In class, I’ve just been told that upwards of 100,000 Iraqi soldiers (obviously all men) were killed in Desert Storm.
Now, I don’t know what the population of Iraq is, or what the male-to-female ratio there is. But let’s assume that when we go to war, large numbers of Iraqi soldiers are killed. Obviously, this would lower the male population and, proportionally, raise the number of females–although, again, I don’t know if this would have a serious impact on the sex ratio. (I’ve been told this phenomenon was common after the Civil War and World War II, where certain towns would have noticeably disproportionate sex distribution. The few men left might be too old, too young, or infirm from war injuries.)
Since, as I understand it, women are marginalized in Iraq, would a lowered male population give them an opportunity to boost their social status? (Not that I’m not favoring a war to get this outcome; I’m just wondering if this outcome is possible.)
Not necessarily. It seems that there is no barrier to privileging a group that is a small minority of the population, so rendering males scarce may have no impact.
What possibly will have an effect is if the aftermath of this fiasco is the coming of a fundamentalist Islamic government. Hussein’s Iraq is secular and its Islam mostly Sunni rather than Shiite. I would imagine that being invaded by the US will generate more interest and sympathy for Shiite fundamentalist types, though. Women could end up considerably worse off.
Actually, while one can say an awful lot of bad things about Iraq, that’s not really one of them, at least by regional standards. Iraq’s Ba’athists, corrupt though they were/are, were secular nationalists of a pan-Arab socialist stripe ( now they’re more whatever Saddam is feeling like that day, but that’s another issue ). Consequently women have traditionally been vastly better off in Iraq than they have been in the Gulf states for example. In a weird turnabout it is actually the U.S. allies in the Gulf that really marginalize women in a more serious way.
Iraq offered free university education to both men and women, free pre- and post-natal medical care, the public sector ( where most women were employed - teachers, doctors, and the like ) offered six months paid maternity leave + six months at half-pay, and women made up about 20% of the workforce ( before the Gulf War ). Iraq also had/has better than average ( for the Muslim world ) laws on sexual harassment, workplace exploitation, land ownership, suffrage, divorce, and related matters. They can also technically serve in the military, police, and in the government, though I’m uncertain just how wide that participation actually is.
However it was/is still far from perfect - Women can’t travel outside the country unescorted and domestic violence is apparently common. Not to mention the security forces have a bad reputation for rape in some areas ( like the Kurdish regions ) and as an instrument of torture. Further I understand there are indications the situation has degraded quite a bit since the Gulf War.
I suspect things will at least get back to pre-Gulf War status, possibly a bit better. But given there is supposedly already vast unemployment and underemployment in Iraq already, I’m not sure women will automatically make dramatic gains in the workplace. Though it is reasonable to suppose they’ll make some.
When the men get killed (or whatever) in the war, what’s left is not just a surplus of women - it’s women and children without husbands and fathers (and often without houses, schools, hospitals, running water, electricity etc). So the women end up working a lot harder - nursing the wounded, looking after the kids, as well as bringing home the bacon, if there’s any to be brought.
cowgirl, women are looking after kids as well as bringing home the bacon all over the third world: they are typically involved in agricultural as well as domestic production in addition to their work as rearers of children, and homemakers.
I was in the midst of saying that you might find this article on Rwandan women after the genocide very interesting. It’s also very moving: I recommend it to anyone who’s interested.