by Alison Tennant

Created on: October 21, 2008

And, unfortunately, it always will be necessary.

15 years ago, when I was 18, I foresaw a utopian time when it wouldn't be. When we'd live in harmony, with each person judged on her or his merits for doing a particular task, instead of on whether or not she or he came out of the womb with a visible tiny pipe.

Sure, there have been positive developments in equality, sure laws have been passed to (try to) prevent discrimination, but neither of those has changed people's ATTITUDES towards gender.

Of course it was going to be difficult and, even as a teen, I didn't expect things to change overnight. But I'm sure we've taken 3 steps forward and 1 backward.

Let me explain. It seems to me that 21st Century young women have lost the will to push (for equality). Oh - strong words maybe but, merely making strides in a fight against being seen as sex objects, shouldn't mean an end to our fight for RIGHTS.

So, whereas the average TV show or commercial MAY now be as likely to show a naked man as a naked woman (often for laughs rather than to be admired though), it's still far more likely to show boys driving, using computers, or making business decisions, and girls preparing for a date, choosing underclothes, or cleaning the house.

So feminist criticism is not just necessary but essential, if only to prove that we old fogies haven't lived our earlier years in vain!

"Feminism" or ways of achieving equality should be taught in schools and colleges; jobs that have a greater male take-up should be encouraged to work towards a 50/50 split of the genders (perhaps by awarding them government money when they achieve it); and girls should have easy access to information on the jobs and hobbies that they might still feel embarrassed about taking up. Just as sex education can be taught to boys and girls separately. so should career advice. One thing that's most embarrassing to a 17-year-old girl is to have boys laugh down her desire to become a steeplejack!

Most importantly, options are needed. The days of "boys play football or rugby, girls play netball or hockey" should be over. But they aren't.

But there's also the necessity for girls to be made aware that their equality is possible and desired.

There's no reason, for example why we should stand in line to use a bathroom when men don't; there;'s no reason why we should suffer harassment BY men; there's no reason why we should be criticised as drivers 'en bloc' when statistics show that we're better.

Yet, in all three instances, the majority of young women seem to acceopt inequality (or even expect it) as part of BEING a woman.

I know sometimes I sound like a mother hen clucking over her chicks not growing up to be what SHE wants them to be, but that's part of growing older.

Being wiser.

And knowing that your younger colleagues will, one day, come up against a form of discrimination they recognise as unfair yet haven't been equipped to do anything about.

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