By Maria Dassum

Women are viewed very differently from one nation to another. Cultures and traditions definitely affect women´s role in their communities. This is the reason why in some cases women feel obligated only to fulfill the job they were entrusted, as their mission in life.  Some nations have this ideal that is very much established and it’s practically impossible to break through. For me, it’s surprising to see how cultures are so different from one another, like Hispanic and Asian can have so many similar concepts concerning women. Of course it depends on the education and status that people have in their communities, but women in these parts of the world are expected to simply become mothers and housewives.  The ideal of a perfect wife is one who attends to her children and serves all of her purposes within her household.

In Latin American countries, women have been becoming stronger voices in their societies over the last 50 years. They now have more important and powerful positions but it was a difficult stereotype to break. Today, women have found the empowerment needed to show how capable they are. However, they have to juggle between being successful and responding to all their mothering responsibilities. Therefore, giving women the recognition and acknowledgment they deserve will definitely encourage more people to value their position within the community. This will eventually become something established and in the long run equality between genders will be something we will have for granted.

It’s an even more dramatic for women in Asia. In some extreme countries women are not allowed to work or even walk in front of the husband. I will not refer to any religious practices because this is not about religion. This is about gender equality and women’s rights. Although many Middle Eastern countries allow women to vote, work and have a voice there is still to many issues that societies still need to work on. Women should not be considered just a womb. This is unfortunately a very common concept in Asian societies. I think that men who minimize women are cowardly hiding behind a retrograde façade, only not to recognize all women’s potential. Therefore, men need to understand that acknowledging women´s empowerment will not devalue them. On the contrary a joined force will only make a more interesting and developed world to live in.