Log #4

When it comes to gender inequality, there are five major points about family and homosexuality I come up with my mind:

First of all, women do the majority of domestic labour and childcare regardless of work outside the home, although men’s contribution is increasing. A 2014 survey by the BBC’s Women’s Hour has found women devote well over the equivalent of a working day each week to household chores – double the amount undertaken by men. The poll for BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour suggests that women spend an average of 11-and-a-half hours doing housework by their own estimation, while men complete just six.

Secondly, research indicates that whilst women’s health deteriorates through marriage men’s improves. Couples with more marital stress have worse immune function and higher blood pressure and heart rates. Also, despite the common stereotype of the groom who has to be dragged to the altar, men have the most to gain from marriage in terms of health. As reported in Physiology and Behavior, marriage can increase life expectancies for both genders, but this benefit is five times stronger for men than for women. What’s more, at the same time, women have the most to lose when the marriage is unhappy. Starting at about age 40, women tend to feel more marital stress than men

Thirdly, married women are even poorer than single women and lone parents (mainly women) are poorer still. Being married and having a partner who provides for the family allows a mother to focus on her children, leading her to become less productive and earn lower wages. Marriage seems to be a source of wage inequality within and across genders. As men’s wages benefit from marriage, but women’s wages are unaffected or even decreased, marriage contributes to the gender wage gap.

Fourthly, women are still subjected to an increased rate of domestic violence through marriage despite recent legislation. 59 per cent of women who experienced partner violence and had children said that their children had witnessed the violence. And women from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds who are victims of violence face not only cultural barriers, but a lack of access to interpreters when seeking to report their experience. Statistic shows that 87 per cent of Australian women have experienced at least one form of verbal or physical street harassment. Besides, one in four young people don't think it's serious if a guy, who's normally gentle, sometimes slaps his girlfriend when he's drunk and they're arguing.

Finally, lesbians are easier accepted by the public than gays.「女女我可以，男男我不行」is the common stereotype that the public holds toward homosexual community. Moreover, 打破假友善」is the slogan used in a LGBT parade I once participated in.