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Encyclopedia of Social ProblemsPub. date: 2008 | Online Pub. Date: May 28, 2008 | DOI: 10.4135/9781412963930 | Print ISBN: 9781412941655 | Online ISBN: 9781412963930| Publisher:SAGE Publications, Inc.
About this encyclopediaSexism
Arlene Holpp Scala
Sexism is a system of oppression that privileges men and discriminates against women. Sexism requires prejudice plus power. Like racism, sexism is not about isolated incidents but about patterns. The institutions of government, law, religion, education, and the media—as well as language and social mores—long perpetuated sexism, keeping females inferior and subordinate. Even though a female can discriminate against a male and do him harm to the point of taking his life simply because he is a male, such discrimination is different from systemic oppression. The societal problem is sexism, not males, and the movement to end sexism, sex exploitation, and oppression is feminism. Today discussions about the women's movement typically speak in terms of waves. The First Wave grew out of the anti-slavery movement and began as an organized movement with the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848 and ended with the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. ...
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