America – The Land of Equal Opportunity for All

By 

Nicole Smith

|
October 26, 2016

4 min read

Pro Life

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A chasm has formed.  Deep.  Dark.  Wide.  Death is surely imminent if anyone dare attempt to brave a crossing.

I speak of course of America’s political landscape as the presidential election closes in upon us.

Women’s rights seem to be the hinge point – for reasons no one need explain. 

But it is indeed true; women are and always have been a powerful force within American culture.  With the passing of the Nineteenth Amendment, a woman’s “role” started to evolve - extending beyond the threshold of the home - yet her influence on society before that point was no less impactful.

Today, however, women are lied to.

The modern woman must do her sex credit not only by being a stellar wife, mother, and homemaker – I blame you Pinterest for the latter - but also compete with any of the most powerful men within the workforce.

She must be everything.  She must have everything.

If, however, something is to suffer, it must be within the sphere of the home and family lest she damage all that the Feminists fought so hard for.  It is the woman’s duty to progress the Feminist cause, not to revert to the era of subjugation that was prior to women’s suffrage – or so it would seem according to the modern Progressive Feminist.

I admit wholeheartedly that I’ve bought this lie time and time again.  Daily, I apply pressure to myself to meet all the expectations that society puts upon me, and it is not only myself that hurts; it is my children, my husband, and my society which suffers.

Now don’t get me wrong.  Women before suffrage were unequal members of society – given that the right to vote was being withheld – and it is correct that we should be endowed with the same equal opportunity that was afforded men since the founding of this great nation.

But, what rings in my ears daily is that I must be exactly like a man to be a full contributing member of the society I was born into.  

I must put my career before my family.  I must advance in largely male dominated fields.  I must not strive to celebrate femininity.  I must not encourage my daughter to play with dolls or to aspire to be a Teacher or a Nurse or a Homemaker lest I perpetuate the cycle.

As if being a female is somehow lesser than that of being a male.  As if working within the traditionally female-dominated sphere is somehow falling prey to the patriarchal oppression women knew for thousands of years.  As if those women who chose to work inside the home lack ambition because they don’t define success simply by a title and or a paycheck.

Please understand me though.

I don’t mean for this to turn into a discussion of which women do the most credit to their sex - those who work inside the home versus those who don’t.  That’s not my intention in the least, as being a mother who works outside the home, I’m certain to be guilty of something by someone’s estimation. 

The intention, however, is to point out the beautiful, unique gifts bestowed only upon women by God - the ability to give and nurture life – that should be celebrated, not admonished as a nuisance that should be fully controlled in order to be an “equal” member of society.

A true feminist – if she means what she says about equal opportunity - should celebrate the uniqueness of womanhood and strive to define success in terms of how one strives to contribute to society rather than by the narrow confines of the traditional definition.

A true feminist should celebrate the women’s right to choose to either work in or out of the home, and to encourage rather than condemn those women who chose a career in service to others within the home.

And most importantly, a true feminist should stand firm for the equal opportunity of ALL members of society, including those human lives women are uniquely able to create and bring into this world.

America is the land of opportunity for all.  We must stand in defense of all life, no matter how small.

With the election of a new president just days away will the landscape change for the defense of all life? More on this to come.