Patriarchal Ideologies and how it has entrenched inequalities in Uganda.

Patriarchy is a system of male authority that oppresses women through political, social, cultural and economic institutions. It is a system which accords men power and privilege and subordinates the women. The following seeks to illustrate to you how patriarchy has been natured, reproduced and sustained in our communities.

Masculinity and the media. The media helps to internalize and reinforce certain gender stereotypes that make the men superior and subordinate the women. The media is a socializing point for the children as they grow up exposed to both print or displayed media. In today’s society parents do not have control over what the children view as they leave them in the hands of house helps or even alone. It is important to note that the news rooms are filled with men; even where the women are they are often given the petty issues like fashion while real issues are given to their male counterparts. There are different roles women and men play in the media houses and the nature of publication is always different. The media plays an instrumental role in placing the men above the women,

Culture and masculinity People do not become men and women in the sterile environment of the womb rather; they do so in specific social and cultural contexts.

The social production of masculinity and femininity is often begun at home through socialization practices, which aim to instill specific personalities and identities into male and female children. Socialization experiences inscribe superiority into maleness and masculinity, and inferiority into femaleness and femininity.

It is important to examine some of these practices and values that are instilled in the male and female children and decide whether in this day and era, we still want to instill the same values. Male children are less likely than female ones to suffer rejection, prejudice, discrimination, and abandonment.

Power relation Patriarchy derives its power base from men’s access to and control over resources. The owner of resources has all the decision making powers in the household and overall economy. In the Household the man is the bread winner which give him
absolute powers over the woman, the fact that Women do not inherit property according cultural norms and beliefs do not have access to productive resources to acquire property makes them less powerful. This power dimension is also translated to the children in such a way that boy children made a ware quite early of the entitlements that they command as opposed to the girl child. They are constantly left in charge of the household and even when it comes to education the boy child is sent to school. This becomes a vicious cycle as the boys end up occupying the boardrooms when the women are nonexistent.

Programs that target only women. The shift from women in development (WID) to Gender and Development (GAD) was against the background that men have a crucial role to play in achieving gender equality as partners to mention. There are several programs that have been established to empower only women which become a concern despite the fact that they may be affirmative programs. These programs change the power relations that exist between women and men in the household. The women obtain access to certain resources that elevates their status in society and as such they attain decision making the power which they previously did not have. This is often mistaken and seen as a threat to the men who do not understand the new power dimensions. This may lead to problems like violence and intimidation s concept that patriarchy has thrived on all for quite a long time.

 Written and illustrated by Kaviri Ali

Founding member of the young leaders think tank for policy alternatives