Sandra Lipsitz Bem

Many feminists agree that discrimination against women continues in American society despite antidiscrimination laws. In the following viewpoint, Sandra Lipsitz Bem contends that widespread discrimination against women still exists primarily because the social world is organized from a male perspective. A male-centered worldview, Bem argues, does not allow most women to successfully balance work and childrearing. In Bem’s opinion, eliminating gender discrimination will require that Americans restructure their societal institutions to meet the needs of both women and men. Bem is a professor of psychology and women’s studies at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. What two arguments are typically used to explain “female inequality,” according to Bem"
2. Why, in the author’s opinion, have gender-neutral strategies to fight discrimination failed"
3. In what...