Europe, Germany: A woman should be free to choose what she wants

European women have the same rights as their male counterparts. Even nowadays, however, there are still ongoing debates on gender equality. Women in Europe can go to school without fear and can go to university. They have the right to vote and to take out loans. Women and men are equal before the law. There is no legalized oppression of women.

The role of a woman as a housewife and mother has largely vanished from people’s heads, but this image still determines many areas of a woman’s life to this day. In job interviews, differences are made between men and women. While women are asked whether they are planning on having a family, this question does not even crop up in interviews with male candidates. Sure, the woman might decide to have a family and take a break from her professional life for a while, but companies forget that there is a growing trend among men of taking leave from work for a fixed period of time in order to be with their children.

Basically, discrimination already starts with the definition of the genders. Men and women are attributed with stereotype traits that quickly lead to a generalization. Men are considered strong, resolute, and courageous. Women, on the other hand, are usually identified as being weak, emotional, and sensitive. Men are often given leading positions because the traits that are automatically ascribed to the male sex make them appear to be more capable. But character traits should never be generalized and must not necessarily be true. There are men who are far more emotional and sensitive than many a woman. And anyway, emotions are not necessarily a bad thing. They can be a great advantage especially in leading positions.

European women have struggled for their rights for many decades and have advanced to the point where there is gender equality before the law today. But there are still opinions that restrict the free development of women and force them into a role they do not want to assume. A woman should be free to choose herself what will make her happy and satisfied as an individual without having to fear a negative impact on her social and economic life.


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07.03.2016