In the past four and a half weeks I am grateful that I was able to be in BI-218x-01. It has opened a couple of new doors in my life the make me view certain issues in society a little differently as I once did. By each passing artifact my curiosity was fed by the knowledge gained from the research and short films Dr. Hinks exposed us to. I would love to be able to go into great detail on the reflection of all seven artifacts but sadly I must keep it to three or four pages; like a short penis (that’s what she said).

In artifact one we looked at the difference between sex and gender. We looked into the meanings of sex and gender; sex meaning what you were determined at birth, either male or female; gender meaning how the individual saw themselves. Meaning that their sexuality was open to however they wanted to express themselves. We also discussed how society affected gender roles as well as if there were equal opportunities in society for different gender roles. Which we determined that there were not equal rights in society for different gender roles.

For artifact two we looked into the roles of women in different societies. We found this unbelievable community in china. Known as the Musuo of china which is a matrilineal culture, we discovered that it is a simple undeveloped community that is run by women and is handed down from the female line. It is known that this is a society that is not known for having an economy, its modes of production are foraging, horticulture, and cattle herding. It is run by women, everything is past down from the female line and men do not have much say. But America is a lot different when it comes to roles of women; men do most of the production while at the same time woman are still able to do the same work but also run into the issue of not receiving the same paycheck, also known as the wage gap. From a social and political side, men are also the front runners while women are striding to make their mark in politics; which they have made outstanding progress in recent years. Within gender relationships in human groups, women are viewed as less dominate as men and society struggles to change the outlook for women.

With our third artifact that we covered, we looked into the global gender gap. The global gender gap basically deals with how much females are involved in society, within 4 categories, health, education, economy, and politics. The global gender gap is not saying how much females are involved these categories based on their choice but really how much society lets them be involved. We measured all the countries in the world and determined their rankings; We found the Iceland deals with the lowest gap while Yemen has the highest gap.

• Businessinsider.com

Our fourth artifact we looked into the female gender health gap. We try to understand why it is harder for women to find and afford good health care. Naturally women live longer than men, explaining that women on average do not have as many health concerns as men. They also explain that men have more health concerns do to their own fault. Men’s actions put them more at risk, for example, men on average speed more, more likely to use drugs, and take part in dangerous behavior when with friends. While women on the other hand have better eating habits, do not partake in drugs and are not influenced by friends; they are not at a lot of health risk. So, as a result do not need extensive health care. But we also look at when women live longer than men, women start to have health concerns when they reach an older age and cannot afford to take care of themselves as much as they used to.

With artifact 5 we gazed upon male and female circumcision. We looked at the different types of circumcision for both male and female as well as the risk and rewards following circumcision. For women, there are four types of circumcision, clitoridectomy, excision, infibulation, and the last type does not have a proper name but deals with any kinds of pricking or piercings to the vagina. When women get any type of circumcision there are not really any benefits that follow it, only risks. Risks of infections and diseases. Men on the other hand are different; when they receive circumcision, there are benefits that follow it. When men are circumcised the reduce the risk of receiving STD’s or UTI’s. Men also have risk that follow it, they also run risk of getting infections and diseases.

Artifact six was interesting, because I am a male I was not sure exactly how to go about writing about it. That is menstruation, artifact six looked into female menstruation and how it was celebrated, as well as how different cultures accept the special time of the month. We looked into a native American tribe and how the spend four days on the young girls to prepare them for women hood when they hit their period. We also look how menstruation is viewed in America as well as other countries and we try to understand just how hard some women have it when the hit that special time of the month. Artifact six is a very interesting peace of information and I would recommend looking into it.

Artifact seven, to me was one of the best artifacts that we were able to do. It was about Robert Eads, Eads was a trans man who was the subject of an award-winning film Southern Comfort. The film follows Eads in his final year of his life with his battle with ovarian cancer. He goes on to explain that he would have been able to beat the cancer but he could not get the right treatment because he was not able to find any doctors that would treat him because he was a trans man and they did not want to ruin their reputations. The lessons to be learned about the film is that it is hard to come out as a transgender to the world and it is even harder to find medical attention. With the film southern Comfort, transgender individuals have exposed a lot of the medical fields for their lack of treatment for transgender individuals. In today’s time, under federal and state laws, including the Affordable Care Act, it is illegal for doctors, hospitals and insurance companies to discriminate against transgender people. That means that health plans aren’t allowed to exclude transition-related care, and health care providers are required to treat you with respect and according to your gender identity, https://transequality.org.

Overall, I have enjoyed this class a whole lot more than I thought I would. It has opened new doors in my life towards different kinds of views. I am thankful for Dr. Hinks and all of the material that she exposed us to because most of it is hidden by society in today’s time. With each artifact, my knowledge grew more and more and I will always be thankful that I was able to gain the knowledge that I did and I will certainly continue to look into new popular issues facing society head on. And just like that I finished (that’s what she said).

In the film, Southern Comfort Robert Eads was an American trans man, whose life and death was the subject of the awards-winning documentary. Southern Comfort focuses on the final year in the life of Robert Eads, Eads was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and was turned down for treatment by a dozen doctors out of the fear that treating such a patient would hurt their reputations. By the time Eads received treatment, the cancer was too advanced to save his life. When the film talks about family it notes that you have a biological family and you can have a non-biological family. In Eads case his biological family did not see him as a Trans man; they never accepted his gender identity and always seen him as their daughter. While on the other hand his non-biological family accepted him as who he was and was his biggest support system. With Eads biological family rejecting his gender identity, it had to be one of the hardest times in his life by having no primary support systems in his darkest days.

SoCo stands for Southern Comfort, it is significant to the participants’ lives because it is what they stand for; it is their lifestyle and who they are as an individual.

            The film talks about gender identity in a special way, the film gets personal when saying that it is not how others view you but how you view yourself. And no matter who turns their back on you, doing what is right for you is the biggest thing you can do for yourself and stepping out and showing the world who you are takes the most courage. With this being said there is a lot of stereotypes about transgender individuals, from violence, suicide, and health. In 2002, there were 49 cases that were reported in Los Angeles alone of verbal and physical violence towards transgender Individuals, note that these are only the cases that were reported, https://link.springer.com. Although it is hard to determine how many transgender individuals are mixed into the American population, not all can be recorded because most are afraid to say their gender identity due to the harsh views towards them due to American society and the alarming suicide rate of transgender individuals. A survey conducted by American Academy of Pediatrics recorded that 41.8 of teens have attempted suicide at least once in their life https://www.hrc.org. This is such a frightening thought because the survey only recruited teens to take the survey, not to mention trans adults as well as whether or not the teens were truthful. Another issue is health for transgender individuals, just as Robert Eads was denied treatment for his cancer there are potentially many more cases where transgender individuals were denied treatment for diseases because the doctors were too afraid of hurting their reputations and that is straight up unacceptable.

The lessons to be learned about the film is that it is hard to come out as a transgender to the world and it is even harder to find medical attention. With the film southern Comfort, transgender individuals have exposed a lot of the medical fields for their lack of treatment for transgender individuals. In today’s time, under federal and state laws, including the Affordable Care Act, it is illegal for doctors, hospitals and insurance companies to discriminate against transgender people. That means that health plans aren’t allowed to exclude transition-related care, and health care providers are required to treat you with respect and according to your gender identity, https://transequality.org.

Nathan Loyd

Artifact 6

One of the first times that a girl can be embarrassed and confused in her life is when she receives her first menstruation cycles. Even though it can be a strange experience for the young female in most parts of the world it can be a time for celebration. Parent24.com tells us that in Japan the mother will cook a sweet and sticky dish made of red beans and rice called sekihan. The whole family will eat this meal together. In Brazil, when a girl has her first period, everyone is told. A big party is thrown for the girl and gifts will be brought to her for the big milestone. Looking into parts of the world that are not too kind when it comes to a girl receiving their first period is Afghanistan, Womenshealthmag.com tells us that when girls hit their first menstruation cycle they cannot wash their vaginas. They also cannot use a menstrual pad; menstrual pads also cost $4 which most women cannot afford.

Looking into older ways of embracing a females first menstrual cycle, I took a look at native American approaches, Apache to be exact. The Apache take the young girl and put them through a 4-day ritual that will test them for the trails of women hood. They will run through 4 stages, baby, child, adolescent, and women. Compared to other native Americans when a girl or women hit their menstrual cycle the men take over their chores and the women are not allowed to do anything because it is told to be a time of magic.

Women in the U.S. mostly view menstruation as a negative event. This is because as it happens the first time they feel embarrassed or ashamed and that carries out throughout their life. For that reason, women try to hide their period for the most part, some women and men see it as a nasty time for a woman and with the discomfort that the women feel such as stomach cramps does not help. This could be a factor on why women are looked down upon in in America, this can affect a women’s self-confidence and make her not think much of herself. Women and men can have a more positive outlook on menstruation by looking at it as a woman having a healthy body and having full potential of conceiving a child. Menstruation is a positive event in a women’s life.

In other countries like Africa, when women hit their menstruation cycle they are looked down upon. Thousands of girls miss school do to their periods and they have no idea how to control it. With no health resources available for menstruation they have to fend for themselves. Most girls in Africa cannot control the bleeding so they are not able to attend their schooling which is already hard enough to receive in Africa. With that being said they also have to worry about infections and staying sanitary since they don’t have menstrual pads available for them. Resources have been put in place to try to supply menstrual pads and teachings about women’s menstrual cycles but the lack of money plays a big role in these societies.

Dealing with the Jewish Orthodox religion and menstruation, it is not viewed as good or bad unless the female makes it that way. When a woman reaches their menstrual cycle, Jewish law forbids sexual relations until she immerses in the mikveh bath. She also has to sleep in separate beds away from her spouse while on her period. After she finishes her menstrual cycle is complete she is to immerse herself in the mikveh bath; the mikveh bath symbolizes a job well done or accomplishment in her life. The menstrual cycle in the eyes of the Jewish Orthodox is empowering towards women and shows that it is something to be proud of.

Overall, I believe that menstruation is in a way beautiful like a work of art; it is a sign of a healthy body that is ready to conceive a child. Women should embrace it and know that it is something to be proud of.

Nathan Loyd

Artifact 5

Looking into male and female circumcision, it seems to be happening more often in today’s time. Even though circumcision is preformed differently for men and women for obvious reasons, they still share the same religious and cultural reasons for circumcision as well as the same harms and benefits.

For women, there are 4 types of circumcision that can be performed. The first is known as clitoridectomy, this type consists of partially or total removal of the clitoris. The second one is known as excision and the clitoris and labia minora are partially or totally removed, with or without excision of the labia majora. The third type is known as infibulation and it consists of narrowing the vaginal orifice, with or without the removal of the clitoris. The last and fourth type of circumcision does not have a certain name, it is any type of pricking, piercing, incising, scraping, and cauterization of the vagina. The reasons on why it is done is mostly up to the female, unless it is in their cultural background it is up to the female preference.

When doing research on female circumcision and why it is done; female circumcision does not seem to have any origin but some scholars have proposed Ancient Egypt but not enough evidence is there to prove that it is a positive origin. Same goes for religion, female circumcision does not come from a religion background. When it comes to culture there is cultures in Africa tribes the preform female circumcision as a way to introduce young girls into women hood.

When looking at the health benefits and harm from female circumcision, there are not any benefits involved in the practice. It is only harm that comes from it such as, severe pain, excessive bleeding, genital tissue swelling, infections, urinary problems, and it the most severe cases even death. Even though the practice is going to continue, prevalence of the practice has been made. In the U.S. you can receive female circumcision with little thought of being harmed from it. We have the medication for any type of infections that try to follow the circumcision. The same cannot be said for undeveloped countries, where most circumcisions take place in today’s time.

When trying to stop female circumcisionthere are only a few things that have been put in place to stop it. For example, in the U.S. it is illegal to practice it if the female is under the age of 18. Other than that, it still is practiced in undeveloped countries. People need to come together and spread the word that there is no good that can come from circumcision, only harm can prevail from this practice.

On the other hand, male circumcision has an argument on why it should be done.It is performed on the penis and it consist of removing the extra foreskin off of the penis. Male circumcision originated long before when history was recorded in eastern Africa, the romans passed laws prohibiting circumcision. There are some cultural factors that play into male circumcision, tribes in Africa use circumcision to introduce males into manhood. In western countries being uncircumcised is valued or in a way being looked at as a thing of beauty and getting circumcised is fronded upon.

            In the U.S. we have found male circumcision to be helpful to the male, it helps prevent UTI’s, STD’s and other problems. The American Academy also changed its stance on male circumcision because it prevents STD’s and UTI’s, and it really helps in undeveloped countries. On the other hand, it can be harmful if it’s not done properly, it can cause infections, excessive bleeding, urinary problems and in the worst cases, death.

The reasons why adult African males are being encouraged to get circumcised is the same reasons above, it helps prevent unwanted problems and STD’s. In some cultures, circumcision is performed as a rite of passage and a lot of harm can come from that. As listed above it can cause a lot of problems including infections, excessive bleeding, urinary problems, and even death.

Overall, there is a big difference between male and female circumcision and the harms and benefits that come from it. For females, it is not really necessary for them to get circumcision although there are rare cases where they need it, it really can only do harm to them. Males on the other hand face the same risks as females do but males have a benefit to circumcision as it can help prevent STD’s and UTI’s.

Pornland Essay

In today’s society, porn is a very commonly watched material that features graphic nudity and sometimes violence. Most porn is made up of short movies that usually have a plot but most of the time, mostly always ends with a male dominating the female partner and treating her very harshly. According to fightthenewdrug.org 72% of men in America watch porn daily compared to only 28% of women who watch porn daily. This causes a problem in America mostly concerning young men who watch porn because it falsely shows how the role of the male should conduct themselves during intercourse.

This is an important issue at hand in America today for the simple fact that when young males and females are entering that maturing age also known as puberty they are turning to porn to see how sex works, what their roles are, and what to do and not to do. So, with porn today it shows young men that they are supposed to be “in charge” of sex, that it is all about them and what they want. Porn also shoes that there is not much remorse for the female partner. For example, in some cases females have been known to vomit on scene from being gaged to much by the male’s penis. We see the same problem when females go to porn to see what their roles are. Porn leads them to believe that it is all about the men, that it is their job to do whatever the male partner tells them to do, no matter if they want to or not.

So, as a result of porn males are supposed to view themselves as the boss during sex, it is all about them, and what I say goes mindset. While on the other hand women are supposed to view themselves as somewhat of an “object”. They are supposed to act as a slave and do what they are told no matter if it feels good or not, it is their job to make him feel good with no thought about herself.

This will affect sex greatly for young males and females, epically if this this their first time having intercourse. It will drive all intimacy out of the relationship as well as changing the roles of both partners. What was once meant to be intimate between partners and finding another level of love for one another is now one sided towards the male and is meant to be all about him and in a way supposed to disrespect the female partner in any sexual way. This type of intercourse does not only affect time spent in the bedroom but could also alter the relationship as a whole. With intercourse that is that one sided towards the male, the relationship could become violent with the expectation of female to care for the man all the time with the potential harsh outcome if she does not.

It goes to show that the porn industry today is not the same as it was 30 years ago and it is leading the public down the wrong paths and if it is not a problem that is fixed soon it could affect millions of couples in the United States if not all around the world. One might ask if the porn industry is so wrong and hateful towards women then why would it be hard to shut it down. Well, money makes the world go round and that is just the same for porn. According to finance.yahoo.com the porn industry makes over 6 billion dollars a year and research done in 2018 says porn is more watched than Netflix. For people that know that is a problem, they know it is a big one but with the porn industry making over 6 billion dollars a year it would be a hard case to win in court.