THE XX FACTOR

The insistence that gender differences were and are immaterial to the proper functioning of a free society has been a feature of our common conversation since the 1970s. It was the key to "second-wave feminism," the political and social movement that took women's liberation beyond iss...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Commentary (New York) 2017-04, Vol.143 (4), p.13
Main Author: Lehmann, Claire
Format: Magazinearticle
Language:English
Subjects:
Feminism
Gender differences
Studies
Womens health
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:The insistence that gender differences were and are immaterial to the proper functioning of a free society has been a feature of our common conversation since the 1970s. It was the key to "second-wave feminism," the political and social movement that took women's liberation beyond issues of suffrage and wages and employment to the question of how a just society orders itself. By the close of the 20th century; however, the insistence that gender differences be treated as inconsequential had ossified into orthodoxy precisely at the moment when the biological sciences were uncovering differences between the sexes that had hitherto been unknown. An ongoing tug-of-war has resulted between scientists who investigate sex differences and activists who oppose such research. This battle over theory has had horrific real-world consequences. The minimizing of sex differences in areas of health and medicine in particular has led to sweepingly harmful and often fatal results, especially for women.
ISSN:0010-2601
1943-4634