When I first decided to research Sweden for this project I really had no idea what to expect. I didn’t really know anything about Sweden’s culture, traditions, or even the countries exact location. Upon my research I found so many interesting facts and traditions that I was completely surprised and that I never would have expected.
One of the topics that I researched and that I found interesting was about gender roles in Sweden. Upon analyzing different photos and various research, it looked as though Sweden culture was geared more towards women having a role as a mother and men being the provider for the family. When I found pictures of the royals in their traditional holiday wear. The women are always holding the children and the photos looked as though the main role of the wife is to be a mother.
Upon further research, I realized how wrong my assumptions were. Although back in the olden days it was more old-fashioned with women being home makers and men being providers, Sweden is working towards equality among men and women.
According to https://sweden.se/society/gender-equality-in-sweden/ , “Gender equality is one of the cornerstones of modern Swedish society. The aim of Sweden’s gender equality policies is to ensure that women and men enjoy the same opportunities, rights and obligations in all areas of life.
The overarching principle is that everyone, regardless of gender, has the right to work and support themselves, to balance career and family life, and to live without the fear of abuse or violence.
Gender equality implies not only equal distribution between men and women in all domains of society. It is also about the qualitative aspects, ensuring that the knowledge and experience of both men and women are used to promote progress in all aspects of society.”
I found the below map at https://sweden.se/society/gender-equality-in-sweden/ showing the progression of women’s rights in Sweden as was impressed. If you take a look, as I mentioned above Sweden has been moving towards equality among men and women since the early 1900’s.
History of gender equality in Sweden:
1250s King Birger Jarl passes a law on violence against women prohibiting rape and abduction.
1921 Women get the right to vote and run for office. The first five women to win seats in parliament are Kerstin Hesselgren, Elisabeth Tamm, Agda Östlund, Nelly Thüring and Bertha Wellin.
1965 Sweden passes a law against rape in marriage.
1972 Joint taxation of spouses is abolished in Sweden.
1974 Sweden becomes the first country in the world to replace maternity leave with parental leave.
1975 New abortion law comes into force.
1980 Sweden, a constitutional monarchy, makes its Act of Succession gender-neutral.
1998 The Act on Violence against Women is introduced.
1999 The Act Prohibiting the Purchase of Sexual Services comes into effect.
2002 Parental leave increased to 480 days, with each parent entitled to two months of non-transferable benefits.
2005 New legislation on sexual crimes further strengthens the absolute right of every individual to sexual integrity and self-determination.
2009 The Discrimination Act replaces seven separate anti-discrimination laws.
2011 Stalking – repeated harassment – becomes an offence. One aim of the law is to further prevent male violence against women.
As you can clearly see, Sweden has been working to make sure that gender roles are more equal. However, the country is still lagging in equal opportunity in certain aspects. According to http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-11525804, "Swedish women still earn on average 15% less than men. And one third of women still work part-time, some because they can't find full-time jobs and others because they have family responsibilities which hold them back." With time and female presence in representation, the country will continue progress in equal rights and gender equality.
Sources:
- Is Sweden the best place to be a woman? - BBC News. (n.d.). Retrieved October 4, 2015.
- History of Sweden. (n.d.). Retrieved October 4, 2015.
- The Sprout. (n.d.). Retrieved October 4, 2015.