I am a proud Latina. I take pride in my culture, traditions, and family. Latinos have an extensive and colorful history, you know, putting the generational misogyny and machismo aside. The women are strong and independent, that is until it comes to making their own choices because *insert deity of choice* forbid a woman deciding she wants to move into an apartment alone or choosing to not have children. I know all the nitty-gritty details behind the generational misogyny in my culture, and I also know my culture isn’t the only one with these outdated values.
Women for centuries have been ostracized for trying to venture into individual freedom, and this is something that has by no means been corrected. For as long as I can remember, I have been told what is proper for a lady and what is something only men should do. My family has an extensive history of very strong matriarchs, and I never realized that the women in my life who have already suffered through the brunt of misogyny and gender-based discrimination are the ones who continue this generational misogyny. This too, I know, is not a problem that only pertains to my family.
When I realized that this issue is systemic and generational, I knew I had to be bold and voice my criticism of this engrained problem. Now, I have been outspoken for years now, and I’ve been met with many critical exclaims when I speak out. Criticism on how my family raised me to how I’m shaming my family for voicing such a controversial opinion, but my all-time favorite is this:
“Time doesn’t change values.”
I have to agree, though not in the way that you think. Values don’t and haven’t changed. What has is our perception. If we always see the bad as the good, then the value isn’t modified so much as it is misconstrued. Women have been the subjects of misogyny and objectification for so long that everyone grew accustomed to the wrong idea being right.
For argument’s sake, though, let’s scrap everything I just said and go with the idea that generations after generations have been deviating from what’s proper. Does that mean that women shouldn’t have been allowed to vote? Should women not have been allowed to work in leadership positions? Should women not have been allowed to take control of who they want to date? Likewise, should men continue to be the sole bread-providers for the family? All of these ideas are simply preposterous. Women are and have been subjects to practices that have been in place for centuries with slight to moderate improvements.
Should society continue to tell women that they are rebellious when they’re just asking for equality? Absolutely not. We should continue to break the chain to empower our generations and all future generations to get better and strive for actual equality. This fight isn’t about values changing, it’s about correcting a wrong idea that has been masked as a value for centuries. The saying that says that behind every great person is a strong woman isn’t wrong, but we should be encouraging women to be the strong person they are referring to when using to that concept. We will not be satisfied until we are able to confidently stand in a room full of men and be listened to as equals.