Sexism doesn’t exist, right? Women have equal rights to men, don’t they? Not quite. Women still are subjected to harassment, whether in the workplace or on the streets. Women don’t quite have the right to feel comfortable everywhere. Don’t suspect that men aren’t on the receiving end of sexism, either. Both genders are subjected to sexism, however women are more often the victim of sexist comments or behavior.

Let’s start with men being on the receiving end of sexism. One example of sexism is that men aren’t allowed to hit women, yet women can hit men. Now, it’s not right to hit anyone, regardless of gender, age, ethnicity or beliefs, but people disregard men who suffer from domestic violence. Approximately 700 men suffer from domestic violence per year. True, women are more likely the victims of domestic violence. For example, in 2007, 1,640 women were killed by their intimate partners, but male victims are often turned away from shelters. This is definitely more serious an issue for women, but that doesn’t mean that men should be disregarded.

Another example of sexism is that men have more life threatening jobs. Ninety-seven percent of military deaths in Iraq were men, and ninety-three percent of workplace fatalities happen to men. This is because men take on more dangerous jobs, not to prove their worth, but because someone needs to do them.

The last example of sexism against men that I’ll include, is that fathers rarely get custody of their children. True, it’s becoming more equal, but people still see the stereotype of women being kind, caring and nurturing, and men not being well parental  figures. While men have more rights, it doesn’t mean that they aren’t the victims of stereotypes, and unfair justice.

Women, on the other hand, have more sexism to be a victim of, and also more denial. Cat calling, or street calling is something that most women go through on a daily basis. In an article called “'Enough is enough': the fight against everyday sexism” by Laura Bates, she talks about being cat-called, and also starting a website, where women could upload their personal stories. Through this, she heard of men, grown men, cat-calling ten year old girls. In a Youtube video, called “Girl Code 101” by Blythe Baird, she states, “We remember age nine, first time we are cat-called, twelve fraudulent bodies calling us women before we have the chance too. Thirteen, the year dad says wearing short skirts in the city is like driving without a seatbelt.” Blythe Baird wrote this poem to show people that girls don’t have privileges, but it’s rather “Survival of the prettiest.” This is showing that girls, before they even have the chance to become adults, are forced to grow up by the society around them. Since when was sexually ‘complimenting’ a student a good thing? “Instead, we are answering to guidance counselors who ask us, ‘Well, what were you wearing?’” Yes, the blaming the victim attitude most people seem to have about cases of rape or sexual harassment. It shouldn’t matter what the girl was wearing, and we shouldn’t teach young girls that you can’t wear short skirts because people are going to be rude to you, and harass you. We should teach the people who harass them, that it’s wrong.

Another article written by Laura Bates, “10 sexist scenarios that women face at work,” one of the reasons were “Being called a good girl.” Isn’t that a little rude, to call a grown women a good girl? It seems pretty offensive to me. The fourth reason was, “Being accused of menstruation when voicing a firm opinion.” And here comes the age long stereotype of women supposed to be nice, kind, gentle and when women actually say what they want, we are asked if we’re on our periods. Seriously? Women can be firm, aggressive and they know what they want. The fifth reason was “Being asked if ‘a man is available instead’.” Come on! Women can often do the same quality as a men, but even then, people would prefer a man. Part of sexism is the stereotypes because that creates the sexism that men and women are subjected to on a daily basis. The seventh reason was “Being asked about childcare plans.” Under that point, it states, “During my interview for my current position I was asked if I planned on having any more children and what my childcare arrangements are. Each time the question was preceded with: 'I'm probably not supposed to ask this but ...' Are you kidding me? If you aren’t supposed to ask, then don’t ask. Besides, that was how everyone was born, and just because women can have kids, does that mean everyone women is going to want kids? No. That’s a bad reason to not hire women. The tenth reason was “Avoiding wandering hands.” Great. Most likely to happen to women by men. “Ended up being fired a week later because I wouldn't have an affair with him.” Yet again, men decided that women are only good for children, and staying home with the kids, to take care of everyone. No. This is the 21st century, women are supposed to have equal rights.

So, sexism doesn’t exist? Are you sure? Of course it does. There are 293,066 victims of rape and sexual assault. Women don’t get the same jobs solely because they won’t sleep with the boss. Men won’t get custody of their kids just because they’re stereotyped to not be as good as caretakers as women are. Men don’t get the same help for domestic violence. Women, no, little girls get cat-called, wearing school uniforms, growing up before their age, and being told to not wear the clothes that every store sells in summer. Guess they don’t know that people who commit rape don’t care what the victim is wearing. Sexism definitely exists, and it is a problem that people don’t think exists. Hopefully, now everyone sees it does, in fact, exist.

Works Cited
Baird, Blythe. Girl Code 101. Narr. Blythe Baird. Youtube. Google, 28 Aug. 2014. Web. 10 Mar. 2015. .
Bates, Laura. “’Enough is enough’: the fight against everyday sexism.” The Guardian. Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies, 29 Mar. 2014. Web. 10 Mar. 2015. .
- - -. “10 sexist scenarios that women face at work.” The Guardian. uardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies, 30 July 2014. Web. 10 Mar. 2015. .
“How often does sexual assault occur?” RAINN. RAINN 2009, n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2015. .
Staff of website. “5 Ways Society Is Sexist Against Men (and How We Can Fix It).” Cracked. Demand Media, 22 Oct. 2014. Web. 10 Mar. 2015. .