March is Women’s History Month in America. It is celebrated not only on 8. There, in the media, it is spoken throughout the whole month, what women have done for our culture and how their integrity has changed.
Demi Moore, actress and mother of three teenagers, wouldn’t be able to accept fellow actor Ashton Kushner in her life is she wouldn’t accept herself first. Many laughed at them when the 25 year old Ashton became Demi’s lover. However, they stayed together and the gossip stopped. Aston said about Demi: “I’m a different person now – she helped me to be better”.
Now, in the United States, 14% of women are 10-15 years older than men in their relationships. Many things are unsatisfactory in America, but feminism certainly is a mainstream mentality in our time thanks to the women’s movement there. It doesn’t mean that all faults of patriarchy have disappeared. However, even the magazines for men take a feminist direction.
Men’s Fitness Magazine, for example, recommends not a domination over women but respect towards them. I make reference to Men’s Fitness on purpose because it shows that even a muscle oriented publication is sympathetic towards women.
Lately, on American television, you can see the whole set of ads about fatherhood. These positive ads are trying to insert a new vision of “a real man”. One of the ads shows an Afro-American coming out of his car to buy tampons for his 15 year old daughter while she’s waiting in the car.
The initiative of promoting active fatherhood towards children in the family started in the U.S. Now, it’s popular in most countries. I’m especially happy to observe it in Russia, where feminism is still oppresses by the Orthodox church.
I remember in my early youth that I was surprised to read about an Armenian scientist who predicted that the 21-st century will be the women’s one. He was right! Look at the whole bouquet of women leaders blossoming in so many countries recently. When a woman is in power she tends to solve the eco-problems and the ones in health care and education. It’s clear in the results of female empowerment in Finland, Germany, Pakistan, and Chile, etc.
The question of girls education is major in India, Turkey, and African countries where old traditions keep women domesticated. But in Australia and Scandinavia, new programs are developed in order to help girls avoid early pregnancy, for instance.
Special classes in schools teach young people responsibility. They explain to girls how to defend themselves and take care of their future.
Curious enough that even the fashion magazine Glamour called recently our feminist victories, “A triumph of women of this century”.
House of Journalists, 2-nd Floor, 70 Nevsky Prospect, St.Petersburg, Tuesday March 14, 2006