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Socialisation and gender stereotypes should be limited when raising any children, raising intersex children without gender or as a “third gender” is problematic.

While people should be less startled by people who don’t fit sex and gender cultural norms, the Intersex Society of North America, explains the problems with trying to raised children in a “third gender”. Firstly, what would be the boundaries of a “third gender” – where would the cut-off points be to who fits into the category of intersex or male or female? Also, our main aim should be trying to make society a safe place for intersex children and labelling them as a “third gender” may not help them.

Moreover, “gender normalising” surgeries have been performed on intersex children since the 1950s, recently some people who underwent these have begun to speak out against them as a human rights violation. In this sense, rather than focusing on how to raise our children, we should advocate greater education and support for parents of intersex children.

Intersex is an umbrella term used for a variety of situations in which a person is born with reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesn’t fit the boxes of “female” or “male”. For example, some intersex people have both ovarian and testicular tissues. Other intersex people have combinations of chromosomes that are different from XY and XX.

Sometimes surgery is performed on intersex children to make their bodies fit binary ideas of “male” or “female”. However, there is growing activism that we should accept intersex children and not perform unnecessary surgery which is arguable a violation of their rights. InterACT provides more support and resources for intersex children and parents.

Evolution has caused men and women to have different psychological characteristics through biological adaptations, these have then been perpetuated by social stereotypes and cultural norms.

• Specifically, evolutionary psychology shows how males tend to be more aggressive because they can gain greater access to females by competing violently with other males.
• Similarly, males are thought to be more willing to engage in casual sex because they can greatly increase their reproductive output by doing so.
• Females are more likely to prefer a partner who is taller and of a higher status because such males are better protectors and providers.

In this sense, evolution can be seen as the roots of psychological differences between the sexes. Culture and social context, like gender stereotypes that are influenced through our upbringings both in the personal sphere by our parents and in the public sphere in popular culture, continues to maintain these differences.

Human overpopulation is among the most pressing environmental issues, it is a silent force behind global warming, pollution and the consumption of limited natural resources.

According to this article, the number of humans Earth can sustain long term is around 1.9 billion people, which was roughly the global population 100 years ago in 1919. Ultimately, human activities are causing climate change and as the population increases, so do the effects of climate change; according to the Centre for Biological Diversity “the largest single threat to the ecology and biodiversity of the planet in the decades to come will be global climate disruption” and while we are slowly addressing the issues “unsustainable human population growth can overwhelm those efforts, leading us to conclude that we not only need smaller footprints, but fewer feet”.

Moreover, this article also highlights the effects overpopulation is having on natural resources. For example, it is predicted that by 2025 more than half of the world’s population will be facing water-based vulnerability and human demand for water will account for 70% of all available freshwater. Moreover, overpopulation is causing the greatest mass extinction of species since the extinction of the dinosaurs; we are losing 20,000 species per year or 3 species per hour, further demonstrating how human overpopulation is a serious issue in today’s world.

In today’s society, the terms “equality” is presumed to mean equality of outcome, yet to achieve equality you need to start from below and equality of opportunity can remove these prejudices from the selection process.

Equality of outcome looks to ensure people who are disadvantaged are making gains. Equality of opportunity looks to ensure that everyone has the same opportunities to make those gains.

An example of equality of outcome would be quotas. While they can accelerate change and representation of minority groups in the workforce, they can be seen as a superficial solution as they don’t tackle the deep-rooted societal issues that are causing inequality in the first place.

Striving for equality of opportunity would give everyone the chance to succeed in the areas they are best suited to, rather than just achieving equality on a surface level by fulfilling quotas to maintain the status quo.

The right to a fair trial and judgement by a jury is a cornerstone of a democratic legal system. However, there are archaic aspects to the process and with a huge backlog of cases due to Covid, it’s a chance to reform this.

An important principle of UK law is that everyone accused of a crime should have the right to be tried in front of their peers. Currently, this means 12 individuals are randomly selected to hear evidence in a criminal case and decide whether the accused is guilty or not. Therefore, juries increase the legitimacy of the criminal justice system through the inclusion of the public in a trial process. They provide a valuable check and balance on the legal system and help to hold the government to account.

However, jury decisions also have many flaws that may to detrimental for those on trial, not to mention that it also takes a great deal of time and resources to assemble juries. The Covid crisis has brought these issues to the surface; this article highlights how the pandemic has led to a reported build-up of 457,000 criminal cases, an increase of about 100,000 since the pandemic began. Consequently, many possible criminals are free and many victims are possibly unsafe. For example, a woman who suffered extreme domestic violence in 2019 has had her case postponed and has since been told it may not come back to court before 2022.

In this sense, while the jury trials do support our right to a fair trial, there are flaws in the process and the Covid crisis may be an opportunity to reform the system.

The Oxford Dictionary defines intersectionality as “the interconnected nature of social categorisations such as race, class, and gender, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage”. In simple words, intersectionality is the acknowledgement that everyone has their own unique experiences of discrimination based, and we must consider this to achieve equality.

This Womankind article explains intersectionality and why it is important. For example, 44% of lesbian women experience intimate partner violence, compared to 35% of heterosexual women. Moreover, women with disabilities are 2 to 4 times more likely to experience domestic violence than women without disabilities.

Without intersectionality, our efforts to tackle social injustice towards women are likely to just end up perpetuating systems of inequalities. We need to recognise that “woman” is not a stand-alone category, and any feminism that only represents experiences of white, middle-class women is failing to achieve this universal equality.

When looking at the statistics, suicide rates are not only higher amongst men, but they are also rising.

• In 2018 there was 6,507 suicide registered in the UK, three-quarters of these were men (4,903 deaths). This has been the case since the mid-1990s.
• The UK male suicide rate was 17.2 deaths per 100,000 represents a significant increase from the rate in 2017. In comparison, for females, it was 5.4 deaths per 100,000, which was consistent with the rates over the past 10 years.
• Males aged 45 to 49 years had the highest age-specific suicide rate of 27.1 deaths per 100,000 males.

These statistics were from the Government Office for National Statistics.

Conversion therapy is a pseudoscientific practice of trying to change an individual’s sexual orientation using psychological, physical or spiritual interventions. It is based on an assumption that being lesbian, gay, bi or trans is a mental illness that can be “cured”.

There has been no reliable evidence to show that conversion therapy is successful, but many medical institutions have spoken on how it can be potentially harmful. Specifically, medical, scientific and government organisations in the US and UK have expressed concern over the ethics and efficiency of the process. For example, the American Psychiatric Association opposes the treatment and argues that the advancement of conversion therapy may cause social harm by disseminating unscientific views about sexual orientation.

In the UK, all major counselling and psychotherapy bodies, as well as the NHS, have concluded that conversion therapy is dangerous and have condemned it by signing a Memorandum of Understanding. In the US, although no national ban exists, 20 US states and several individual counties have banned therapy attempting to change sexual orientation.

While some conspiracy theories may very well be true, people believe them because they want them to be true rather than because they actually are true.

• Many people are fascinated by conspiracy theories because they offer a sense of escapism and it is inherent for us to question things as we don’t necessarily want to trust everybody and everything that is happening around us.
• In this sense, conspiracy theories are attractive as it gives explanations for events that rely on the assertion that powerful people are dishonestly manipulating society.
• Simultaneously, when a conspiracy theory is proved correct, this could then cause a domino effect in leading more people to believe in more theories as they seem more legitimate.
• This article highlights how misinformation offers simple explanations for otherwise random events, “it helps restore a sense of agency and control for many people”.
• We have a human tendency to believe whatever satisfies our preconceptions, whether true or not.

This is dependent on whether you are referring to biological differences or sexist stereotypes that have been created in society.

There are clear physical differences between men and women that are no product of discrimination but purely natural and biological. However, discrimination has caused these biological differences to be a source of sexism as men and women continue to be treated differently in society.

For example, there are no biological features that would mean women are more suited as homemakers, yet societal gender norms and socialisation pushes women into these stereotypical routes. This is then perpetuated by the discrimination women face in the workplace and public sphere - such as hiring discrimination, gender pay gap, and lack of opportunities into higher positions.

Thomas Hobbes was an English Philosopher who is considered to be one of the founders of modern political philosophy.

Thomas Hobbes was influenced by the havoc caused by the English Civil War and was concerned with how human beings can live together in peace and avoid the danger of fear of civil conflict. He is best known for his 1651 book [Leviathan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leviathan_(Hobbes_book), in which he develops and explains social contract theory. In the absence of a social contract, Hobbes described life in a state of nature as “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short”; therefore, to maintain social order and prevent anarchy a strong state is needed.

Hobbes is traditionally classed as a conservative theorist as he favours an authoritarian state in order to prevent the collapse of social order. Also, Hobbes believes that human nature is rational and has a pessimistic view of our behaviour.

At the end of Inception, Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) returns home to his children after spending a long time in the dream world. The final shot shows the top spinning, but it never reveals it falls over or not (if it keeps spinning it means he is in a dream).

The director, Christopher Nolan, has been constantly asked about the ending of Inception. However, he explains how he doesn’t tell fans his interpretation about his movies as viewers then see this as the truth and forget that it is up to the audience.

In one of his most revealing discussions, an interview in Wired, Nolan claims that “people seem to be noticing the things they’re meant to notice, the things that are meant to either create ambiguities or push you in one direction or another”. When asked about the ending he explains how viewpoints differ on whether you have children or not, most parents like to believe Cobb gets back to his kids.

Nolan also states that “the most important emotional thing about the top spinning at the end is that Cobb is not looking at it. He doesn’t care.”

The Declaration of Independence gives three examples of inalienable rights, in the well-known phrase, “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness”.

The US Constitution recognises that certain universal rights cannot be taken away by legislation as they are beyond the control of a government. Inalienable rights are given to every individual at birth – they are not transferable or capable of being taken away.

While there is not a specific list of inalienable rights, there are some rights that are generally accepted as natural rights. Some of these include:
• To act in self-defence
• To own private property
• Freedom of thought and speech
• Freedom of religion
• To move freely within a country or to another

While people may say they are not sexist on a conceptual level, the patriarchy and embedded social stereotypes continue to structurally oppress women, causing sexism to pervade all aspects of society.

Whether people claim they are sexist or not does not affect the issues that sexism still exists in society. Also, as the patriarchy affects our social views from childhood, many people don’t actually realise they are being sexist. This website explains different types of sexism and shows how it can operate on three different levels – interpersonal, institutional and internalized. While people claiming they are not actively sexist would tackle interpersonal sexism, it still leaves the issues raging in other aspects of society.

For example, sexism is entrenched in organisations and institutions (the government, legal system, education system, healthcare system and much more). An example would be the huge gender pay gap that exists. Institutional sexism is clearly widespread and affects women in almost every aspect of their public life.

Internalised sexism refers to sexist beliefs that a person has about themselves, normally a result of exposure to sexist behaviour or engrained ideas about social stereotypes. For example, feeling that it is essential to conform to gender ideals even if this means harming oneself through things like restrictive dieting. In this sense, sexism is everywhere these ideas are unfortunately still rooted in society and socialisation only perpetuates this.

Humans are primarily driven by self-interest because every action is intended to benefit themselves in some way, even perceivably selfless actions have underlying motivations of self-interest.

Psychological egoism assumes that all human behaviour is fundamentally motivated by self-interest, with our aim being our own welfare. In this view, everything we do, we do because at some level we believe that doing so will benefit us in some ways – even acts that are presumably selfless.

In this sense, even altruistic deeds are motivated by self-interest because humans feel a sense of satisfaction after helping someone. Therefore, psychological egoism is not necessarily a bad trait and does not mean we are inherently selfish. Instead, humans are primarily motivated by self-interest as when we are helping ourselves, we help others.

The Declaration of Independence was created in 1776 and explained why the thirteen American Colonies at war with Great Britain regarded themselves as independent sovereign states that were no longer under British rule.

The quote “All men are created equal" is from the second paragraph of the Declaration. This phrase was present in Thomas Jefferson’s original draft of the declaration.

The phrase has attracted some criticism. For example, when it was first published, the contradiction between the claim that “all men are created equal” and the existence of American slavery, as well as Jefferson owning slaves himself, did attract criticism. Also, as it reads “men”, it implies that women are excluded from freedom and rights as they were not worthy of inclusion. The Equal Rights Amendment is a proposed amendment to the Constitution to guarantee equal rights for citizens regardless of their sex; despite changing views, the rigid amendment process means the ERA has made little progress.

Just as toxic masculinity harms men and women, so does toxic femininity.

Toxic masculinity is often talked about in society, toxic femininity, however, is something we hear far less off. Toxic femininity is the idea that women expressing stereotypically “feminine” traits, such as sensitivity, passivity, patience, and receptivity, can result in individuals ignoring their mental or physical needs to sustain those around them.

This article shows how toxic femininity affects women and the roots of these issues. It also lists some examples of toxic femininity, such as a woman restricting herself to only eating a salad on a date. It explains how if a woman is displaying toxic feminine traits then these are tactics that women use to survive oppressive misogyny, or they suffering from internalized misogyny.

Whether equity or equality is best is dependent on the situation and whether you believe in equality of outcome or equality of opportunity.

• Equity refers to impartiality and fairness; it is a needs-based approach where everyone is provided with the resources required by them for being successful.
• Equality refers to equally distributing the available resources without considering individual needs.
• When looking for long-term solutions, equity can be viewed as a starting point to achieve equality. In this sense, equity is a process and equality are an outcome.
• Ultimately, equality should be something society strives for but equity might be a fairer way of achieving this as equality could create unfair opportunities for achieving success.
• However, it is also important to note that a symptom of equity is prejudice – fundamentally it involves treating people differently and racism and sexism could become a factor when deciding who and what social groups should get these opportunities over others.

Science has constantly searched for differences to prove that men and women are wired differently, but this search is rooted in the patriarchal desire to fit men and women into superior and inferior social roles.

For years scientists have researched men’s and women’s brains in the hope to reveal gender differences. Neuroscientist Gina Rippon’s book The Gendered Brain: The New Neuroscience That Shatters the Myth of the Female Brain demonstrates how the history of sex-difference research is underlined with misrepresentation and social bias. Rippon admitted that when first analysing data she also sought out these differences, yet couldn’t find any beyond the negligible.

In this sense, this scientific argument that there are “male” and “female” brains has so far gone unchallenged. However, these nice ideas that fitted the status quo have failed to materialise. Ultimately, as Rippon states, “a gendered world will produce a gendered brain”.

Gender is a social construct and everyone has the freedom to make the choice of what gender they identify as.

Gender refers to the characteristics of women and men that have been socially constructed. Therefore, while your sex is biological, gender is a personal choice. While society has dictated for a long while what being female or male should look like, this is no longer the case. People can decide themselves what gender they are or whether they are cisgender or bigender or another idenitiy – your gender is what you say it is.

There is a common misconception in society that men can have sex for fun without any long-term repercussions and that women are incapable of this and instead “fall in love” after having sex.

While each situation is different and it completely depends on the person and what past sexual experiences they have gone through, women are just as capable to not get attached after sex as men are.

However, this social misconception has roots. Typically, women are more selective with who they sleep with compared to men and so, just based on probability, women are going to be more likely to get attached to a higher proportion of their body count than males.

Yet, this does not mean that for women sex = emotional attachment. In this sense, you can’t claim that “women” in general get attached after sex. There are multiple variables involved when getting emotionally attached, and gender is not necessarily one of these.

There are aspects of First Past the Post which are undemocratic and could be solved by introducing a proportional voting system instead. However, it is also important to acknowledge the flaws of proportional voting and the strengths of FPTP

Strengths of FPTP
• FPTP is a majoritarian system that tends to lead to ‘majoritarian representation’ where the result is that one party will have gained more than 50% of the seats. Therefore, strong and stable majority governments are formed.
• Evidently, since World War 2 there has only been 3 minority governments and 1 coalition. In comparison, the Northern Ireland Assembly uses the Single Transferable Vote which often creates coalition governments. Consequently, the Assembly collapsed after policy disagreements with the different parties in power, it remained suspended between January 2017 to January 2020.
• Moreover, FPTP reduces the support of extremist parties and prevents these from gaining power. For example, support for the BNP in the UK was greatly curbed as FPTP prevented them from translating popular support into seats.
• FPTP is simple and quick, contrastingly proportional voting systems like Single Transferrable Vote is quite complicated.

Weaknesses of FPTP
• However, FPTP is undemocratic as it produces governments and MPs that have been elected on a simple majority (you only have to secure the most votes, so an MP could lack the support of 50% of the constituents yet still be elected). For example, in the 2015 general election 319 MPs were elected on less than 50% of the vote.
• Therefore, governments can also be elected on a simple majority. For example, in 2015 a majority Conservative was produced on only 36.9% of the vote.
• FPTP suppresses third-party support; for example, UKIP gained 12.6% of the popular vote yet as they didn’t have a strong geographic support base this only translated into 1 seat.

First Past the Post electoral system is a plurality voting method that is used by about a third of the worlds’ countries.

In the UK, there are 650 constituencies with a local election each. On election day voters receive a ballot paper with a list of candidates (each party has one candidate in each area). Voters then pick their preferred candidate, and these votes are then translated into seats in the Houses of Parliament.

This tends to generate a two-party system as smaller parties, without a strong geographical support base, struggle to translate their votes into seats.

FPTP has therefore been criticised as smaller parties do not gain a fair representation. Also, governments can be elected on less than 50% of the vote, raising the question of whether FPTP produces legitimate and representative governments.

Consequently, some people argue that FPTP should be replaced by a proportional voting system. In 2011 there was a referendum on whether the Alternative Vote System should be used instead, but only 32% voted in favour of this. Other than this, there has been little headway in mainstream politics to introduce proportional voting to UK general elections.

Pornography actively degrades women as it presents females as sexual commodities.

• Pornography fosters the idea that the degradation of women is acceptable as it often presents women in an inferior role.
• Males watch pornography more frequently than females; this study shows that 9% of men said they watched sexual content on a regular basis and 13% of women said they very rarely watched porn and only 1% of women indulged in those activities quite often or regularly.
• Therefore, males' greater exposure to sexual material in the media means they are more suspectable to associate women as sex objects.
• In this sense, men are more likely to describe women in overtly sexual terms due to this unrealistic and degrading depiction of women in pornography.

TL;DR - The gender pay gap is not oversold. The fact that a gender pay gap still exists is extremely worrying and claiming that it is “oversold” is just another way of ignoring the issue at hand.

Firstly, some stats:

• Working women in the EU earn on average 14% less per hour than men do.
• Specifically, less than 10% of the top companies’ CEOs are women so when looking at the pay gap in different occupations, female managers are at the greatest disadvantage, earning 23% less per hour than male managers.
• Women not only earn less per hour, but they also perform more unpaid work and are more likely to be unemployed than men; all these factors combined bring the total pay gap to almost 37% in the EU.
• Despite the Equal Pay Act (1970), the 2020 gender pay gap in the UK was still 15.5%.

In this sense, the gender pay gap is definitely not oversold, if anything you could argue that it is understated as a social issue.

I believe men have been historically favoured in society and this has restricted women from opportunities like gaining jobs.

In a capitalist society, class continues to be a dividing factor amongst people.

While there are cultural and linguistic barriers to get through, nationality fails to be a division unless there are external religious or political pressures. People tend to connect with those of a similar background, upbringing or social setting as them – regardless of nationality.

Also, even though society is still divided by people’s ethnicity, a recent report highlights how the ethnicity pay gap between white and ethnic minority employees has narrowed to its smallest level since 2012. This implies that class offers a common ground for different nationalities as the disparities between classes continues to be a division in society.

The term "woke" is defined as an 'alertness to injustice in society.' As discrimination continues to pervade society, the term "woke" can be especially related to issues of race.

However, I do not think that white people shouldn't be allowed to use the term. While many white people may not have experienced the discrimination that being "woke" recognises, it does not mean that white people can't use the term to raise awareness of these issues and support social equality as black people would.

Moreover, the term "woke" is not restricted to issues of race, but rather social issues in general. In this sense, if you are arguing that white people can't use the term you could also claim that men shouldn't be able to use it as women have suffered from more sexism in society than men have.

"Woke" is not an offensive term against minorities and what issues people have and haven't experienced. Rather, it is a modern term that can be utilised to inform and raise awareness of social injustice.

This phrase originated from the book Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus (1992), written by John Gray who was an American author and relationship counsellor.

The book states that the most common relationship problems between men and women are a result of fundamental psychological differences between the two sexes – ultimately men are women are so different that they are from distinct planets.

The book sold more than 15 million copies and has become a common metaphor in popular culture.

However, it has been criticized for perpetuating social stereotypes and fails to acknowledge the social construction around gender.

This so-called maternal instinct that as soon as your baby arrives you’ll ‘just know” what to do is a myth, and perpetuates patriarchal values to keep women in their place.

• Parenting skills are not necessarily instinctual or generic, they are learned through practice and experience.
• The idea that women have a maternal instinct also places the parenting burden on mothers as this social myth claims only mothers are expected to feel guilty about any shortcomings in their childcare.
• It perpetuates the societal stereotype that women belong in the domestic sphere as mothers and homemakers, and men in the public sphere as the breadwinner.
• Also, parenting is open to both sexes and so men should not be excluded from this process because society asserts that only women have a natural maternal instinct and drive.
• As Darcy Lockman, a psychologist and author, states “It’s the love part that is innate, and fathers love their children as deeply as mothers”.

For some, rituals can provide a deep spiritual function by bringing people closer to their religion and reaffirming their beliefs.

• Rituals are inherent in the spiritual belief system of many cultures.
• The purpose of rituals is to elevate one’s physical and emotional consciousness in order to achieve harmony, and in some cases spiritual ecstasy.
• Rituals are important to spirituality because the repetition of enacting each ritual can provide focal points for people, this could reduce distraction and provide a level of comfort.
• Rituals communicate or are intended to communicate to self, others or deities. They provide a spiritual function in conveying information regarding the commitments, beliefs and values of the individuals performing the ritual and link.

A religious ritual is any repetitive and patterned behaviour that is tied to a religious institution or belief.

Rituals may be performed individually or collectively during predetermined times, such as praying at specific times of the day, events like fasting or mourning rituals after death. Alternatively, rituals can also be performed sporadically; for example, praying at various times throughout the day.

According to the sociologist Mervin Verbit, religious rituals can provide a methodological measure of religiosity. To assess how far rituals can provide a spiritual function, Verbit claims they can be broken down into four dimensions; content, frequency, intensity and centrality and these factors may vary from ritual to ritual.

Populism offers democratic renewal by bringing new policies and people into government to tackle elitism, however, populist parties can also undermine accountability and work to erode the checks and balances that exist in democracy to achieve their aims.

• As populism has a focus on representing “the people” rather than “the elite”, it offers the potential for a more representative democracy.
• However, the history of populist ideology has shown that populist parties frequently focus on personality politics, meaning that the leader is often given more attention at the expense of the party and policies itself. For example, Donald Trump’s victory in the 2016 US presidential election.
• Academic Zsolt Enyedi argues that populism is a threat to democracy because it holds the potential of providing the state with a moral status that it otherwise lacks; once a populist party is in power the defence mechanisms against tyranny with inevitably under threat as their ideology seeks to represent “the people”
• Alternatively, academic Chantal Mouffe argues the only way to save democracy is to promote progressive populism as it would mobilise common effects towards equality and social justice.

Ultimately, while there may be other factors at play, the amount of pressure students face at university has caused rates of depression and anxiety to be alarmingly high.

• A recent survey of almost 38,0000 UK students reported that 50.3% of the students had thoughts of self-harm. This was twice as high as reported rates in 2017, indicating that university pressure is becoming more of a threat to peoples’ mental health and that we are not doing enough to tackle this issue.
• The survey also highlighted that students in second and third years were at a “significantly higher risk” than freshers. In this sense, university pressure is causing depression amongst students because as you progress through university the workload and stress increases.
• In reflection of these statistics, this website provides more information on how depression can affect students and what support is available.

Despite efforts to move towards equal opportunities for men and women, gender inequality still pervades society. While there are multiple reasons to explain this inequality, ultimately, this stems from a gender bias that exists.

According to the World Economic Forum, it is estimated that it will take another century before true gender equality becomes a reality. This article notes 10 reasons which are the causes of this gender inequality; including uneven access to education, lack of employment equality, job segregation, lack of political representation and lack of legal protection.

While these all explain inequality, the reason these issues exist in the first place is a deeper issue regarding societal mindsets and a gender bias that continues to prevent any significant change. While laws and procedures can be put in place to improve opportunities for women, inequality will never be fully confronted in a de facto sense if peoples mindsets about social stereotypes don't change.

Critical race theory originated in the mid-1970s in America. As a body of legal scholarship, it emerged with an academic movement of civil rights lawyers and activists to critically examine American law in relation to racial issues.

Lawyers Derrick Bell and Kimberlé Crenshaw were key legal figures in the emergence of critical race theory. It was largely a response to the slow legal progress and setbacks faced by African Americans from the end of the Civil War to the civil rights movement in 1968.

Through studying law and American history, critical race theory seeks to reveal how racial oppression has shaped the legal fabric of America and how this has then affected racial issues in society.

Non-binary is an umbrella term that refers to any gender identity that isn’t male or female. Whereas androgynous is an outward appearance of indeterminate gender or how someone expresses themselves.

While some non-binary people may express themselves androgynously, this is a personal choice and not a requirement of the non-binary gender identity.

Gender inequality is still a massive problem in society. While a lot of these issues do stem from men, claiming that “men” are the problem may neglect the bigger roots of social issues.

By characterising the problems in society as being caused by “men”, it not only overlooks social issues that men face themselves but also claims that all men are the problem when only some men are perpetuating patriarchal values.

However, gender inequality still dominates society and women are still restricted of opportunities as well as being at harm from sexual harassment which still pervades society. To tackle these issues, the way men are socialised needs to change and stereotypes of what being a man is, like toxic masculinity, need to be confronted.

In this sense, while a lot of the problems in society originate from men and are directed at women, there are deeper roots to why this is and it is not necessarily as simple as being a man means you are inherently contributing to these problems.

Sexuality isn’t something that is polarised, it is a spectrum and therefore people can be attracted to more than one gender.

• Bisexuality has been invalidated with some people saying “it’s just a phase” and to “pick a side”, but this is not only offensive but also perpetuates the idea that heterosexuality and homosexuality are the only sexual orientations that exist and are acceptable.
• Another common misconception is that people think that when someone who is bisexual enters a relationship, they are then either straight or gay. However, this is not always true, just because someone is in a relationship with one sex does not mean that the attraction towards another sex disappears.
• The movement #StillBisexual supports that bisexual people are bisexual regardless of being in a relationship.

The gender gap in STEM subjects does not necessarily mean men are naturally better at STEM subjects, to tackle this difference we need to confront stereotypes to prevent socialisation.

There is a social stereotype that men are better at maths and science than women, when looking at the statistics this outlook seems to be supported. For example, as this study shows, the percentage of female students in core STEM subjects is only 35% and females only made up 26% of STEM graduates in 2019. Moreover, in 2019 women only consisted 24% of the STEM workforce.

If indeed men are naturally better than women at scientific subjects, then it’s not that surprising that women are so underrepresented. However, a recent study found that gender differences in mathematical abilities do not become evident until children reach adolescence. For example, between 6 and 9 years old, girls perform just as well as boys in maths and science.

In this sense, men are not naturally better at STEM subjects, but they are just more inclined to go into those areas as children start to conform to common stereotypes. For example, the previous study also shows that girls’ assessments of their own math ability were directly proportional to whether their mothers held gender stereotypes about STEM subjects; daughters of mothers who thought maths was a “boy’s” subject felt worse about their own abilities in maths and science.

A key aspect of consent is that it is reversible, therefore consent can be withdrawn at any time.

• In the UK, consent is defined by section 74 Sexual Offences Act (2003). This states that someone consents to sexual activity if they agree and have the freedom to make this choice.
• It also states that consent can be withdrawn at any time during sexual activity, as they should have the freedom and capacity to say no at any point. More legal information can be summarised in this NHS document.
• You don’t specifically need to say “no”, there are other ways that people can indicate they don’t want to engage in sexual activity. For example, body language or lack of reciprocation.
• Even if you have engaged in sexual activity with that person before, you still need to get their consent every time. So, if someone consents to one type of sexual activity, that does not mean they have consented to any others.
• This government report called This is Abuse can provide more information on consent and provide more awareness on issues relating to sexual abuse, violence and rape.

Men do have their own unique set of gender issues that need to be addressed and something needs to change to not only progress equality but also raise awareness and improve mental health issues amongst men.

• Gender inequality affects everyone: social stereotypes and expectations can still deeply impact men.
• History has dictated, which are still enforced by the media today, that men need to be strong, hide their emotions and be the family breadwinner. But these traditional stereotypes are sexist and should not be presented as the ‘ideal’ in modern society.
• Many men find it difficult to live up to these standards and feel pressure to be a ‘real man’, these gender issues need to be addressed to achieve equality.
• This expectation that men need to be emotionally strong is psychologically damaging as men are less likely to seek professional help or talk about their problems. For example, in the UK suicide is the single biggest killer of men under the age of 45 and in the US, men are 3.5 times more likely to die by suicide (this article provides more information and resources).
• Another gender issue that men face is toxic masculinity, the idea that “manliness” perpetuates domination, homophobia and aggression. Without addressing this issue, the patriarchy will only continue to impact women as well as worsening social pressures on men.

Gender-fluid is a form of gender identity or expression, rather than sexual orientation.

A gender-fluid person is when a person’s gender changes over time; they might identify as a male one day and a female the next. They could also identify as nonbinary identities and there is no specific time frame that this change can happen in.

This differs from gender-neutral which is a term often used to describe people of any gender.

While there are distinct biological differences between males and females, gender, in terms of what people identify and as a social concept, is fluid.

• As gender is not necessarily dependent on biological characteristics, it cannot be fixed.
• Identifying your gender as being female or male can be about how you feel and therefore this could change over time.
• Support for gender fluidity is reflected in many organisations now asking for people’s pronouns and accepting gender-neutral pronouns, rather than just making presumptions by people’s appearance.
• As this article demonstrates, young people are increasingly challenging conventional gender stereotypes as in a recent survey by Fusion, half of millennials in the US agreed that gender isn’t limited to just male and female.

TL;DR - Making public nudity legal would increase vulnerability to sexual harassment and raises issues of where the boundaries would lie.

While it is argued that nudism is healthier (both mentally and physically), making public nudity legal in a society where sexual harassment and violence is still very much present could cause a lot of people to feel more at risk and uncomfortable.

Moreover, in a society where, unfortunately, people experience body-consciousness and dysmorphia, public nudity could worsen these issues.

Also, if someone wants to be nude in public then there are places they can go to do that. For example, nude beaches and spas. Therefore, it isn’t necessary to make public nudity legal as it is not like we are completely restricting this right, but merely putting societal safety boundaries on it.

TL;DR - As climate change continues to be a national pressing issue, governments have a responsibility to ensure their country helps to tackle global warming and the US adopting a national carbon tax would be another step in this process.

• A carbon tax is a tax levied on carbon emissions, it is intended to visualise the, otherwise hidden, costs of carbon emissions which are felt in indirect ways like severe weather changes and events.
• A nationwide carbon tax in the US would help conserve the environment by forcing companies to cut down, maybe even eliminate, their CO2 emissions.
• A recent study, which can be found here, found that carbon taxation is effective as, in a study of 142 countries, CO2 emissions of countries that did have a carbon tax reduced by 2% while countries that did not have a carbon tax in place experienced a 3% rise in emissions.
• A carbon tax would also raise revenue for the government which could then be used to fund government programmes to benefit society. As this study demonstrates, a worldwide revenue of $28.3 billion was collected in 2016 from governments that had implemented carbon finance policies and Finland, which have had a carbon tax since 1990, gained a revenue of $800 million in 2013.
• Moreover, a carbon tax would help educate the public and, for many, a carbon tax is what American people want and support; for example, according to a 2014 poll, 60% of Americans agree that revenues raised by a federal carbon tax should be used to fund renewable energy programs.

The United States Federal Government Should Adopt a Nationwide Carbon Tax

TL;DR - Focusing on what causes people to be straight or gay or bi is irrelevant; homosexuality predetermination misses the point because homosexuality does not need to be justified.

• Arguing that homosexuality is predetermined and biological still supports the archaic argument that homosexuality is the flawed and alternate choice.
• Homosexuality predetermination also presents homosexuality as being outside of human control.
• Moreover, when looking at the scientific arguments, this article, highlights how the media have oversimplified genetic theories of sexuality with labels such as “the gay gene”, and shows how people need to remember that if sexuality is biological, it’s not only gay people whose sexuality is determined by their genes but straight people too.
• Therefore, homosexuality predetermination misses the point as the point isn’t why people are homosexual, but it is that they are and there is nothing wrong with that.

TL;DR - Claiming that women are better listeners than men only feeds into gender stereotypes and contributes to issues around masculinity.

• The male and female sexes are complex identities and I don’t believe you can ascribe a trait, in this case being a good listener, to one sex being better than the other.
• Each person is unique and, while there are biological differences between men and women, there are not necessarily general personality differences or roles each sex is inherent to.
• Moreover, intersectionality demonstrates how every woman is different. In this sense, you can’t generalise all women as being “good listeners” as this trait could vary from woman to woman.
• Being a good listener is rooted in socialisation factors like your personality, your environment, and social upbringing rather than being a biological characteristic.

TL;DR - Rape culture is a pervasive part of western society, with 97% of women aged 18-24 being sexually harassed and one in 16 women losing their virginity through rape.

Firstly, rape culture is a sociological theory of a setting in which rape is normalised due to societal attitudes towards sex and gender. Therefore, rape culture is present in western society as patriarchal attitudes continue to teach people, especially women, “not to be raped”, rather than focusing on the issue of preventing rape as a universal crime and threat.

This responsibility that is placed on women to ensure they are not raped feeds into the victim-blaming and slut-shaming which perpetuates rape culture. In a society where women have to be hyper-vigilant and fearful of men, rape culture is active.

Ultimately, the statistics, as well as patriarchal attitudes, means rape culture is part of western society as sexual violence continues to be normalised.

Research finds that 97% of women in the UK have been sexually harassed

Rape culture is as American as apple pie

TL;DR - While there are some good intentions in censoring offensive content by creating limits and curbing access to harmful activities, censorship also deeply affects the way people access information and invades our rights.

As social media continues to dominate society, censoring offensive content can help create limits and prevent people from seeing harmful content. Considering social media is quite accessible, censorship can be especially useful for underage viewers.

However, there are many cons to internet censorship and avoiding offensive content can do more harm than good. For example, it is important to question who is making the rules and what checks and balances are in place. In this sense, internet censorship could become opinionated on what is acceptable and not. Moreover, it encroaches on our rights and could potentially limit our free speech in preventing what people want to post and share.

TL;DR - LGBTQ Couples should have equal opportunities when it comes to having children.

• A person’s sexual orientation does not affect a person’s ability to be a good parent.
• To achieve equality, everyone should be entitled to equal rights and restricting LGBTQ couples from having their own baby, through means of IVF and surrogacy, would be completely homophobic.
• As long as they are healthy and capable of looking after a child, no-one should be excluded from this opportunity, especially on the pre-condition of one’s sexual orientation.

TL;DR - While there are biological differences between men and women, gender is a social construct. Men and women do not have different roles to play in society as this only perpetuates the patriarchal structure by stereotyping sexes into different roles.

• To achieve equality, a ‘gender blind’ society needs to be created to ensure we are all treated equally. As gender is a social construct, biological differences should be no barrier to equal treatment, so the idea that men and women have different roles is a flawed notion that needs to be tackled to achieve equality.
• For example, just because history has told us that men need to be the breadwinners and women the housewives, does not mean that men have a social responsibility to hold down a good job and women to stay at home and look after the children.
• Claiming that men and women each have different roles to play in society only further prevents women from accessing equal opportunities and continues the process of gender socialisation.
• Moreover, arguing that men and women have different social responsibilities divides society into two groups. In reality, modern society is much more complex than that; for example, intersectionality means that there are no unifying gender traits as multiple differences exist between women.

I completely agree. Also, in the case of rape, it would be completely lacking in compassion to deny a pregnant person the right to abortion.

With a mere 59.4% turnout, the 2001 general election was tainted by voter apathy. This a major democratic problem that needs addressing.

Since 1924, Australia has had compulsory voting in place and people who violate this have to pay a fine. Consequently, the 2019 Australian federal election received a turnout of 92%. By tackling this turnout issue, mandatory voting can improve voter participation and therefore encourage public engagement in politics. By creating an increasingly politicized public, mandatory voting can allow candidates to focus more on policy rather than spending time trying to get voters to the polls. Moreover, on a more moral level, people died to give us the privilege to vote - therefore, voting is not just a right, but a responsibility.

However, mandatory voting is far from a simple answer. It has many cons and while solves the problem on the surface, participation enforcement can’t tackle the roots of this democratic crisis. Specifically, mandatory voting opens the door to uninformed voters. It is a common trend for disillusioned voters to spoil their ballot paper, creating wasted votes. Arguably this is more undemocratic than voters choosing not to vote. Another consequence that can arise from uninformed voters is ‘donkey voting’. This is when a voter ticks the first candidate on their ballot paper or records his vote by numbering the candidates from top to bottom.

Perhaps the issue isn’t whether people are voting or not, but it's why people are choosing not to vote. In this sense, mandatory voting won’t solve this deep-rooted issue and instead, we should be looking to ways of politicizing the public so people are more interested in voting on their own behalf. For example, the 2016 EU Referendum received a turnout of 72.2%, implying that a heightened public debate enthused the public and caused more people to want to vote. However, mandatory voting could help to engage and encourage the public, thus providing a long-term and exponential solution to political disillusionment.