There's a lot of rhetoric and hypocrisy in politics. I don't think any student on this campus would dispute that, and if they did, they'd be na?ve or lying. However, there comes a point when enough is enough, when it's just not funny anymore, when the line is crossed. A little hype is a little hype until it becomes unpardonable hypocrisy, and then the truth light needs to be shone on it. That latest case: women in Afghanistan.
It was truly a noble part of our mission in Afghanistan that we wanted to liberate the strictly confined women of the Afghan society who were forced to completely conceal themselves under the burka, were denied all semblance of basic human rights, and were demoted to second-class (or perhaps, more realistically, third-class) citizens.
Operation Enduring Freedom was truly an inspired title. (Although, if we really cared about Afghan women, perhaps we should have launched this initiative eight years ago when the Taliban first ascended to power; just a thought). In all likelihood, the Bush administration even has reason to be proud of the strides that have been made in the emancipation and enfranchisement of women in Afghanistan. But do they have the bragging rights? I'm not so sure.
President Bush has mentioned several times since the election in Afghanistan that the United States has done excellent work there since we toppled the Taliban regime. Women are allowed outside, women got to vote in the election, and a woman was even a candidate for president. Democracy at its finest, and at work in Afghanistan. According to Bush, other nations can look to Afghanistan as an example.
Afghanistan: our new friend and ally. That is all well and good, but can one brag about the progress of women in Afghanistan when we do not criticize our other allies nearly enough for their discrimination of women? Saudi Arabia is still much like Afghanistan under the Taliban. Women are not allowed outside without an escort, a popularly cited horror of life under the Taliban. Saudi women must also be entirely covered, and are not allowed to drive, run for elections or even vote. While they have recently gained minimal access to education and work, women are still "separate;" no one even pretends they're equal. All of this occurs under the knowing watch of our dear friend Saudi Arabia. The same poor human rights records concerning women are also prevalent among many of our "allies:" Pakistan and China come to mind.
These situations are indeed grievous, but there is still much work to be done in gender relations at home in America, too. Today, women in America, on average, only make 74 cents for every dollar a man makes in the same field and the same job. This has reportedly slid down from 76 cents two years ago. Where's the equality in that? Child care is not guaranteed in the workplace, stunting the upward mobility of women, and as a result women remain scarce in the upper echelons of power in nearly every sector. The United States has not even had a serious presidential bid by a woman. Isn't it kind of a shame that Afghanistan already has one on us?
As if these injustices weren't enough, there is the ongoing struggle for women's health rights. In too many states, only one county per state has an actual abortion facility, severely hindering the health resources for women and keeping dangerous "folding table" abortion operations alarmingly frequent. Kentucky is one such example; its only abortion facility is located in Louisville, which is not conveniently located to the rest of the state. In addition, medical students at the University of Louisville are not taught abortion procedures as part of their curriculum, forcing them to learn in Ohio or some other state. Not only is this discriminatory, but it endangers the lives and health of women if even their doctors are not being properly trained. Unfortunately, this presidential election has continued the debate over the reproductive rights (or lack thereof) of women in this country, and those rights threaten to teeter off the cliff into oblivion and extinction.
So while it is wonderful to tout our successes in Afghanistan, be they what they are, we must not get swept up by hype. There are still brutal realities around the world and within our own country. The job is never done as long as women anywhere remain deprived of basic and essential rights. It is our job to remain vigilant and not become complacent after every small victory.
