Chinese Women are Saying No to Stifling Patriarchal Roles of Women

Sexist state propaganda in China labels single professional women older than 27 as sheng nu, or leftover women. The Communist party wants China’s women to be docile, baby-breeding guarantors of social, economic and demographic stability.

But young Chinese women are defying rules of their society, delaying or shunning marriage and childbirth altogether, mirroring the journey of women in other, wealthier patriarchal East Asian societies such as Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. As individuals, these Chinese women are generally unwilling to challenge official policy. But through their reproductive choices, they collectively pose a radical and complicated problem for the Chinese Communist Party.

China's previous one-child policy attempted to rein in population growth. But this led to plummeting birthrates, an aging population and a gender imbalance as millions of female fetuses were aborted because of a traditional preference for male heirs. As of 2020, China still had about 17.5 million more men than women between the ages of 20 and 40. 

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/26/opinion/china-women-reproduction-rights.html

Blacks in Oklahoma Teach African American History Because School Teachers Can't Legally

Kristi Williams started offering Saturday lessons in African American History early this year in a community center in Tulsa, after an Oklahoma state law —  adopted by Republicans in 2021 — placed restrictions on how race and gender can be taught in Oklahoma's public schools.

The law has had a chilling effect on teachers who now fear that touching on race and racism in their classrooms could cost them their jobs if a student or parent complains that a lesson made them uncomfortable.

"They're just staying away from it and not teaching it," Williams said. "So I had to create a space for families to come in, and teach it."

https://www.klcc.org/npr-top-stories/2023-11-22/oklahoma-restricted-how-race-can-be-taught-so-these-black-teachers-stepped-up