Enlightened Entertainment Finding Life Lessons in Movies & Television: 'Mrs. America'
Dr. Sara B. Frawley
The original plan for this edition was to write a fluff piece on Trolls World Tour, but as a fan of FX Original Series, I came across the star-studded tale of the movement to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) and the ‘conservative’ women who stood in its way. After just a few episodes, Mrs. America reminds us that the struggles that existed 40 years ago still prevail today.
The misconception of "equal rights" is still a problem.
An argument made against the Equal Rights Amendment is, and was, that it would mean that men and women would be treated equally in everything. Back in the ’70s when this amendment was trying to be ratified, that meant women being drafted into the armed services, unisex bathrooms, ‘abortions on demand’, and the division children during a divorce. This misconception that the ERA didn't take the physical or economic differences of men and women into account is still prevalent today.
The main purpose of the ERA was, and is, to create equal legal rights regardless of gender. As an amendment, it would be included in the U.S. Constitution and state that men and women are equal. As Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg stated: “to look towards a legal system in which each person will be judged on the basis of individual merit.” The ERA speaks nothing of reproductive rights, divorce proceedings, or how the military should be regulated. What it does intend to allow women to climb the ranks of such patriarchal institutions such as the military and make it more defined that sexual discrimination (that includes the assault and harassment of women) is illegal.
Women not supporting each other is still a problem.
Ego, or our sense of self-importance, is essential to being a human being and succeeding in life. But when we struggle with our self-importance, it can get in the way of meeting our goals. When we allow our desire for self-recognition cloud our judgment, we lose sight of our purpose.
The women in the feminist movement allowed (and allow) their egos to distract them from their goals and to create conflict amongst their collaborators. It is “not enough for women to have equality with men, they need equality with each other”. - Untamed by Glennon Doyle
The fight for "reproductive rights" is still a problem.
- "Women are being butchered on kitchen tables. We just don't want to hear about it."
For some odd reason, people still think that by making something available increases the rate of its use (like it's so easy to literally and emotionally get an abortion). We know this not to be true. The disillusion that strict regulation of things prevents them from occurring just makes them more dangerous. During the United States prohibition of alcohol in the ’20s and ’30s, alcohol poisoning increased due to a lack of regulation of manufacturing. And in areas where abstinence education programs are implemented there are dangerously high rates of teenage pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections.
We know that even when abortions were illegal (and birth control was not readily available), these procedures where still being done in dangerous, unsterile environments. So the question is, is this really a fight against reproductive rights to protect the lives of unborn children or to keep women from living an equal life with the same medical, legal safety that men are entitled to?
Male entitlement is still a problem.
In the first episode, Cate Blanchett's character is "persuaded" into sex by her husband after saying several times how “tired” she was and that she'd like to take her contacts out. Her husband felt entitled to have his wife please him with disregard for her needs and she felt it her duty to oblige this. Any straight women alive today can tell you this is still a thing. With the explosion of the "me too" movement, we know that it is more than just a little "c'mon, hunny". A man's sense of sexual entitlement is still holding strong.
“Incels” are the proof of this. The word Incels comes from "involuntary celibates". The members of this online subculture define themselves as unable to find a romantic or sexual partner despite desiring one. While that seems innocent enough, in reality, this group stems from the belief that men are entitled to sex, blaming Women’s Lib and Darwin's theory of sexual selection for them not being able to find a partner. They accuse women of being shallow and only concerned with their looks. They also believe that they shouldn't have to improve themselves to get a mate (while women spend billions of dollars each year on hair and makeup products).
Why am I telling you all this? Because it is important to understand that not only do these groups exist but they promote violence. Several members have been persecuted for very serious crimes against men and women.
Groups like this are obvious reflections of low self-worth and loneliness. So what can we do about it? We can teach emotional intelligence to our youth to prevent future violent acts. Programs such as RULER, which was developed by the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence help everyone -- males and females -- to know that they and their feelings matter. Love, here, truly is the answer. Not from another. But for oneself.
Dr. Sara B. Frawley is a chemist, human biology professor and personal holistic doctor. She is the owner of Ground Force Medicine LLC in Wallingford and Cromwell, CT as well as the founder of Ground Force Supplements LLC.
Dr. Frawley uses her medical detective skills to understand the underlying causes of disease. She works with adults with chronic diseases, such as cancer or Lyme, utilizing counseling, botanical medicine, anti-inflammatory diets such as the “Blood Type Diet” and through genetic analysis, to help them restore them to health.