Activity 7

Are Women a Minority?

A minority group, by its original definition, refers to a group of people whose practices, race, religion, ethnicity, or other characteristics are fewer in numbers than the main groups of those classifications. The term usually refers to any group that is subjected to oppression and discrimination by those in more powerful social positions, whether or not the group is a numerical minority. Examples of groups that have been labeled minorities include African Americans, women and immigrants among others. Although sociological literature gives some references to women as a minority group, comparable in certain aspects like race, ethnicity and national minorities, no systematic investigation has been undertaken as to what extent the term minority is applicable to women. The term minority is not necessarily always considered numeric. For example, women make up roughly half the population and are still considered a minority. In social sciences, minority does not refer to the statistical measure but instead refers to categories of people who hold few or no positions of social power in the society. Women in most societies are considered a minority group because they do not share the same power, privileges, rights and opportunities as men. 

Underlying this unequal treatment of women is sexism, which is discrimination based on sex- in the context of a patriarchal society, discrimination against women in particular. Discrimination against women is evident in a number of different spheres of society, whether political, legal, economic, or familial. Societies today are home to a variety of different classes, ethnicities, races, and nationalities, and some groups of women may enjoy a higher status and more power relative to select groups of men, depending on factors, such as what racial and ethnic groups they are associated with. Although women have made great strides in gaining access to education and employment, to this day they continue to face significant hurdles that men generally do not confront. In economics, the term " glass ceiling " refers to institutional barriers that prevent minorities and women from advancing beyond a certain point in the corporate world, despite their qualifications and successes. The existence of a glass ceiling indicates that women, even today, do not enjoy the same opportunities as men. A recent Deloitte report on women in the boardrooms around the world shows that over the last six years, India has seen a decline in the number of women CEOs. As per the Deloitte study, in 2016, the share of women CEOs in India stood at 6.6 percent but declined to 3.4 percent in 2018, and in 2021, it stood at a disappointing 4.7 percent only, way below previous levels. 

Minorities are often restricted from participating fully or effectively in economic, social and political life. Yet it is women who belong to minority population groups whose choices, opportunities and life chances, are the most restricted, in both public and private spheres. Where minorities suffer poor access to education, health services and employment, it is often the women from those minority groups, whose needs are least recognized, and whose potential remains the least fulfilled. While minorities are the most frequent victims of conflict and genocide, it is the women of those communities who often suffer the most, supporting families under unimaginable conditions, or targeted for rape or killing, due to their status as the most vulnerable of minorities, and the bearers of a new generation. Overwhelmingly, the poorest of the world are disproportionately minority communities that have been subjected to on-going discrimination, yet it is minority women who often bear the greatest burden.

All women share common bonds in the fight for equal rights. In every region and in every society, women are undervalued, face issues of personal insecurity because of violence in their homes and communities, and must wage a constant struggle for self-determination over their bodies and personal destinies. While some gains have been made in those battles, gender based discrimination remains a persistent and universal problem.