User:Sissle/Gender system

Gender systems around the world
In cultures where the gender binary is prominent and important, transgender people are a major exception to the societal norms related to gender. Intersex people, those who cannot be biologically determined as either male or female, are another obvious deviation. Other cultures have their own practices independent of the Western gender binary. The evaluation of gender systems in different countries regarding gender binary can vary between different parts of the world.

Added: The evaluation of gender systems in different countries regarding gender binary can vary between different parts of the world.

Cited: Miller, Lisa R, and Eric Anthony Grollman. “The Social Costs of Gender Nonconformity for Transgender Adults: Implications for Discrimination and Health.” Sociological forum (Randolph, N.J.) vol. 30,3 (2015): 809-831. doi:10.1111/socf.12193

The cultural definition of homosexuality
In cultures where the difference between male and female in the gender binary is masculine and feminine, it is important to look at how same-sex sexuality changes between cultures. Homosexual behavior is viewed very differently in several different cultures. In some cultures, like the travesti, homosexual behavior moves one from one part of a gender binary to another.

Homosexuality, and its effects on the individual's place in society is sometimes drastically different in various other cultures. In certain Sambia people of New Guinea for example, it is believed that a boy is unable to reach puberty or maturity without first ingesting the semen, considered life-force, of an older male. In addition, these Sambian people believe that a man is unable to replenish his semen on his own, so the ritual continues until a certain time, usually marriage, when he is told of a tree that exudes a milky semen-like sap he may ingest instead.

In Basotho society in contemporary Lesotho, girls and women may exchange long kisses, engage in cunnilingus, and even fall in love and form a marriage-like union. In this society however, sex requires penetration, and marriage requires a man as a husband. Therefore, in this context, there is no concept of lesbianism.

Added: Homosexual behavior is viewed very differently in several different cultures. (Debatable if adding)

The Alternative Model of Gender
In "The Five Sexes: Why Male and Female Are Not Enough", Anne Fausto-Sterling explores the possibilities of the intersex and how these individuals fit into the traditional labeling of "male" and "female". Her "Alternative Model of Gender" is a proposition that allows for the inclusion of intersexual individuals into the traditional gender labeling system. Anne Fausto-Sterling proposes that a body does not necessarily have to fit into the orthodox gender binary set by a society, but rather can be categorized under the possibility of male, female, merm, ferm, and herm, which are labels given to individuals born with a variation in sex characteristics. Fausto-Sterling's "Of Gender and Genitals" discuses the fate of the individuals born with "ambiguous" genitalia and the need to surgically correct the deviations these individuals propel into a male-female society. She explores the need for allowing the body to be labeled as is, rather than configuring it into the expectations of society, as the traditional binary gender labeling calls for. The Alternative Model allows for this type of gender labeling as well as to be comprehended in terms of behavioral, biological, and mental characteristics.

Added: ...as well as to be comprehended in terms of behavioral, biological, and mental characteristics.

Cited: Kendall, Emily. "gender binary". Encyclopedia Britannica, 1 Mar. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/topic/gender-binary. Accessed 8 March 2024.

Gendered violence
Gendered violence is a worldwide issue that can take place in different forms with varying consequences. It can be similar to a hate crime in which physical violence is specifically targeting the victim's gender. Transgender people and women experience the most gender violence but anyone can be a victim. Women are particularly at risk of gender violence in intimate relationships involving substance abuse, psychological abuse and sexual abuse. During the COVID-19 pandemic, women were more prone to gender violence due to factors of staying quarantined. Women are 10 times more likely to be a victim of intimate partner violence. This act of violence occurs in the public as well as the private domain and can sometimes be overlooked. Many deaths have resulted from gendered violence, as seen in the film Two Spirits. Organizations such as California Coalition Against Sexual Assault support the Latino communities in particular to end domestic violence. It is also a matter related to the dominant gender system, which often underlies the motives for gendered violence. The dominant gender system also creates structural violence.

Added: ...involving substance abuse, psychological abuse, and sexual abuse.

Added: During the COVID-19 pandemic, women were more prone to gender violence due to factors of staying quarantined.

Cited: Ostadtaghizadeh, Abbas et al. “Gender-based violence against women during the COVID-19 pandemic: recommendations for future.” BMC women's health vol. 23,1 219. 3 May. 2023, doi:10.1186/s12905-023-02372-6