Inequality between women and men definitely exists in Brazil, especially with

women of racial decent. To give an idea of the role of gender in Brazil, I think it is
nice to compare it to a more familiar area: The United States. In the United States,
women also earn less than men; however, women earn about 80 % of what men
earn in the U.S, while they earn about 75% of mens wages in Brazil. While both
nations were slow to grant women the same rights as men, women were able to
vote in 1920 in the United States, while they did not have that right until 1932 in
Brazil. It was not until the 1960s that women were allowed to make decisions for
themselves, such as creating a bank account or traveling. Unlike the United States,
Brazil elected their first woman president in 2010, which is a great step toward
equality.
Even though gender inequality exists within Brazil, studies have shown that
many citizens of Brazil believe that gender equality to exist. A certain statistic
states that 84% of Brazilians believe that marriages are better when both work, as it
puts the weight of life events on the shoulders of both people in the relationship.
Pew Research Center has studied gender equality in Brazil greatly. They discovered
that about 42% of men and women in Brazil say that male citizens lead better lives
than their female counterparts.
Regarding marriage, men and women often fall into their stereotypes. Men
take care of things that need fixing at home and work, while women stay at home to
take care of children. It was not until l1977 that divorce was legalized, and not until
1988 that women legally gained equality to men. As family needs grew, it became
more common for women to seek jobs. They mostly work in the service industries
as waitresses, hotel clerks, or maids. 70 % of employed women work in such areas,
while only 42% of working men do the same.
Due to the different job opportunities presented to men and women, women
are often paid less that men. This gap is not due to lack of education or experience,
but research has shown that it is due to gender expectations. Not only does this
spread the ideals of gender inequality, but it causes female-led households to fall on
or below the poverty line.
In order to address all of these issues, the National Council on Womens
Rights, or Conselho Nacional de Direitos da Mulher in Portuguese, was made. The
CNDM was created in the 1980s to promote human rights and fight against the
military regime present in Brazil. In the late 1980s, it transformed into promoting
zero tolerance for violence toward women, specifically domestic and sexual. Not
only did the organization create a group that women in abusive situations could call,
but they even made police stations just for women to go to safely.
References
Gender Roles. (n.d.). Retrieved February 24, 2015, from
http://brazilcultureproject.weebly.com/gender-roles.html

Brazil - Gender. (n.d.). Retrieved February 24, 2015, from http://countrystudies.us/brazil/31.htm