Reading Summaries

Women and the Poor: The Challenge of Global Justice
Third world countries are now dominated by the New World Order, in which corporations primarily from the rich countries are exploiting their economies and governments. Africa is becoming poorer and living standards are getting worse in many areas, but corporations such as the world bank are profiting and becoming stronger. Africa needs to properly diagnose it’s problems in order to make a solution. Inequality between countries, inequality between sexes, and the gap between the rich and poor are all interconnected and all part of the problem.

Under Western Eyes
We have made stereotypes and generalizations about women in different cultures and of women in general. When the oppression of women as a group is assumed it effects our view of average third world women. Westerners tend to generalize women from third world countries as being more uneducated, traditional, ignorant victimized, etc. But Western women tend to see them selves as educated, modern and in control of themselves.

On The backs of Women and Children
State employment services affect women directly because women tend to have government funded jobs such as medical care and education. Women work many jobs that are not accounted for as a source of income, such as sex workers, house keepers, and taking care of the family. Development is dependent on the cheap labor of women.

Being South Asian in North America
Chandra Mohanty has had to deal with racism throughout the last fifteen years that she has lived in the USA. Most of the racism is mild, mostly just generalizations. People assume that she is here on a student visa and that she will be returning home to India, even though she has a PHD and some signs of aging. She points out that if you were not a U.S. citizen that you are an alien, weather your illegal or a legal resident. Having a U.S. passport means that you can breeze through most borders and that you are not an alien, but it doesn’t prevent racism within the borders of the U.S. When she went back to India she found that her family and friends were envious of her green card. They also didn’t value her opinion on political topics in india saying that she couldn’t understand because she doesn’t live there. Racism/sexism was normalized and violence was high. She finds it important to her that she works for grassroots organizations in both of her homes- the U.S. and India.