n many cases, the inequality begins at birth.

some girls have fewer rghts than boys when they are
born and are seen as a bueden on the family. they work as servants until they are ready to be
married off. such marriages are often at considerable cost to the parents and the girls are unable
to choose their partners. married women belong to their husbands.

in some countries, women who are beaten, or even killed,are not seriously considered by the legal
system. nor do women in many countries have equal rights in a divorce. in some countries, a man
can divorce his wife simply by saying, i divorce you, three times.

these womens brothers, on the other hand, can be counted on to support their parents, and they
receive most of the attention of the famiy. many young girls have to watch their brothers go to
school while they stay at home. today, 79 percent of the worlds children, aged six to eleven, are
enrolled in elementary school. this means 113 million elementary school age children do not have
acces to educaton.

of these, the majority are girls.

part of the reason things are slow to change is because women in many countries do not have the
right to either vote or run for political office. even where they can run for political office they are
generally not as well represented as men, despite being half the population.

some argue that these issues are simply cultural differences. but behind their arguments is the
idea that womens lives atter less than mens around the world, many women-and men-are working
to alter discriminatory attitudes and laws.