Women in Pakistan face significant oppression and gender inequality. They are expected to marry young, have children, and stay home to care for the family while the husband controls all decisions. As a result, women feel inferior and have little autonomy or opportunity for education and career. However, activists like Malala Yousafzai are advocating for women's rights and raising international awareness of the issue, though change is still slow. The oppression stems from traditions where women's roles were limited and education was not prioritized for females.

1. By: Hira Javed
WOMEN OPPRESSION IN
PAKISTAN

2. Pakistan is a country in which my parents were born. Though I was not born
there, the country still means a lot to me. I have visited a couple of times, and
some of my best memories originate there.
However, one thing that always sticks out and saddens me is the gender gap.
Do you remember when we learned about how women were extremely
oppressed back in the day and were expected to stay home and always take
care of the kids, well that it how it is there nowadays.
PROBLEM: WHO?

3. Women are living in such a backward state. They are expected to marry in
their early 20s and then have babies, stay at home to take care of those babies,
all while the husband dominates everything else.
Women feel as if they can’t become something because it is not “normal.” In
fact, many will get shunned by their family if they do decide to create their
own path.
Because of this, men often take control in the marriage, and find it okay to
boss around their wife. Women feel inferior and have a more materialistic life
as a result.
PROBLEM: WHAT/WHY?

4. This presentation is specifically based on experience and research of Pakistan,
but there are a lot of middle eastern, third-world countries that this applies to.
A lot of it originates with women not being educated and school not being
considered a necessity. Women don’t have that core foundation in a lot of
countries like Pakistan, so it affects them alter in life. The amp below shows
how low the literacy rates is. Some parts are even as low as only20%.
PROBLEM: WHERE?

5. Now and for all of history.
I will say that times are a little better, but not nearly as much as the United
States. This is understandable to a point because the country is a third world
country; however, at this rate, women will be oppressed for many more years.
As time goes on, I definitely feel like more people are becoming aware of the
problem and that is somewhat helping, but the rate is extremely slow. People
like Malala Yousafzai are advocating internationally, and many Americans are
becoming aware of the problem. More specifically, she says that “the real war
is on women."
PROBLEM: WHEN?

6. ADVOCATION
The first major person to have spoken out was Malala Yousafzi. The
unfortunate thing is that she was shot in the head. This, of course, scared
many women and they still feel oppressed out of fear. However, at the same
time, many young females, including myself, have been inspired.
How can you help?
Be inspired and inspire others! YOU can be the next Malala. Imagine if you
were in their shoes and all you needed was a helping hand. It starts with the
simple step of advocating and it all branches from there. Hand out fliers,
create a petition, or simply just inform others about it. People must know the
problem before they can combat it.
SOLUTIONS

7. Some people say that women experience oppression because of their
background. They have always been the one to give birth and take care of the
kids, and so naturally they now have expectations to do so.
I share a personal connection with this topic because my parents are from
Pakistan and I feel like my mother experienced a part of it. She came to
America , and that is when life changed for her. When talking to her about
this, she says that she feels it exists because the women are scared and they
don’t know any better. Breaking tradition is one the hardest things to do and
because this is how tradition has been for so long, some women don’t even
know how to even break it. Whenever I go to visit, I naturally compare how
different my life is to the females there- which is a lot. Life in the US and life
there is extremely different, but together, with determination, the gender gaps
there can be like they are here and women can finally feel like they have a
chance.
CONNECTIONS- WHY?

9. "Basis of Women’s Oppression." Basis of Women’s Oppression. N.p., n.d. Web. 21
May 2015.
"Education in Pakistan." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 21 May
2015.
"Malala Is What The Real War On Women Looks Like." The Federalist. N.p., 16
Oct. 2014. Web. 21 May 2015.
"Oppression of Women." Veracity Globe Raising Awareness. N.p., 04 Jan. 2015.
Web. 21 May 2015.
"Why Men Oppress Women." Psychology Today. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 May 2015.
WORKS CITED