Nations With A System Of Liberal Democracy - 1734 Words

Nations with a system of liberal democracy have a hope to achieve a structure of government that benefits all citizens equally (Callan, p. 1, 2004). However, countries that claim to be liberal representative democracies (such as the United States, New Zealand, and the Britain) have failed to be representative of all the citizens. Due to historical occurrences, traditional gender roles, and lack of activism from the elite (white men in positions of power), women have been denied their natural human rights and, as a result, their full potential to become active in the political sphere. As mentioned by Anne Phillips in Engendering Democracy, â€Å"[s]ex remains a significant†¦indicator of where and how much we are politically involved†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (99). This†¦show more content†¦By assuming â€Å"men† and â€Å"citizens† can be used interchangeably, we are excluding women from documents that directly talk about equality and freedom in liberal democracies. T his shows how separation of men and women rank is ingrained in our society. This is not limited to the United States. Many leading liberal democracies, such as the United Kingdom, have documentation that uses the word â€Å"men† when referring to the nation’s citizens (Bill of Rights, 1689). Today, there lies a separation of the capabilities of men and women in the minds of some. This is based on a false understanding of gender roles, where women must ‘live up to’ their role of a procreating mother. As Anne Phillips explains in Engendering Democracy society has programmed young minds to think it is the women’s duty to â€Å"†¦[collect] the children and [make] the tea†¦Ã¢â‚¬  and this truly is â€Å"a vital political concern† (Phillips, 97). The issue lies in status quo, which the elite continue to apply in nations worldwide. By training young minds to believe they have a specific role to live up to, we are resisting citizenâ€℠¢s natural growth and are instead demanding citizens to follow what has always been done. Women are told to complete household and family duties while men are told to go into the workforce and bring in an income and support his family. This system of patriarchy allows men to becomeShow MoreRelatedLiberal Democracies Vs. Liberal Democracy Essay1142 Words   |  5 PagesLiberal democracies, are defined as the system in which governmental body operate under the principle of individual rights and work to protect them regardless of religion, sect, ethnicity etc. Liberal democracies are thought to be secular in nature and generally do not account for religions or ethnicities rather they promote a certain nationalistic perspective throughout the state. 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