Sabrina Riley

Women’s Issues

31 October 2013

CEJ 9 & 10

Word Count: 666

UN Women joined forces with Christopher Hunt from the international advertising, public

relations, and marketing agency Ogilvy & Mather to create a series of ads that depict the gender

inequality women face worldwide. The ads feature women of all nationalities with the Google

search bar covering their mouths. Using real searches of phrases like “Women need to”,

“Women shouldn’t”, and “Women can”, the ads show the “abhorant opinions” people have about

women. Some of the searches that appear are “Women cannot be trusted” and “Women should

stay at home” (Koo 2013). In smaller letters, more feminist and pro-equality phrases such as

“Women need to be seen as equal” are written.

I found this ad series to be very powerful. A lot of the times, people do not pay attention

to what pops up while you are searching for something. Most people have seen the more

humorous search options, but there is nothing funny about discrimination. I especially liked that

the ads feature all different ethnicities to show that gender inequality is everyone’s problem, not

just one country’s. It happens all over the world, and that needs to change. The simplicity of the

ads also draw people in; they are not showy, merely showing the truth. Women are

discriminated and belittled everywhere. So much so, that Google, the largest search engine in

the world, shows the abhorant attitude the population has against women. With ads like these,

perhaps some day soon gender inequality will be nothing more than a dark stain on our planet’s

history.

In July, Texas Senator Wendy Davis became famous for filibustering for 13 hours in an

effort to prevent an anti-abortion bill from passing. Though the senator did everything correctly

and should have succeeded in her goal, an extension was created, and the law was voted in.

The bill was meant to go into effect earlier this week. However, a federal judge ruled that the law

was unconstitutional the day before it would have been implemented. He argued that the new

regulations on abortion doctors “impeded on the rights of physicians to do what they judge is

best for their patients” (Arkin 2013). The bill would limit women’s access to safe abortion clinics.

Judge Yeakel stated that Texas could regulate abortions, but it is not allowed to dictate doctors

to alter treatment to keep women safe. Doctors are allowed to “perform the medication-abortion

using off-label protocol for the preservation of the life or health of the mother” (Arkin 2013). Two

aspects of the law, abortions only during the first 20 weeks of pregnancy, and all abortions are

to be performed by doctors in surgical facilities by October 2014, will still go into effect.

While I do not fully support abortion, I think that it is mostly the mother’s decision. Yes,

the Texas government was trying to prevent the death of the unborn, but they were also

endangering the mothers’ lives. Back when the filibuster was first happening, I thought that it

was very showing the support Sen. Davis received from her party and the populace. Even

though she followed all the rules, it seemed the other government members cheated by voting

late. I am glad that the judge overruled the law. Many people were angered by the passing of

the law, viewing it as ignoring their rights. Unfortunately, abortions will continue to happen as

long as there are unwanted pregnancies. Laws will not prevent them. The only thing the laws

are stopping is safe abortions. This country needs to create a solution that pleases most people.

A woman’s body is her own, yet the government, mostly old men, think that they know what is

best. If more women held roles in the government, perhaps women would not have to argue so

much to preserve the rights that they should have anyway, such as control over their own

bodies, but that is another argument. I think it is important to note that the judge is male.

Women are not alone in their battle for equality.

Bibliography

Arkin, Daniel. "Federal judge rules key provisions of controversial Texas abortion law

unconstitutional."NBC News, October 28, 2013.

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/10/28/21215002-federal-judge-rules-key-

provisions-of-controversial-texas-abortion-law-unconstitutional?lite (accessed October

31, 2013).

Koo, Kelly. "Ad Shows The World’s Popular Opinions Of Women Using Search Engine." Design

Taxi, October 18, 2013. http://designtaxi.com/news/361484/Ad-Shows-The-World-s-

Popular-Opinions-Of-Women-Using-Search-Engine/ (accessed October 31, 2013).