China Stresses On “Family Values” As Childbirth And Marriage Rates See A Decline. Sexist Much?
As we are progressing to keep up with the changing times, it would seem like society too, has been taking the effort to keep up to date. And by that, I don’t mean in the way of changing their perspectives and growing progressive in their approach, but by simply changing their ways to keep maintaining the age-old notions of patriarchy and sexist values.
Seemingly unhappy with the progress that women are making in the world, and with the fact that women now exercise and enjoy the freedom of working outside the confines of their homes and kitchen, is the country of China. Bummed out with the kind of neglect that concepts like “family planning” have seen, considering women don’t want to keep being treated like baby-making machines, China has now started to stress on “family values”, as women put off marriage and childbirth.
Giving out a rather sexist and stereotypical speech about bringing back “family values”, under Xi Jinping, the Communist party has begun to stress upon the of women as “caretakers”, as they highlight how many women have been stepping out of their way to avoid the idea of marriage or childbirth.
Also Read : Michelle Obama Says She Felt The ‘Sting Of Gender Roles’ Post Childbirth And How It Changed The Equation Between The Couple
Xi Jinping, facing dire birth rate, says society must “give full play to the unique role of women in promoting the family virtues of the Chinese nation” (i.e., pressure them to have babies)@Chao_Deng & @QiLiyan on how a lot of women aren't having it:https://t.co/h0oGOhijVN
— Josh Chin (@joshchin) April 19, 2021
On one end, while the party promotes gender equality and other feminist values, it also makes sure to remind women that their real priority must always be their household and giving childbirth. This sudden emphasis on women’s role in educating their children and caring for the elderly comes after birth and marriage rates in China drop, hinting at dire economic consequences for the country.
In light to promote child birth and marriage, more than a dozen accounts used by women’s-rights groups were deleted from the Weibo social-media platform as well as cultural-discussion site Douban.com. This has been done, keeping in mind the sharp decline in births in 2020, the onus of which is being put solely on the shoulders of women.
As I anticipated: “China Stresses Family Values as Marriages Decline”
What’s coming next? A campaign to boost births. @WSJ https://t.co/9TpJuYVXPn
— Brad Wilcox (@BradWilcoxIFS) April 20, 2021
One user asked in reference to the accounts that were deleted, “What are they afraid of? Are they afraid of more women waking up? Are they panicking when seeing the fertility rates and marriage rates?” However, no official comment from Douban nor Weibo has been made regarding the matter. Apparently, no values were infringed upon here.
It is shocking to see that governments have now started to resort to means like that of emotional blackmail, to manipulate women into submitting to the patriarchal notions of the society. Women, no matter how competent they prove themselves to be, when push comes to shove, will only ever be recognised with a sting of gender roles, and that is heartbreaking.
