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Gender


Natutuwa ako sa class kanina. Our topic was about gender. We're asked to divide into small groups and discuss its concept, issues, and the advantages of gender development. Bilang wala naman akong karanasan sa usaping gender, hinayaan ko na muna silang magsimula. 

Ang ganda noong naging usapan namin, talagang tutok ako sa diskusyon. Bawat isa sa amin ay may sariling pananaw- yung iba pareho, yung iba salungat. Pero hindi namin pinipilit ang paniniwala namin sa iba. Hinahayag lang namin ang mga bagay na sa tingin namin ay tama halaw sa kung ano ang natutunan at naranasan namin. 

Natutuwa ako sa mga usapang ganito na may kabuluhan at lalim. Kaya naman hanggang ngayon ang dami paring pumapasok sa isip ko na konsepto na hindi ko nabanggit sa silid kanina. Kaya dito ko na lang isusulat upang balang-araw mabasa ko ito muli, maalala ko kung ano ang pananaw ko sa gender sa mga panahong it.

Sex pertains to the biological make up of a person. Sa madaling salita, anong ang ari na mayroon ka - penis or vagina, pechay o talong (upo), butas o batuta. So sex is a scientific term. Gender on the other hand is a social term. Sa usapan namin lumabas ang terms na identity at expression. Ang naalala ko lang dito, yung identity ay yung how you see yourself; expression is how you present yourself, dito papasok yung kung paano ka manamit, anong trabaho mo, anong tungkulin o ganapin ang ginapampanan mo. Isa sa mahahalagang napulot ko dito ay sa usapin ng gender mas nararapat pagtuunan ng pansin marahil ang karapatan ng bawat isa.

Dadako naman ako sa mga ibinahagi ng mga kamag-aral ko. Eto yung mga bagay na di ko nagawang ibahagi sa klase. Naikwento kanina na mayroon daw isang paaralan sa ibang bansa kung saan ang mga laruan ng bata ay walang pagpapahayag ng kasarian - walang baril-barilan, walang cookset, walang toys. Noong sinabi niya yun, napaisip ako. How would they teach a kid the difference between a boy and a girl? Inalala ko tuloy kung paano ako tinuruan ng lalake at babae noon. Di ba ang tinuturo sa school, boys are those who have short hair, who wear polos, wear pants, wear briefs, look like daddy, play with guns, cars, action figures. Girls have long hair,wear dresses, wear panties, look like mommy, play with dolls, make-up, cook-set. Sa makatuwid, bata palang tinuturuan na tayo ng stereotyping. Bakit di kaya ituro na lang sa bata na "boys have penis and girls have vagina" para bata palang mulat na sila na ang pinagkaiba lang ng babae at lalaki ay ang kanilang ari.

Di ba nga gender is a social term, and that gender is actually gender orientation. It's the function, and role a person takes in or chooses. Therefore, a group said that gender is a choice. Pero sa tingin ko marami sa LGBT ang hindi sasang-ayon sa konseptong ito. Sasagutin lang nila ng, if being gay is a choice, then when did you choose to be straight. Sasabihin ng ilan sa LGBT na we're born this way, baby. Para sa akin naman, sa akin lang naman ito, I agree that gender is a choice. Hayan ah, gender. I say this because when we are born, for example female, our parents will naturally give us "girly" things like dolls, dresses, panties etc. But as we grow old daanan natin ang mga stages ni Freud at Erickson, we'll soon identify who we are. It's either we choose to stay, in this example, female, in the social context, or choose to be a lesbian. It all boils down to where you are happy and where you feel you will reach the highest level of Maslow's hierarchy of needs, self-actualization. At that point, it really becomes a choice. Kahit na sabihin nating there's a boy who feels he's girl trapped in a boy's body, later in his life he will make a choice to assume a girl's body or stay in a boy's body and act/look like a girl. Straight people, in my opinion, chose to be straight when they chose not to act on his homosexual desires. Pero parang bihira na ang straight ngayon in its strict sense. Marami na kasi ang nag-eexperiment. But the choice there lies after tasting both courses, which one is better for him.

Tapos may nagcomment pa kanina. We no longer say gender preference daw. Kasi nangangahulugan daw yun na male ka ngayon tapos gay ka bukas, tapos male ka na ulit. Gender orientation daw ang mas appropriate.

Kanina sa jeep, iniisip ko pa rin ang mga issues on gender - stereotyping, equality, discrimination, etc. Tapos may pumasok na mag-syota (read as: isssyuhta). Sabi ni girl kay boy: napaka-gentleman mo ah. (Nauna kasi si boy kay girl sa pagpasok sa jeep at naiwan si girl na humahabol sa jeep habang paandar na ito.) AHA-moment. It's not only men who have stereotypes of women, women also have stereotypes of men! If men think that women are just for child-bearing, home-manager, child-nurturer, subordinate, women on the other hand think that men should be a gentleman, he should be the protector, the provider, the stronghold. But if women are fighting for equality, why do they still see themselves as the weaker sex? Sa bus for example, base on my experience, may mga kababaihan na papasok sa punong bus at tatapat sa kalalakihan upang pagbigyan sila ng upuan. Women still play the damsel in distress card. In that sense, it's the women who still are stuck in their own stereotypes of being the princesses. Naalala ko tuloy noong romantic years kung saan males acted like gentlemen and females acted like ladies. I guess wala pang gender issues that time kasi ladies are treated well. Tama nga yung isang ibinahagi kanina gender is determined by roles, function, time and space.

Pansin ko na mahaba na pala 'tong sinulat ko. Kaya dito ko nlng tatapusin ito. 

Comments

  1. agree na agree ako sa women fighting for equality. matalino sila may mga pagkakataon na gagamitin nila ang pagka-babae nila at sasabihing magpaka "gentlemen ka naman" kung alam nilang agrabyado na sila pero kung kayang kaya pa nila eh ipaglalaban nila hanggang kamatayan ang equality. kung baga hindi nila niyayakap ng buong buo ang konsepto ng "equality" parts by parts lang hindi consistent at kung minsan naman eh aabusuhin nila ang privileged ng pagiging isang babae.

    ReplyDelete
  2. nalito na tuloy ako sa pagkakaiba ng gender orientation sa sexual orientation. is sexual orientation the same with sexual preference o ang sexual orientation at gender orientation ang pareho?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. base sa nabanggit kanina, gender orientation daw ang mas tama - lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender. (may contention nga sa bisexuals e. turo daw sa sociology na bisexualism is a transition, phase lang daw yun)

      sexual preference ay sa decision - who you prefer to have sex with or i guess kung top, bottom, versa (sa pananaw ko lang yan, masyado na explicit para i-tanong ko sa kanila. hehe)

      Delete
  3. I tend to disagree about the choice thingy ....



    since the time of history...people are getting prosecuted and get killed for being a homosexual...yet they tend to stay gay even on there final hours.


    Why?

    Simple...those things...you can not see it ...but you can feel it inside of you .

    Like God...God is a choice ...ask atheist ...they didn't pick to believe in one.

    Therefore god is a choice.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. are you agreeing that being gay is a choice?

      yeah, you're right. some atheists and agnostics at some point did believe in A God - a supreme, divine being. But later on in their lives, they came to realize that there is none. So i think in that sense, they made a choice of not believing in A God.

      Thanks for sharing :)

      Delete
    2. I guess its safe to say na its a feeling and a choice.

      feeling kasi it was molded by the environment. perception made by the nature.
      choice kasi you still have to decide whether i-acknowledge or i-entertain mo yung homosexual feeling na nararamdaman o napagdadaanan mo or hindi

      Delete
  4. Great post Justin.

    People have their own orientation.

    This definitely needs a longer discussion as people most of the time are antiquated on how they perceive sex and gender. They mix the former from the latter hence confusion arises.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. oo nga. dami pa namin napag-usapan at gustong pag-usapan that time. maraming issues talaga on gender.
      thanks, guy. :D

      Delete

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