Paper Topic:

Women as Minorities: Sexual Harrassment

Women as Minorities : Sexual Harassment

Women as Minorities : Sexual Harassment

Men and women nowadays are regarded as equals . There were a lot of changes that happened in the past that affected our perception of women It was not long ago that they were not able to enjoy the same rights that men have , because they are treated as minorities in our society But as we move towards equality , there are several concepts which were developed regarding the way women are treated . What was tolerated in the past may not be tolerated in

the present . This is manifested by our concept of sexual harassment . Through the course of history , the meaning of sexual harassment has been changed , and this is in relation to the changes happening in the society

Sexual harassment first became a political issue when the Congress passed the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 . This act prohibits discrimination at work , on the grounds of race , color , religion national and cultural origin , and sex . The primary purpose of this was to help African Americans , but this bill also paved the way to protect women in courts . This also gave way to the creation of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission . After that , there more laws passed regarding the promotion of equality for both sexes . Some of these include a Human Goals Charter , is about establishing equal respect for both sexes drafted by the U .S . Department of Defense , Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 which prohibits gender bias in educational institutions which received federal funding . In 1978 , sexual discrimination in federal employment is barred because of the Civil Service Reform Act . The Congress in 1979 held special hearings in for them to investigate sexual harassment in the federal government , while the White House Office of Personal gave a command regarding the prohibition of sexual harassment ADDIN EN .CITE Wyatt20005 5512Nancy WyattInformation on Sexual Harassment2008April 112000http /www .de2 .psu .edu /harassment /generalinfo (Wyatt , 2000

Also in 1979 , Catharine MacKinnon published her work The Sexual Harassment of Working Women , which gives an argument regarding this form of harassment as a violation of the 1964 Civil Rights act ADDIN EN .CITE Patai19988 8812Patai DaphneSexual Harassment : It apos s History and Contradictions2008April 111998http /daphne .palomar .edu /psycsoc125 /HSClass /research /resrch04 .html (Patai , 1998 . In 1986 the Supreme Court took its first harassment case , wherein it initially defined sexual harassment by stating that the key issue is whether the conduct or deed done is unwelcome , rather than whether it appears that the victim has consented to the conduct . It clearly states that as long as the deed was unwelcomed by the victim , the perpetrator could be charged with sexual harassment

There were two events which changed how the society viewed sexual harassment . These events led to and increase in the people 's awareness about the matter . One of these events was the amendment of the Civil Rights act , allowing jury trials for the cases and increased damages for the complaint...

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