Perspective on Women in America

Persepolis was an extremely valuable book because of the experiences Marjane shares with the reader, first-handedly accounting what the restrictions on women's rights felt like in Iran. Reading about her experiences with the veil, with the possibility that she wouldn't be able to get a divorce without her husband's approval, with getting married so young, it was so easy to juxtapose it to the lives many of us lead in America and attach the belief to it that we enjoy more freedom.

However, I think this article is an extremely interesting read because of the perspective that it offers. In the United States it is the common view that we are a progressive nation--the land of the free. But I think it's necessary to step back and realize that we aren't the best in many fields--even in regards to how we view women within society. This article shows 22 countries where the gender gap is smaller than the U.S.--the list spans from Finland to Nicaragua. In 2013, the United States was ranked #23 on the list, dropping down from #17 in 2011. Huffington Post said that this fall can mainly be attributed to the lack of women in power, in legislative and the political realms. 

It's so easy when reading accounts of other people's lives to juxtapose it with our own experiences and our own freedoms. But i think this article does a good job at making you step back and realize that women aren't totally equal here either. While this inequality cannot physically be seen in a veil, it can be seen in other outlets of society like job opportunities or the wage gap between genders.