Does Mao Zedong's rallying cry 'Women Hold Up Half the Sky' still ring true in 2023?
Chairman Mao's 'Women Hold Up Half the Sky' mantra has inspired generations - but does the quote still ring true in 2023 and what are the current challenges for women? Media.Monks China's head of strategy Sammy Xu shares her views.
Chairman Mao's mantra 'women hold up half the sky' has inspired generations but does it still apply in modern china?
"Living and working in Shanghai for more than a decade, I had the impression that Chinese women were really holding up half of the sky. But recent research says that I was SO wrong.
According to the 2022 poll number, only 40% of the women in China are working women, and their average monthly income is 12% lower than men, although the number of women with a college degree or above is 33.6%, which is higher than that of men.
Not to mention, the number of women in management positions is 40% lower than that of men. I won’t go into all the stats to show you how far behind we are in gender equality compared to the west, you can easily find the facts online.
To me, the point is never about seeing an equal split of men and women in the workplace, or in management positions, or at the same salary level. Even when women in China really hold up half of the sky, they will still face a massive amount of unfairness in society.
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Over 60% of the women said they were asked about their marital and childbearing status during job interviews, and close to 40% of women worried that having a child would impact their career security or advancement.
The point is that if we do mean to invite women to hold the other half of the sky, then we have to get rid of the root problems in this patriarchal society where no matter how capable a woman is out there, her most important role is expected to be the child caregiver at home.
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We know there is still a long way to go before women consume equal rights. But still - let’s not give up! Because more and more companies and people are taking action!
For example, male employees at Media.Monks China can enjoy up to three months of paternity leave, which means a new daddy could take care of the newborn, which will significantly lower the burden of the new mom, which is an act of real support to women.
I hope more and more companies in China are starting to deploy similar policies and eventually influence the government to change the law.
Sammy Xu is head of strategy at Media.Monks China.