Author: Nathan Niyen

A judge has allowed for 9000 women to sue Disney for pay disparity. The plaintiffs say that Disney did not uphold California’s Equal Pay Act and discriminated against women. “Disney says that you can’t compare jobs over multiple sectors because it depends on the manager” (Maddus). This can be seen as a cop-out because the company should have a standard rate for each job. The lawyer also says that because the workers work together at the same job level, they do not have the same amount of work. Because of education, time of hire, tenure, or how long the person has been working there. Both of these sides have an expert that says there is a gender wage pay gap and that there isn’t one. The claim is that managers could use past pay history to be able to set pay for Disney jobs. While Disney says it could be used, it was never required, so the company shouldn’t be at fault.

            In my opinion, do workers have a case to win? In my opinion, they may have a chance to win this suit, but if they do, Disney will probably blame it on the managers, which seems like they are already doing. And also, with a class action lawsuit like this, it will probably take a few years to be settled.

            But it just shows that no matter how far as a country we advance, there is still gender discrimination that can happen. Especially regarding wages, it is interesting that managers can base the employee pay upon past pay. I don’t know if that’s illegal or not. The article did not say anything about it being illegal. So I guess they can do that, but to me, it seems like a gray era, which is one reason I think the lawsuit will win.

https://variety.com/2023/biz/news/disney-gender-pay-lawsuit-class-certification-approved-1235830178/

While the paper talked about what exact gender-based violence is, this op-ed is going to talk about my options in detail in this paper. The first thing that needs to happen is that it needs to be talked about more. And it needs to be talked about in layman’s terms to younger audiences. I think the audience that can benefit from this topic is high schoolers because they are usually in relationships and can be mature enough to have these conversations. So, once you have the younger crowd knowing what exactly gender-based violence is, you can engrain into them that this is a thing that they shouldn’t do. Next, you focus on the adults because, in a sense, you will have to educate them. There are ways to leave these abusive relationships and get those people the help they need. Also, you can help these people learn exactly what to look for in a partner that might exist. These types of things, such as if they have high anti-social behaviors, are things that you need to steer away from. I also think that people need to be able to understand their partners more and communicate with them. One of the factors that could control intimate partner violence is the idea that one person thinks their partner is too controlling, which could lead this person into thinking that they need to act out in aggression to relieve some of that controlling nature. So, if there is a chance to communicate this to your partner, it can lead to some positive outcomes in the future. That way, couples don’t have to resort to aggression to solve their problems. Also, they can be an internal problem the tone person in the partnership must fix. For example, if they always go to aggression to solve a frustrating problem, they must find ways to deal with it without hurting their partner.  The paper also talks about how the researchers wanted to flip the research and focus on women when it came to intimate partner violence. I wouldn’t say I like that Idea. Are there men who face this type of violence? Yes. Do these men have every right to make their voices heard and known? Yes. But the way it was framed in the paper made it seem like it was a center for women affected by this violence. Like how all live matter was to counteract black live matter. It seemed disingenuous to intimate partner violence as if they weren’t trying to figure out a genuine reason for why a woman might do this, at least in my opinion. They then try to use some factors to see which would have a more significant effect on IPV. They did teen birth rate as one of the factors for IPV. In my opinion, it seems like it would not have that much of an effect on IPV because I feel as if drug usage would have a more significant impact on IPV. If people are on hard-core drugs or something like alcohol, it could have a greater effect on a person who is more likely to engage in IPV behaviors. But when it comes to men and women in the legislature, I feel that is an excellent way to measure IPV. Because the mindset would be with more women in the legislature, more bills would have more women’s input, which could lead to solid punishments for people who actively engage in IPV. Because if the punishments are harsher, it can deter other people from beating their partners. Women in the labor force was another one that was talked about. On the one hand, if more women were in the workforce, they could have their own money and not rely on their partners. A woman might stay in an IPV relationship because she has nowhere to go and no money to stay away from that partner. So, if she has her own money, she may be more likely to be able to leave that situation, which can stop one case of intimate partner violence. When it came to the results, it was all over the place. Some states were high for women, and some for men. But overall, it showed that there were no significant statics when it came to men. This could be because of the small sample size. Men are less likely to come forward about things like this. Also, I would like to see how other-sex couples are measured through this. Will it be the same, or will it be different?

There is a new policy in the ICC for gender-based crimes. This is supposed to help victims who didn’t have any way of prosecuting these people before. The new policy was implemented on December 4 of this year. It was presented at a yearly meeting at the International Criminal Court of Assembly States. “This policy is for the survivor center and trauma-informed.” (Seelinger(Schoenherr) Now they are trying to find a way to operationalize this in actual court.

Seelinger Helps Draft New ICC Policy on Gender Crimes

A researcher did a gender budgeting study in Ecuador. He did this in Ecuador to see how gender budgeting has been working there. The article talks about how gender budgeting has been spread exponentially, especially in Latin America. In Latin America, it has been 18 countries that have implemented some gender budgeting in their country. There are several ways to think about gender before and after an event. Like opening a new infrastructure and thinking about how gender would be implemented. “Another way is to see how resources are spread across the country.” (Guzmán) This can be seen by how the money can move around and what the government does to help the women in their country.

            The researcher then did in-depth interviews with twenty-two people. “Ecuador got a recognition by the U.N. for their work in gender budgeting.” (Guzmán) Ecuador started their work in early 2010. They passed a law requiring the Ministry of Economy and Finance to include a gender budgeting statement in their yearly budget. It requires all ministries to look through their organization and ensure that there is a gender lens on what they are doing. But most of the effects of gender budgeting in the country has now had a real impact instead of just raising awareness. “women activist has said that gender budgeting has not been used well enough to implement systematic change.” (Guzmán) This could be because Ecuador has used gender budgeting to show that they are doing something but not doing something.

            One factor discussed is leadership and how that has led to the lack of leadership. “The policies do not work and are just swept under the rug.” (Guzmán) The interviewees talk about how the leaders don’t make real progress; they only speak for show. Also, the machismo culture has diminished the effect of gender-based budgeting. The country must be on one page for gender-based budgeting to be effective.

Gender-responsive budgeting as a tool for gender equity: the Ecuador case

This article talks about how judges in the UK government are allowed to block Scotland or gender ID reforms. “In Scotland, the government let people legally change their recognized sex last year.” (Sim) But the UK government says it would impact equality. The people who voted against the Scottish bill say it will harm the women and girls in same-sex spaces, which is like how it is in the U.S. They say in spaces like hospital wards and refugees. They may think that things that are specifically supposed to be for cis men and cis women will be taken from them and given to trans individuals. Support for this bill will say it makes it easier for people who want to change their gender to get a legal certificate to show that they have, and it will be less traumatic for trans people.

            There are a few components to the bill that are talked about. “It will remove the medical label of gender dysphoria that is put on these people by doctors.” (Sim) This is an interesting point in the bill because this is needed to change their legally recognized sex. This means that if the doctor doesn’t deem the person in the criteria for gender dysphoria, then they are not able to be legally recognized. Also, the age that a person can apply for has been cut down from 18 to 16. One of the most significant changes is that it brings down the time to live the acquired gender from two years to three months.

            There are back and forth that have come out about this bill. The Scottish government said that the UK government illegally rejected the bill. But when it got taken to the judge, she said the block was lawful, and the UK government took the correct steps to block the bill. One of the UK legislators says that “the Scottish legislature needs to stop wasting taxpayers’ money” (Sim). The opponents of this bill think that there is already a bill that covers the protection and freedom of women and transgender people. Ant this new bill will negatively affect the Equality Act of 2010. The Scottish minister will try to repeal the block to see if the bill can go through.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-67659791

The article looks at how the intersectionality of race, gender, immigration, ethnicity, and womanhood affects older Chinese immigrant women in Canada. It takes the intersectionality framework to look at the gaps when it comes to their variable. “Influences of age, gender, immigrant status, and ethnicity” (Wang et.). Twelve in-depth interviews were used for this study. They found that using the intersectional perspective could better inform the demographic being studied. It breaks down what influence migrating may have on these immigrants.

The experience that older immigrants have is very different from the ones younger people who immigrate or have children. For instance, they lose their connection with their home country. This could lead to them feeling isolated. Not have people to talk to or friends with whom they can share their life stories. “Older immigrants were dependent on their adult children for both instrumental and financial support” (Wang et.) There could be many reasons for this, starting with the fact that it could be challenging for these older immigrants to learn a new language, which could be a barrier to getting into the workforce. They also can’t sign any documents in their host country’s language, so they must rely on their children. The article then goes into how gender can affect this isolation.

The intersection of gender and acculturation into a new country has some research on it. In a different study that the article cited, “it found that women did have less acculturation and were less likely to live independently compared to their male counterparts.” (Wang et) This could be because of widowhood, where the family feels the widower can’t stay in the house. So, they either live with the family or they live in the home. The study found that gender played a role in acculturation. Females were the ones tasked with caregiving responsibility. This could be because they spend so much time taking care of a dying family that they can’t acculturate into the culture. There needs to be more research done on this topic.

https://www.proquest.com/sociology/docview/2871782914/7E75D5A82F404767PQ/2?accountid=10639

The article started talking about how feminists of both Palestine and Israel came together. The reason why they called for this meeting was a call for peace. They first meet at the wall of the west bank and West Jerusalem. Their protest took them to the Dead Sea. This protest involved diplomats and public figures. They read a mother’s call and demanded that this conflict end in a nonviolent solution. A jointly written declaration stated, “We, Palestinian and Israeli mothers, are determined to stop the vicious cycle of bloodshed and to change the reality of the difficult conflict between both nations for the benefit of our children.” This was to show that the people who may be the most affected by this conflict are the children. The innocent ones don’t even know what is happening with this conflict. All they know is that their friends and family are dying.

            The article then talks about how Israel is infantilizing the women of their country. Even though they pride themselves on being very high in gender equality. One way they do this is by requiring every adult Israeli to be in the army. Unless the person is an Arabic woman or an Orthodox Jew. The article states that this view is insulting since women from both sides are the most vocal when it comes to peace talks. The author says that feminists must speak out against war. Hannah Safran stated, “How can you ask for freedom for yourself if you don’t ask it for other people?”

            The author then shifts to talk about how women are disproportionately attacked in this conflict. About how Israeli policies make life more complicated for Palestinians in general and how the Palestinian policies disproportionally affect women in the region.  The article also shows how violence is gender, and it negatively affects women. These women started focusing on the liberation of Palestine and a nonviolent solution to this conflict.

            The report then talks about the outside feminists who are helping with this conflict. Looking at the past feminists and how their work will help today’s feminists regarding this conflict. Then, they go into detail about how Israel treated Gaza before the bombing. It ends on a positive note about how feminists can lead the charge into having Israel and Palestine come to a non-conflict agreement.

It’s Feminist to Demand a Ceasefire in Israel–Palestine

The Kafala system needs to be improved. Many aspects of this system need to be updated for the well-being of the immigrants. One side is how the migrant workers are treated. First is how the employers get away with things against human rights. Also, some of the Philippines’ economy has depended on this system, leading to more exploitation. The living conditions of the immigrant workers need to be better. Because, at the end of the day, they are still human.
The Kafala system is a network between migrant workers and employers in the UAE and other countries. There is also governmental involvement that is in the system. A lot of money circulates this system, so it cannot be dismantled completely. The workers in this system need the money to help their families back in their native country. It also helps the economy of their native countries so much that there are classes to teach people how to become better workers. There are ways to fix the problems without destroying the system.
One point to start with is how the workers are treated. Most of these workers live in the house with their employers. The experiences of these people are different across the spectrum. Some are treated well by their employers, while others are treated inhumanely. This aspect of the system can be improved by not having the restriction of having the employees be so closely tied to the employer. Like needing a pass to be able to travel freely in the city. This could allow the locals to see the immigrants as people and not just extensions of the employer. Also, a government employee should go around to ensure workers are getting paid. If the employee is staying in the house and they are an “around the clock” work. Food shouldn’t be used as a disciplinary item. The government needs to have concrete rules that have officers to make sure everything is up to date. So, they can ensure that these workers are treated like human beings. Also, the workers need to be able to change jobs without that much backlash. There can still be a sponsorship if the employee finds a better job for better pay. They should be able to make it more of a free job market. That way, the immigrants can also help the countries they work in by pouring money back into that economy.
Another aspect that should be improved is the employer side. The employer side should receive harsher punishments for inhumane practices. A stronger government regulation will help improve the system overall. Having a more drastic punishment will act as a fear deterrent for others. Also, it keeps the employer in check by ensuring they pay their workers. Also, a class to teach these employers something about their employees. That way, they can see them as people instead of just infantilizing them.
The third aspect of the system that can be improved is the Philippine side of things. With the class that teaches them how to assimilate better into the country they are going into. They also should teach them that they don’t need to take extreme types of abuse. Another thing this agency can do is make it easier for the immigrants to quit their jobs. There can also be a fund for people who send money back, which goes where it needs to go. In my experience, my mom would send money back, and it wouldn’t get to the person it needed to get and ended up getting “lost.”
These fixes are obviously going only partially to solve the problem with the Kafala system. But a strong government agency protects the workers before the employer. It will improve the overall satisfaction and safety of everybody involved.

I read this excerpt on why gender needs to be a key dimension of refugees. The excerpt was written in 1987 but can still be applicable today.  This is a big part of acculturation because before some of these immigrants even had a chance to there is a reason they had to. The paper breaks down what people see as a refugee. They see them as this big mob of people. And not the gender differences that may arise from the refugees as individuals. The fact that the world sees refugees as just one big conglomerate can be very detrimental to women refugees. “The Geneva Refugee Convention does not point out the fact that women can be oppressed in a country.” (Indra 1987) This can be seen as an oversight by the convection because it says oppression by the government but not oppression that a woman might face because of the same government. “The example she gives is a woman stepping out of her gender role in Iran.”(Indra 1987) In some countries, a woman’s voice is only heard in the private sector. This gives into her voice being silenced because she is not seen or heard as much.

            This silenced that happens in gender can be expanded upon in flight and in refugee camps. “The scarce recourse that makes flight possible is allocated to men” (Indra 1987) Flight is when a refugee leaves their home country. This can cause harm to the women in that country because their problems can be seen as less important. It can also cause families where there is no father present to be overlooked when it comes to getting resources. As she states most organizations look for a family structure when it comes to resettling. This could be because in their opinion the family will have a better chance of succeeding. That means single mothers with kids can be at a big disadvantage compared to their counterparts. This goes beyond just organizations but also researchers who are studying this topic.

            The process of acculturation is to bring one culture into contact with another culture (Foster 1962). So, this process starts long before they even step foot into their new country. So, if there a various gender differences happening while the person is in refugee status. It can carry over while they are going through the acculturation process. Because as long as that immigrant lives in that county they truly never stop acculturating. And if they already feel as if their gender has affected the way they were treated by the organization and the people in the organization. It could significantly affect how they acculturate for their lifetime. This brings up the question about how organizations may see the gender difference of refuses today. Is it still the same as it was in 1987? Or has the mindset changed? How does this all together affect the acculturation process when it comes to gender differences?

This article gives insight into two activists on trial in China. Their names are Huang Xueqin and Wang Jianbing. They are on trial for inciting or subversion of state power. Huang is an activist who is known for her work in the #MeToo movement in China. She came to prominence because she created a platform for women to tell their stories about what has happened to them in the workplace and at university. She also runs a pro-democracy journal in Hong Kong. While Wang is known for his work in gender movements and labor movements.

            They got detained a day before Huang was supposed to go to the UK. Wang’s home was used as a base for social movement leaders and participants. Where they could talk and form plans. They would also plan demonstrations and marches from this apartment. Huang was also detained in 2019 because China implemented this security law that constricted the freedom of speech in Hong Kong.

            They have not had communication with the outside world for 47 days now. Their supporters have a feeling that they are getting tortured for information about other activists and their plans. The police are also integrating 70 of their associates to see if they can get information out of them. The case the Chinese government is pressing on them is seen as a way to shut down these protests rather than an actual case. Since Huang is a UK post-doctoral student. It has caught the eyes of some British diplomats who will appear at the trial.

https://www.outlookindia.com/international/explained-who-are-gender-rights-activists-huang-xueqin-and-wang-jianbing-why-are-they-being-prosecuted-in-china-news-320356