Online Lesson #11

Speech :

Should gender prejudice be punished by the government?

Should gender prejudice be punished ? Yes . It inflicts harm on the victim, consciously or unconsciously, and the harm may not be just a surface wound, it may be a scar, that lasts forever. I am here today discussing if gender prejudice has the severity to deserve the government's intervention. My honest opinion being, no. Definitely, gender prejudice, like all other prejudices, have pernicious effects. However they strictly do not deserve any government punishment. Without government punishment, other solutions will still stop gender prejudice.

Firstly, one very important solution, would be time. As time goes, people grow. As people grow, they become more mature. Maturity has the grip on gender prejudice; the less mature you are, the more likely you are to insult someone, and vice versa. The innate maturity itself, is self-sufficient to curb gender prejudice. For example, if you look at my younger cousins. Janelle, is 5 years old this year, and Timothy is 3 years old this year. Many a times, at family and relative gatherings, I often see them quarrelling. Janelle would shout " Boys are losers ! Girls are the best !" Timothy would stand helpless, running back to my aunt. They are just small kids, and lack the maturity to think for themselves. They blatantly speak in order to hurt the other person, or to ensure superiority. On the other hand, I do not see my 15 year old cousin and 17 year old cousin fighting over such things. I do not see one shouting at the other " Boys are losers ." I do not see them fighting over gender. It is obvious that only the younger children have this problem, whilst the teenagers find nothing at all to quarrel about. Government punishment can be very severe, and are to punish , and to correct, any wrong doings. Though gender prejudice is wrong, it does not require the government to step in, as time would be the solution. As one ages, he becomes more mature. Gender prejudice then only occurs to the immature, and ironically, government punishment should only be given to the mature. Reason being , the immature lacks the consciousness of his thoughts; he does not know what he is doing. So putting it into a simple way of saying it, when government punishments are for the mature, gender prejudice only occurs in the immature, hence both government punishments and gender prejudice cannot go together. They are by nature, two like poles of a magnet.

Secondly, besides maturity, gender prejudice is natural. It is part and parcel of growing up. We are all inborn with this inclination to assume prejudice over another gender. Be it a 77 year old man, or a 3 year old child, both of them would have ever said the catchphrase " Boys are losers, Girls are the best ", in their life. Not because they are forced to, or it is some imprinted law, but its because God made us this way. The nature of us, human beings, include trying to be superior. We, as humans, are ethical egoists, always hoping for anything that benefits us. Definitely, inborn we want to be superior. For example , when I was a boy, I recall I was in Bridges Montessori, and I was just 6 years old. I recall the awesome friends I had made, and the teachers who were so helpful to me. However, some days, where I felt inferior or lonely, I would naturally find myself talking to some girls. I would insult the girls, asking why are they so short. I would insult the girls, asking why their name is so funny. I would insult the girls, asking why did they have long hair. The girls, who were more mature then, shrugged my truthful opinions off. However, some days, the girls also insulted me. They would ask why I was so naughty, they would ask why I was so noisy. As the years went by, I realised I  had always been doing that to satisfy my inferiority. It is a natural instinct. Aside maturity, I feel that it is natural for us to feel inferior, and wanting to insult the other gender. Without a doubt this does not require the government's intervention. We cannot expect them to place a fine or jail term on us whenever we do something natural. It is equals to fining anyone who burps.

Lastly, other than maturity and nature, gender prejudice also can be solved and overcame by reasoned and gentle talks. Definitely you do not reprimand, or lambast a small boy for doing something natural. Though it might be negative to the other gender, one could just gently have a speech, discussing about the topic. For example, whenever Janelle hurled insults at Timothy, like those mentioned before, Timothy often runs back to his mother. His mother then, would tell Janelle's mother what was going on. Following that, Janelle's mother would talk to Janelle about calling someone names, and insulting Timothy. After awhile, Janelle stops insulting Timothy. But when Timothy realizes Janelle now has a " weak point", he goes on calling Janelle fat, and more.  There is a cyclical continuity in this, until one reaches maturity, as I previously said. Such reasoned and gentle talks are short-term solutions till one reaches maturity. As such, I do not agree that government strictness should apply to immature children.

Humans, in the nature of our growing up, in the immature being we were, often experience gender prejudice. It is not justifiable for government to intervene with nature. Why not let simple talks and time resolve the matter, instead of harsh punishments that seek short-term correction? You cannot correct and punish nature, just let things be as it is, and with simple talks, they can solve the problems till maturity. Gender prejudice is not justifiable for government punishments.

Benedict (: