Gender stereotypes are deeply rooted in the collective mind and it doesn't matter if you are a woman or a man, everyone is affected by these prejudices. The commitment of society and state institutions must be clear – to debunk these stereotypes, MP Marcela Adam, a member of the Parliament’s commission on culture, education and the media, stated in IPN’s public debate "Debunking gender stereotypes".
"We need to carry out more information campaigns on the negative impact of these stereotypes on the lives of citizens because stereotyped thinking and prejudices affect not only the lives of women or particular categories of citizens, but also the life of the entire society as they lead to regression both socially and economically," said the parliamentarian.
According to Marcela Adam, a frequent prejudice is that women are the ones who must take care of the family, assume family responsibilities. Respectively, the activities or responsibilities of making decisions belong to the man. These are the two great poles, which differentiate gender responsibilities and induce this gender inequality in society or unequal thinking.
Marcela Adam said it must be understood that everyone is responsible for this situation. In her opinion, "everything starts very early, for example, even when the family is expecting a child and the classical question is "is it a girl or a boy?", then the colors of the clothes are chosen - pink for girls, blue for boys, and with toys it is the same".
"From the first days the child is born, we make these differentiations. Indirectly or unaware of this fact, we induce this stereotyped thinking and feed these stereotypes in society. It matters a lot what the principles are in the family. If, in the family, parents have an attitude of sharing tasks – both the husband and wife can, if they want, work, do chores at home equally. Nowhere is it written who and what should do," said the MP.
According to Marcela Adam, it is a patriarchal custom and way of thinking, which comes by tradition from the times when women were more tied to the house and childcare, to household chores, and men went to the fields or elsewhere to get money.
"Times have changed. In modern societies, everyone – both men and women – not only has the right, but also the need to assert themselves in society. And if the woman wants to build a career, the state must ensure all the circumstances in which she can do it," the politician said.
The MP said that a number of initiatives were promoted on the parliamentary platform, including the one on equal pay. Although this bill was caried, it is a long way from the paper law to the implementation. In her opinion, it is necessary to strengthen women's skills to negotiate a higher salary, as is the case with men, as studies show. Marcela Adam believes that inequity is most of the times due to stereotypes. Also, policies must be pursued to make employers to behave fairly towards employees, but also to make salaries transparent.
The public debate entitled "Debunking gender stereotypes" was held as part of the project "IPN News Agency for Social Cohesion and Pro-European Moldova", funded by IMS.
