Laurie Penny

Pop culture and radical politics with a feminist twist

The myth of the "myth" of gender equality

The Daily Mail gets excited about yet another attempt to put women in their place.

By Laurie Penny Published 08 January 2011 11:53

Lay down your placards, ladies: the fight for equality is over and we can all go back to the kitchen. The Centre for Policy Studies has just released a "study" entitled "Feminist myths and magic medicine" that claims that there is no evidence that men are paid more than women, that where there is evidence of sex discrimination, that evidence doesn't matter, and that inequality is okay because some women actually choose it. Predictably, the Daily Mail has gone mental, expansively declaring the joyful news that "gender equality is a myth".

The report's author, Dr Catherine Hakim, has spent several years positioning herself as the only academic who can save this sick society from the scourge of feminism, one terrifyingly painted-on eyebrow permanently cocked at what she calls the "feminist myths" of equality legislation and "family-friendly" employment policies, presenting her table-rattling propaganda for right-wing think tanks as objective academic research. Hakim, who may or may not have actually met another woman, is best known as the face of "preference theory", the wildly original notion that differences in work outcomes between men and women in the developed world are not the result of enormous, straining patriarchal guns held to the head of every single female in the job market, but because women and girls make "substantively different career choices" from men, opting for part-time work and shorter hours that better enable them to juggle paid work with the pressures of childrearing that still fall largely upon the shoulders of women. It is a sad indictment of the state of modern gender relations that this is seen, by Hakim and her many breathless devotees in the right-wing press, as some sort of staggering insight rather than weary confirmation of the status quo.

"Unfortunately, feminist ideology continues to dominate thinking about women's roles in employment in the family," writes Hakim, in a section of this entirely unbiased report entitled "Twelve Feminist Myths", before coming to the conclusion that, because many women actually choose to work longer, more gruelling hours for less pay in order to raise families alone, "Equal opportunities policies have succeeded," and all outstanding quota systems and equal pay. She also opines that the pay differential is entirely women's fault, and that in fact many women and girls just want to marry rich men who will take care of them, and that that choice -- being a free and laudable consumer choice -- should also be applauded.

There is, however, a substantial difference between choice and empowerment. Choice is not the same thing as control, and not everyone who has a choice has freedom. Some choices are incredibly difficult, like the choice, faced by nearly all women in the developed world, between giving children the time they need, giving paid employment the time it needs, or -- in most cases -- frantically juggling the two while attempting to
retain some some semblance of independent selfhood and sociability. Some choices are distressing, like the choice between professional and personal fulfilment that still mars the lives of many women in a way that it simply never has for men. Presenting these painful decisions as benign lifestyle choices is not just tarting up a hideous social stalemate in the language of consumer indulgence: it's actively cruel.

In one key respect, of course, Hakim is right. Equality legislation can only go so far if it does not challenge the frameworks of a profoundly unequal system and there is only so far that one can crowbar women into a labour scheme that already exploits men before something starts to strain to snapping point. On the question of Hakim's loathed "family-friendly" policies, for instance, one can mandate all the maternity leave one likes, but as long as the labour of childcare is still undervalued, underpaid and done largely by women who are expected to be grateful for any concessions made to their "lifestyle choices" by benevolent bosses, "outcomes", in the language of Hakim's report, will continue to be skewed in favour of men, and women will continue to face unpleasant choices that do real harm to their lives and ambitions. Equal pay for equal work is not, whatever soft liberal faux-feminists claim, the one goal of the women's equality movement -- more important to the substance of women's lives is what Judith Butler called "the right to equal work itself".

These observations on the limitations of equality legislation might seem to echo Hakim's, but the difference is that I am a revolutionary feminist and Catherine Hakim is a recalcitrant hack academic with a personal vendetta against women who do not know their place and who would not know real social justice if it whacked her over the head with a huge glass ceiling. Her conclusions, lavishly lapped up by the Mail and the Telegraph, are that because legislative reshuffling has not solved equality, we can and should entirely abandon the notion of equality in the home and the workplace. Others, myself included, would rather take this as a signal to tear this unequal labour system into tiny bits and replace it with something that treats human beings as creatures with agency, dignity and pride.

The real problem with gender quotas in executive pay and employment is not that they are unnecessary, but that they have been co-opted by the right to convince the public that something is actually being done about sex inequality. It is breathtaking hypocrisy for Theresa May to promise to put more women on the boardrooms of big companies at the same time as helping to engineer public-sector and welfare cuts that will force single mothers to rely on their partners for financial support and abandon millions of women to poverty and unemployment. One cannot ape the postures of liberal feminism while rolling women's rights back two decades and expect to be taken seriously as Equalities Minister by anyone with a pulse -- not even in a government that considers the boardroom its core constituency.

It's time we all stopped obsessing over the glass ceiling, not because it doesn't matter, but because there are tens of millions of women huddled in the basement, shut away from power and public concern. Focusing our attention on the glass ceiling distracts us from the fact that the basement is rapidly flooding, and the women who have to live there want more than "choice" -- they want real control over their lives.

Tags: feminism

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64 comments

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Mon, 2011-01-10 09:01 — Guy Clapperton (not verified)

A lot of sense in there but you undermine your argument with the phrase "one terrifyingly painted-on eyebrow" - would you have used that about a male pundit? That kind of reinforces the "women with ideas should be judged by their appearance too" idea, which I just don't accept.

Mon, 2011-07-25 16:51 — Annasanna (not verified)

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Fri, 2011-01-21 17:30 — Libby (not verified)

Those eyebrows really are bad...

Mon, 2011-01-10 15:48 — Simon Burrows (not verified)

"It's time we all stopped obsessing over the glass ceiling, not because it doesn't matter,but because there are tens of millions of women huddled in the basement, shut away from power and public concern. Focusing our attention on the glass ceiling distracts us from the fact that the basement is rapidly flooding, and the women who have to live there want more than "choice" - they want real control over their lives."

Very well said, Laurie... VERY well said. Women aiming for similar jobs as high-flying men may not experience the most demonstrable glass ceilings these days... but it seems far to uncommon to hear people fighting for those girls and women who are never encouraged to do anything other than menial/low paid work or are forced into raising families when they should still be growing up. Gender discrimination isn't about the workplace - it's about our schools, the magazines and books our children read and our general level of social and family life... these things can only be solved by discussing them openly as a society.

Keep up the good work!

Wed, 2011-01-19 22:21 — EOE (not verified)

Just the picture of the author stopped me from reading.

I know you shouldn't judge a book by the cover, but why would I even bother to read an article about feminism by and angry looking woman? :D

I think I already know what's going to be said, lol.

Thu, 2011-01-13 21:08 — emma (not verified)

Any muslim will tell you men and women are not equal, religion says so!
^^^^^^^

What has that got do with this article? Please try and stay on topic and take your rant elsewhere. Thanks

Mon, 2011-01-10 18:40 — Claire (not verified)

"force single mothers to rely on their partners for financial support"- surely if they have partners that financially support them then they are by definition, not single mothers?

That said, good article. The absence of reasonably paid part time work that contributes to a woman's career in any real sense is astonishing- gender bias encompasses many more issues than the glass ceiling. The pressure on mothers to farm their children out to nurseries at a staggeringly young age needs to be challenged. The current attitude to working mothers is making it impossible for them to work and BE mothers. There is a generation of children growing up in childcare, time will tell what effect this will have. However, many women have no choice, their employers and mortgages force them into a position that damages themselves and their children. Women are crying out for innovative thinking in terms of giving them part time working options that are real and meaningful, such as job shares, evening and weekend work, working from home etc. While the working week is dogmatically made up of 9-5, Monday to Friday, families will suffer.

Sat, 2011-01-08 12:01 — Stephenois (not verified)

YES

Sat, 2011-01-08 12:24 — Luddite (not verified)

I have never worked in a office or factory where women are paid less then men for equal work. What i have seen are sweatshops in London Birmingham and Leicester where women, mainly foreign immigrant workers that are appalling exploited. Or aren't our brown and black sisters that important. Let's not concern ourselves with glass ceiling and start looking in the basement.

Mon, 2011-01-10 19:25 — stuart (not verified)

but i bet mr divine,you would not turn down a date with laurie penny, i am sure she could teach you a thing or 3.

Sat, 2011-01-08 12:38 — Douglas Hall (not verified)

@Stephenois & @Luddite

Feminism, like all identity politics, isn't about working class people. It's there for people who self-identify as middle-class to claim to be progressive whilst avoiding contamination by the great unwashed.

Sat, 2011-01-08 12:39 — Homo Sapiens

Unfortunately, there are also tens of millions of men huddled in the basement, shut away from power and public concern. Until the femenists make common cause with them, they will merely be falling prey to the strategy of divide and rule.

Sat, 2011-01-08 13:39 — Lily (not verified)

@Homo Sapiens

Oh, crack a feminism 101 book sometime and stop regurgitating uninformed drivel.

Patriarchy is damaging, to everyone. Feminism supports that thought far more than the right wingers this article portrays.

Mon, 2011-01-10 20:01 — stuart (not verified)

hi buckskins,well the trouble with lauries pennys clip on newsnight was just that about 20 seconds long, so i propose she gets a slot on bbcs questions time,and you know what,, on the the question time website you can vote for somebody who you would like to appear on that show because frankly speaking question has got so flat just lately with the same old politicians and media lovvies on week after week, i agree and dissagree with some topics on lauries blog,but would it not be nice to see a new face on question time instead of the same old boring farts who they have on week after week..so i say get laurie penny and shuan ryder on question time,now that would be fun..

Thu, 2011-01-13 22:47 — Peter (not verified)

What we can do if women wont work like that - http://stargirls-escorts.com

Sat, 2011-01-08 13:55 — chistianimages

Great article, it's comforting that the New Statesman is starting to properly feature feminist comment.

@Hall- so feminism is only about uppity middle-class women who want their lot in life to be equal in success to men? So feminism didn't lead to scrutiny of domestic violence, marital and actual rape as crimes rather than par for the course for women; or a call for equal pay in every single walk of life; or policy changes on womens prisons and female offenders; or repeated calls for improved childcare services for all women...? List goes on.
That all sounds like it benefits only middle class women. oh, wait...

and @homo sapiens, its nice you read that article (probably not all the way through) and immediately commented about the need to help out men. As if improved childcare, equal pay and a recognition of women's role as carer wouldn't improve the lives of their partners, relatives, MALE children...As if the feminist movement is a useless waste of time seeing as it concentrates on something other than the plight of the common MAN...sigh.

Thu, 2011-01-13 11:49 — David Vinter (not verified)

Any muslim will tell you men and women are not equal, religion says so!

Sat, 2011-01-08 14:36 — Mark (not verified)

You are aware, I hope, that there is actually a bigger pay gap between the short and ugly and the beautiful and tall than there is between men and women.
What should we do about this? Or is it completely irrelevant, femminists?

Personally, I don't think that everyone will be able to do everything they want until we reach a state of abundance - so let's hurry up with trying to get there. Economic growth at all costs, anyone?
Destroy the economic system after it has become an irrelevance.

Sat, 2011-01-08 16:41 — jan frank (not verified)

The real tragedy is that BOTH women and women have been and still are (and probably will be) forced into one-size-fits-all roles. Middle class men are expected to devote 115% of their time to their career, and any middle class woman who can't (or won't) dance to this tune is told she's not serious about her work. Neither the man nor the woman really has a life. And as for working class men and women - it's just a case of getting through a long and weary day today and tomorrow won't be any better.

The real fight should be to see to it that both men and women get treated as human beings.

Sat, 2011-12-24 16:50 — GuntherLudwig

If you want an equality throughout society, I think it'd be more productive to think about what that would really mean and argue for absolute equality - why should an equality of arbitrary averages (but not of real people) appeal to egalitarians? It's a waste of time. http://www.abcircleproreview.net/

Sat, 2011-01-08 18:09 — J.P Danton (not verified)

Alright then, Miss Penny. What are you going to replace the current system with?

Sat, 2011-01-08 18:25 — Douglas Hall (not verified)

@Westie
Virtually all of the advances in the rights and conditions of women in general, everyone of which I applaud, are as a result of broad political and Trade Union action.
Good to see that you're still traditionalist enough to address the lower orders by last name only.

Wed, 2011-01-12 18:37 — James T. Kirk (not verified)

Hakim is bad. And feminists are good. That is the only truth that interests.

So the results of feminists are true.
And Hakim's thoughts are wrong.

The good has won one more time.

Sat, 2011-01-08 18:43 — Hereward (not verified)

I don't think seeking equality for the sexes should be dismissed just because other inequalities exist. What do we do, decide which inequality is the most worthy, ignore the others, sort that out then move to #2 on the list? Ridiculous! Educating and empowering women in developing countries is understood to be one of the most potent methods for improving human-well being. That's not an exclusively middle class goal.
Would Trade Unions have made moves for women's working rights if there hadn't been a feminist movement? I think not.

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Sat, 2011-01-08 19:56 — THX (not verified)

Laurie, if you're a revolutionary feminist, that would make Hakim a reactionary one, at least.

Laurie, how do you attracted all these right-wing boy groupies to your blog. Are turning them on or something. You have them tormented.

Sat, 2011-01-08 20:43 — Ali (not verified)

@Mark

Please google 'pretty privilege', read all the feminist commentary about it, then rethink your pointless derailing. Actually, whilst you're at it, google derailing. An example of it would be: ignoring the point of an article by bringing up something only vaguely related and saying 'Well why aren't you dealing with THIS problem, huh?!'

Laurie, I think you've got Catherine Hakim pretty much spot on.

Sat, 2011-01-08 23:26 — stuart (not verified)

hi buckskins,can i just wish you as happy new year.and i did see laurie penny on newsnight and she came across as a very nice young lady.

Sun, 2011-01-09 04:31 — TWR (not verified)

I have to wonder after reading this--do you have any actual arguments against Hakim's work or just ad hominem attacks and regurgitated feminist shibboleths and myths to pad the spaces in between those ad hominem attacks?

Sun, 2011-01-09 06:36 — stuart (not verified)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AeUBA-uY_0....this is my tribute to all the dimwits and god lovers who ever thought we gave a monkeys fuck about politicians and these crazys that bow down to all these gods that dont exist...

Sun, 2011-01-09 08:48 — Mr. Divine (not verified)

@THX: "Laurie, how do you attracted all these right-wing boy groupies to your blog. Are turning them on or something. You have them tormented."

Well I for one am extremely tormented. It can be very painful waiting for one's turn especially after the marathon shagging sessions Laurie has with SWP newspaper sellers and Texan cowhands.

Listen THX get in line and stop trying to but in when there's clearly a tormented queue.

Sun, 2011-01-09 12:07 — Martin Kinsella (not verified)

Ms Hakim's study, which I have read, is an academic piece which reaches conclusions based on evidence. This piece is nothing but a knee-jerk emotive rant. Laurie Penny, who seems to want to ride whatever populist wave is going, would be better served trying to deconstruct Ms Hakim's work with facts rather than bitter rants. It may help your cause because, as someone else points out, there is common cause here with the millions of men in a similar situation.

Sun, 2011-01-09 12:09 — Mark (not verified)

Ali
It's relevant because without a significant reappraisal of objectives, nothing of significance is going to be achieved.
If you really want a world without inequality, without any form of discrimination it's going to take a lot more than merely enforcing quotas on whatever particular interest group happens to be fashionable that week. That kind of campaign is a step in the wrong direction.
If you want an equality throughout society, I think it'd be more productive to think about what that would really mean and argue for absolute equality - why should an equality of arbitrary averages (but not of real people) appeal to egalitarians? It's a waste of time.

Sun, 2011-01-09 13:08 — David Vinter (not verified)

Ma'am, you have been watching too many films, far more men work for very small firms than the big corporations with loads of expensively suited staff, as on film and tv. There are loads of small firms where the employer wears overalls, and does most jobs,just as do the workers. I used to run a business with 4 other workers, did I employ a female? --NO, I couldn't find one that wanted to pick up 50kg bags all day long!
I did not discriminate, but use your common sense!

Tue, 2011-01-11 00:41 — Mr. Divine (not verified)

@Buckskins; yea it clears your head and stimulates your appetite. Haven't had any snakes in my pool as yet but I know there are a few at the back of my property. Of course there's the odd red back and hornet. I only swim between November and April as my pool is not heated .. do you have heating?

As to Laurie, well there are a few clips of her on the net sparkling those eyes at the camera and smiling in a conspiratorial way. And yes stuart I wouldn't mind a date with her but being on different sides of the globe makes it difficult at present. Why don't you try to woe her as you appear to be in the same city. Just stand outside the NS office building and wolf whistle as she goes in.

Sun, 2011-01-09 13:56 — J Rodolfo (not verified)

I usually agree with every word you say, but this article is just spot-on 100% truth! Thank you for your insights and good writing, I wish there were more people like you writing articles like this here in Brazil. Keep it up!

Wed, 2011-01-19 05:59 — john (not verified)

"On the question of Hakim's loathed "family-friendly" policies, for instance, one can mandate all the maternity leave one likes, but as long as the labour of childcare is still undervalued, underpaid and done largely by women who are expected to be grateful for any concessions made to their "lifestyle choices" by benevolent bosses, "outcomes", in the language of Hakim's report"

Name one feminist that has championed higher pay for childcare workers. Just one.

Most of them whinge about the high cost of nannies and demand the government do something about it.

Fri, 2011-09-30 15:27 — jurekgut (not verified)

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Tue, 2011-01-11 04:04 — stuart (not verified)

buckskins, question is not on at the moment because of the christmas break,, but if you want to get question time on your computer,just type bbc 1 homepage into google and all bbc programmes can be seen on there iplayer and a 7 day catch up,i watch most tv online now plus the programmes i miss on catch up...

Wed, 2011-01-19 07:27 — JoeChuckles87 (not verified)

I appreciate it must be difficult for women striving for gender equality to not attack other women, but this Hakim character really does sound like a legitimate target.

Awful!

"One cannot ape the postures of liberal feminism whilst rolling women's rights back two decades and expect to be taken seriously as Equalities Minister by anyone with a pulse"

Classic!!

Tue, 2011-01-11 04:07 — stuart (not verified)

are you mad mr divine,do you think laurie penny would be interested in a nobody like me who used to sell the big issue,your having a laugh mate..

Tue, 2011-01-11 04:49 — Mr. Divine (not verified)

@stuart: don't put yourself down. I'm surprised that you buy into the popular culture's ideas of success. There isn't such a thing as success or failure .. what exactly is the measure of success? People just have different lives, no greater no lesser. We're all specks of dust in the history of the world.

"Oh he's made a success of his life because he has a nice house, lovely wife kids and a car." Yea right he's spent all his time at work in the office doing boring things.

People seem to think that success/being a 'somebody' is related to wealth or position. So what if you've haven't got any dosh, at least you've got something more precious (your own time)?

The important thing is that you're still alive and so is Laurie.

And what have you got to lose? Have a shave, cut your hair and go get her.

Sun, 2011-01-09 16:07 — M decibel (not verified)

It is sad that the 'choice' myth is still championed by people under the smoke screen of seemingly intelligent academics.

One only has to look around at the objectification of women that permeates our culture in newspapers, billboards or on TV - but hey our sex makes this 'choice' to be viewed on such narrow terms right?!

Sun, 2011-01-09 16:30 — Andy (not verified)

Bits of this article make no sense. And some parts that do are inconsistent with other parts.

Then you accuse someone of being an ideologue before calling them a "recalcitrant hack academic with a personal vendetta against women" because they disagree with you.

This is just a barely stitched together series of buzzwords which turns people off the point you are trying to make.

Sun, 2011-01-09 17:25 — Echidne of the snakes (not verified)

What is most astonishing of all this is that there, in fact, is NO NEW study. I went and did the research. Hakim has written a sermon and the only link is to her 2000 book.

Why do all the newspapers in the UK discuss a non-existing new study?

Sun, 2011-01-09 17:38 — Echidne of the snakes (not verified)

The needed references can be found here:

http://echidneofthesnakes.blogspot.com/2011_01_02_archive.html#666933164...

Wed, 2011-01-12 01:32 — stuart (not verified)

karl marx.what a boring rambling screwball he was.hitler and mein kamp,ever tried reading that buckskins ZZZZZzzz its so boring you would think they old nazi was on drugs when he wrote that,but my hardest ordeal was trying to read chairman maos the red book,now that is what i call torture.i just find politics so boring with no meaning.

Sun, 2011-01-09 22:04 — Radclyffe (not verified)

Catherine Hakim is also responsible for the spurious notion of 'erotic capital', which was taken up with enthusiasm by the likes of the Telegraph and Daily Mail earlier this year.

It's a concept that claims attractiveness can be "just as valuable as a university degree - especially for women."

http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?storycode=411840
http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?storycode=411840