Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Mariana Ferreira Current Event

Recently in China, a woman named Kim Lee married to founder of an English teaching program widely known in China has come to reportedly go to court against her husband for domestic violence. She first attempted getting help from family members and friends but succeeded not and even had her own sister in law tell her she should "stop provoking her husband" if she didn't want to get beat. She finally decided to take pictures of her bruises and scars and upload them onto a social network, she received great feedback from women allover China that did not experience domestic violence giving her strength to fight against the violence she was going through. She proceeded to take her husband to court and succeeded. The reason Kim Lee's story was so important is because she was the first woman, although American and not Chinese to step out against domestic violence in China; which has been a great problem for women in China for a great ammount of time but has become almost a custom or tradition.

; Do you think Kim Lee's actions could possibly cause a revolution in women's rights? Please explain why you think so.

http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2013/02/can-an-american-woman-stop-domestic-violence-in-china/272954/

6 comments:

  1. After hearing about the case of Kim Lee and the general response to her actions in court, I do not think that she could ever possibly begin a new revolution in women's rights. Unfortunately physical abuse among spouses occurs often, and often goes unnoticed, or unsolved. This is a sad opinion, but I do not see how her case is different than other six million woman who suffer spousal abuse in this country a year (Domestic Violence Resource Center).

    http://www.dvrc-or.org/domestic/violence/resources/C61/

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  3. I agree with jack on this one. As Americans we hear about what is happening in the case of Kim Lee and think that someone has to do something about it. We feel bad for what has happened for her and know that physical abuse is wrong. But that is just a norm in our society. In many cultures it is completely okay for physical abuse to occur. This story reminded of a few groups of people I studied in my world cultures class last semester. I don’t quite remember their exact names but what I do remember is that it was completely okay for men to abuse their wives. So unfortunately for Kim Lee I don’t think that her case will stir up a revolution in woman’s rights. I completely agree with Jack when he said that Kim Lee’s case is no different than the other cases around the world, because it really is not.

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  4. I also do not think that Kim Lee's actions will cause a revolution in women's rights because she did not do anything that will be looked at in a few years as monumental in a women's rights movement. Although I feel bad for women, as well as men, who are being abused by their spouses, I do not think that there will be a movement to change spouse abuse. Like Ryan said, abuse is accepted in some cultures but I think that there are more important issues to be addressed and although it is sad, it is not a huge issue. I also do not think that Kim Lee's actions were heroic. It is good for her that she took her husband to court for abuse but I fail to see how she is a hero.

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  5. Sadly I do not think that this could cause a revolution in women's rights. I do believe that in many cases, women can have more rights than men. Unfortunately, in this situation this was a man who either had this in him all along, or he just found a fake sense of power in the following that he gained through his product following. He then took his power out on a person he saw as below him and as an easy target. While i do feel that it is terrible that the family and even the police would not believe her until the idea when viral through the web. I agree with both Jack and Ryan sadly when they say that this situation is like many others and does not seems like it could cause a revolution. Unfortunately I do not foresee any revolution throughout the world occuring in our lifetime.

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  6. Although I agree with previous comments that Kim Lee's case will not cause a revolution on women's rights in China, I do think that it is the possible spark to get other women to speak out and do something about abuse in their relationships. Her case I don't think has the support and ability to get a bunch of women up and fighting for their rights, but it may be enough to give other women the courage the stand up for themselves and against spousal abuse. Agreeing with Ryan, many cultures also view abuse in relationships as a norm and something that is okay and accepted. While abuse is wrong, and some women may now have the courage to stand up for their rights, I don't believe Kim Lee's case will start a revolution.

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