some women are forced to make ends meet somehow, to feed themselves and their families. It is certainly an economic issue as much as a social issue, there is a reason you don't see women from the ruling class do it: because they don't ever need to. I think prostitution is a horrible thing, and no woman should ever have to degrade herself in such a way. But making it illegal just makes it an even worse hardship for them though, for obvious reasons. I suppose there are some women who don't mind it so much, and even a few who may enjoy it, but overall I would say these individuals are in a very small minority. The solution isn't to criminalize prostitution, the solution is to eliminate the economic circumstances that force women into it to begin with.

Anyways, sexism and patriarchy did predate capitalism and there is certainly a religious element in them, but that doesn't matter so much. The fact is, gender inequality is a social development that is an intrinsic process within ANY class antagonist system - whether it is slavery, feudalism, or capitalism. The way the inequality between the sexes is administered has changed over time, yes, but it still undoubtedly exists. Capitalism is no exception to this rule - it is a class antagonist society. There is always the dominant class and there are the so-called "others" - for race it is whites and everyone else, for gender men are dominant and women subservient, rich over poor, straight over gay, etc etc. The only thing that has changed in the course of history is how these social inequalities function as a process. Women have overcome many barriers, but that isn't because capitalism is a better system than previous systems or because it improves over time (it really doesn't), but because women formed political feminist movements and struggles and fought for these gains. They still have many obstacles to face, and the gains they have made will never be guaranteed to stay in place so long as class society exists.