By: Hira Javed

WOMEN OPPRESSION IN PAKISTAN

Pakistan is a country in which my parents were born. Though I was not born there, the country still means a lot

to me. I have visited a couple of times, and some of my best memories originate there.

However, one thing that always sticks out and saddens me is the gender gap. Do you remember when we learned

about how women were extremely oppressed back in the day and were expected to stay home and always take care

of the kids, well that it how it is there nowadays.

PROBLEM: WHO?

Women are living in such a backward state. They are expected to marry in their early 20s and then have babies,

stay at home to take care of those babies, all while the husband dominates everything else.

Women feel as if they can’t become something because it is not “normal.” In fact, many will get shunned by their family

if they do decide to create their own path.Because of this, men often take control in the marriage, and

find it okay to boss around their wife. Women feel inferior and have a more materialistic life as a result.

PROBLEM: WHAT/WHY?

This presentation is specifically based on experience and research of Pakistan, but there are a lot of middle eastern,

third-world countries that this applies to.

A lot of it originates with women not being educated and school not being considered a necessity. Women don’t have that core foundation in a lot of countries like Pakistan, so it affects them alter in life. The amp below shows how low the literacy rates is. Some parts are even as low as only20%.

PROBLEM: WHERE?

Now and for all of history.I will say that times are a little better, but not nearly as much as the United States. This is understandable to a point because the country is a third world country; however, at this rate, women

will be oppressed for many more years.

As time goes on, I definitely feel like more people are becoming aware of the problem and that is somewhat helping, but the rate

is extremely slow. People like Malala Yousafzai are advocating internationally, and many Americans are becoming aware of the

problem. More specifically, she says that “the real war is on women."

PROBLEM: WHEN?

ADVOCATIONThe first major person to have spoken out was Malala

Yousafzi. The unfortunate thing is that she was shot in the head. This, of course, scared many women and they still

feel oppressed out of fear. However, at the same time, many young females, including myself, have been inspired.

How can you help?Be inspired and inspire others! YOU can be the next Malala. Imagine if you were in their shoes and all you needed was a

helping hand. It starts with the simple step of advocating and it all branches from there. Hand out fliers, create a

petition, or simply just inform others about it. People must know the problem before they can combat it.

SOLUTIONS

Some people say that women experience oppression because of their background. They have always been the one to give birth and take care

of the kids, and so naturally they now have expectations to do so.I share a personal connection with this topic because my parents are from Pakistan and I feel like my mother experienced a part of it. She

came to America , and that is when life changed for her. When talking to her about this, she says that she feels it exists because the women are scared and they don’t know any better. Breaking tradition is one

the hardest things to do and because this is how tradition has been for so long, some women don’t even know how to even break it. Whenever I go to visit, I naturally compare how different my life is to the females

there- which is a lot. Life in the US and life there is extremely different, but together, with determination, the gender gaps there can

be like they are here and women can finally feel like they have a chance.

CONNECTIONS- WHY?

"Basis of Women’s Oppression." Basis of Women’s Oppression. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 May 2015.

"Education in Pakistan." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 21 May 2015.

"Malala Is What The Real War On Women Looks Like." The Federalist. N.p., 16 Oct. 2014. Web. 21 May 2015.

"Oppression of Women." Veracity Globe Raising Awareness. N.p., 04 Jan. 2015. Web. 21 May 2015.

"Why Men Oppress Women." Psychology Today. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 May 2015.

WORKS CITED