by Gail Marsh

Created on: February 06, 2011   Last Updated: February 07, 2011

Opportunity and the reality of the situation that a person is currently in can greatly dictate what a person can get versus what a person wants.  Encouragement of making life goals start at a young age in the United States.  Often children are asked what they want to be when they grow up, some experience steering while others may be encouraged to be creative and discover on their own.

Girls are encouraged through society to be independent and focus on career choices which has changed through generations where families were able to have one bread winner and usually a parent that remained at home to raise a family.  Since women have been encouraged to go to work during World War II in the United States, mainly to fill administrative duties, they also began to fulfill many other traditional male employment positions. 

The great opportunities that the Women’s Rights Convention in 1848 gave women the opportunity to obtain formal education and opened a gate way for women to pursue an education, however women were still tied by inequality constraints by society and law.  The entire nation in 1848 was unequal with Civil Rights for all minority groups.  The battle continued for women to pursue goals.

A social issue that remains a barrier are the opportune of full time employment for many women.  Some single parents experience the force of working multiple jobs due to the pay rates while meeting the demands of taking care of children.  The question of whether to require parents to attend parent teacher conferences at public schools for example can create a hardship on single households that depend on a single income.  The perfect parent standard that society has placed on individuals that do not have the means to meet those mirages do not fail, while others dictate the standard for all others, those that have the reality of meeting their responsibility should not be deemed as indecisive rather be termed as responsible.

The question of whether a modern woman knows what she wants is not a simplistic answer and in order to make a sound decision that is not categorizing women requires education and truly understanding the environmental factors and mix of cultures in the United States.  Without speaking for every single woman in the country, I think that there are general consensus’ that women want equity, which includes fair pay and benefits, equal opportunity, be able to go to work with peace of mind their children are safe, job security, and opportunity to pursue happiness.

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