Gender Norms

Hugo Muniz Tellez

Professor Ramos 

English 101

06 December 2019

Word Count: 1005

Gender Norms

There are many problems in society today. One of those problems is fitting into current “society”. This includes everyone, men, women, americans, african americans, latinos, simply everyone. Human stereotype their own people. Nobody is true anymore, we all hide behind masks for we won’t be judged or discriminated from our own communities. Usually, discriminations are more likely to happen due to gender norms and current society stereotypes. My first example is from a video called Phylosophe by Judith Butler. In the video Butler talks about a young man who lived in Maine who was killed only because he walked in a “feminine’ way. That walk became more pronounced, OK, and it was more dramatically feminine, and he started to be harrassed by the boys in the town. And soon two or three boys stopped his walk, and they fought with him. And they ended up throwing him over a bridge and they killed him” (Butler, 1-2). Men being harassed by men due to the way he walked, nothing more, nothing less. Simply because it was affiliated by feminine gender norms. He wasn’t just harassed but killed, someone who will not roam the earth anymore only because he didn’t fit into a society where men aren’t supposed to show feminine gender norms, and those who do become into a target.

 My second example involves an african american not fitting into his own race only because he shows “atypical” qualities. In the Prelude: The Barbershop written by Ashanti Young, Young struggles to fit into his own culture, his own skin, his own people. Young has seen how people with “atypical” qualities are treated. For example, a man named Eric who showed suspicion and innuendo by his actions. They believed he was gay and not worthy of being manly, “Mills doesn’t describe the particulars of Eric’s voice and manner, but it’s conclusive that for the others his masculine performance is insufficiently heterosexual” (Young, 10). The way Young sees Eric being treated makes him scared and afraid that he, himself will become a victim of discrimination for being himself: “My personal history is replete with anecdotes like Eversley’s and experiences like Eric’s, and I’m trying to keep them from adding up, which is why I keep my mouth closed in the barbershop”(Young 11). Eventually his fear became reality and was kicked out of what everyone dreams about leaving, his “hood” but sadly he left the wrong way, “My identity, however, was atypical, alienating me from my neighbors and hood and excluding me from representation og ‘authentic’ ghetto life. Thus I didn’t have to fight to get out of the ghetto. I was kicked out” (Young, 14). 

For my third and last example, it is about women being discriminate for being themselves and working in “manly” jobs. In The ‘Manly’ Jobs Problem written by Susan Chira, Chira exposes the truth of women being harassed within jobs “built” for men. Chira describes how men joke and treat women like men thinking they have penises or are lesbian since they are working in a man job: “The only woman in a repair crew at wind-farm sites charged in a lawsuit that her co-worker called her by male nicknames, from common to obscene, because they thought only a man could handle the job. Men suggested she must have a penis or be a lesbian” (Chira, 5). Eventually, the only way men feel like they’re men within their “manly” jobs are by making the woman know she’s a woman and doesn’t belong there, “ ‘Sexual harassment is often a way in which the men reaffirm woman’s femininity, say this is who you are, back in your place’ Professor Saguy said. ‘At the same time, women will play up their femininity to be accepted ” (Chira, 7). 

A private interview with a young adult who was raised in the  harsh streets of Compton, Los Angeles. Since young, Tony Hernandez knew he was homosexual and Hernandez was perfectly okay with it. Growing up for Hernandez it was difficult as many kids did not know he was homosexual so they expected him to do what teenagers would do at the time. Hernandez stated, “In middle school it was mostly about being gang affiliated and since gender roles over here in LA were completely different, male teenagers expected me to become gang affiliated and to be involved in criminal acts that could possibly lead me to being incarcerated for years”. When people found out about Hernandez sexuality he began to get bullied and made fun of for liking the opposite gender. “It was horrible. At first I did not want to go back to school since I knew being gay would end me. The more and more people knew about it, the worse it got” Hernandez said. As time passed by Hernandez stayed honest to himself and continued on. “I would be made fun of for the way I talked, for hanging out with girls most of the time, and even for the way I dressed” Hernandez said as he looked down. As time went by Hernandez stayed true to himself and got bullied for the gender norms that are enforced by society. Though throughout the years bullying has gone down there are still unaccepting people. Tony Hernandez still faces struggles due to his preferences and sexual orientation. 

The’re are multiple ways to fix discrimination in our current society, one being ourselves no matter what. This isn’t healthy for anyone in any society, it has already brought shame to people for being themselves and even death of innocent people who simply wanted to live and be happy.We will never go anywhere if people still continue to be mainstream and not open minded. By not being afraid to be comfortable in our own skin we will start changing society to be a safe place for everyone. But if we continue to hide behind our mask and insecurities of how people will view you, we will never get anything accomplished. So I ask you, will you be true… to you.

Work Cited

Butler, Judith. “Phylosophe.” YouTube, YouTube, 25 Oct. 2008, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q50nQUGiI3s. This video is all about how gender norms are affecting kids growing up and how society views certain things. It even brought death to certain people

Young, Vershawn Ashanti. “Prelude: The Barbershop.” Your Average Nigga: Performing Race Literacy, and Masculinity. Detroit: Wayne State University Press. 2007. In this short story it is about an african american who is homosexual and was kicked out of the “hood” due to his sexuality. It even showed how your pide can be destroyed

Chira, Susan. “The ‘Manly’ Jobs Problem.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 8 Feb. 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/08/sunday-review/sexual-harassment-masculine-jobs.html. In the manly job it is basically a journal where women are harrassed by en on the job who would say that women can not work manly jobs because it is not right.

Hernandez, Tony. Private Interview. 15 December 2019. Tony Hernandez is the person I interviewed to get more of an insight. Tony faced multiple problems and even bullying. He manage to stay strong and does not regret one bit.