Why is Oprah saying that it is more important to help educate girls than boys?

Question

She said that because girls eventually give birth to families. But doesn't it take a well brought up boy as well to "plant the seed" Aren't boys just as integral?

Answer 1

If this is true then i must disagree as its an equal responsibility on both parents.

Answer 2

The lack of education among females is a serious problem. Most of the world's illiterate people are women. That's because in many countries, educating females isn't considered as important as it is for males. Many families will send their boys to school but not the girls and for the girls who do get to attend school, most are taken out early so they can be married off or are needed to help out at home.

Answer 3

While it is important that both genders get educated i think she was probably refering to the fact that in some places females don't have the right to be educated.

Answer 4

Boys are more likely to get all the help they need, while people say ugly things about anyone who suggests that women deserve equal rights.

Answer 5

I heard she was referring to countries  where girls don't have a right to an education, not that girls should be educated and boys shouldn't.  

Answer 6

I'm no feminist but I do come from a country where this is a huge issue. And let me say one thing. It doesn't matter whether men f*** off and make mistakes in childhood, there is always opportunities for them to rise up, make a living, and not be hammered down. For a woman however, once you have kid or don't get ahead fast enough, your time is up and all you have is babies, less economy, and a guy who probably has other women to sleep with as well. Women, even if the man is helpful in some other way other than bringing home some bacon, still spend more time with raising children, and an education could help kids be more brilliant.I guess she's trying to give these girls something more to look up to besides housework and negativity. She is helping them, hopefully, get them some of the freedom men are given from the day they are born. And I know what you mean by equality and all, but in some countries, life and society is behaves as it did over 700 years ago, and are very small-minded. If the problem was over here, then you could make some sense. But in some countries, what she is doing could make a difference, even in a small way. For example: My mom, unlike her sisters, went to school for as long as she could, up until she was 17 or so, and now she and I and my brother live content lives, and she got us here on her own. I don't know my father, my brother's father was deported, and had she not taken an education, we would be on the streets and not had a profession. She encouraged me to use my education as much as I could because that's something i would always use. Now in her country, her sister's and her family are as poor as can be and the only thing they have on their minds is s*x, men, and finding men that are willing to give htem cash for s*x. You get my point?

Answer 7

I think both need an education, but I can see why some people may think it more important for girls. They are usually the ones left with kids to raise if the man walks, she needs to be able to support herself and the kids as so many men don't pay child support.

Answer 8

she's prob some scum bag feminist

Answer 9

it's just one of thoes things where you have to be a woman to understand i would like to explain but i can't really because it might offend you. srry i can't be more help.

Answer 10

Because she's a woman; it's natural for people to "look out for their own".

What bothers me is that she's only interested in setting up schools for "gifted" girls, when with the same amount of money as her special academy cost she could have opened dozens of regular schools all over Africa.

Answer 11

I think Oprah was probably talking about 'large-picture' of what has been happening to the girls all over the world, more so among the poorer segment of societies, be it in developing country like India-Pakistan-Bangladesh or a developed country like USA.

I am appending below The MALE Declaration of the Heads of State or Government of the Member Countries of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (in the 5th SAARC Summit) issued on 23rd November, 1990.

Quote:

"The Heads of State or Government endorsed the recommendations made by the Second SAARC Ministerial Meeting on Women in Development held in Islamabad in June 1990. They noted with satisfaction the enthusiastic response in all Member States to their collective call for the observance of 1990 as the "SAARC Year of the Girl Child". They decided that in order to maintain focus on the problems of the Girl Child, the years 1991-2000 AD should be observed as the "SAARC Decade of the Girl Child".

They were deeply moved by the SAARC Girl Child's appeal for love and care for them and their right to childhood. They reiterated their resolve that the welfare of the child in general and the girl child in particular, would figure at the top of their list of priorities."

Un-quote

  

Quote:

"RAWALPINDI, 23 July: "SAARC Decade of the Girl Child (1991-2000)" was the decade of challenge and change in South Asia and the efforts of the Governments of the South Asian countries are now more focused towards girls' rights. This was said by Dr. Attiya Inayatullah, federal Minister for Women Development, Social Welfare and Special Education, while addressing the inaugural session of the South Asia Girl Child Symposium here today.

The Minister said that South Asia has 132 million children under three years of age and less than half of them are girls because of s*x selection and neglect and those who survive are severely compromised by poor nutrition, illiteracy and harmful social practices.

"In the last decade," said Dr. Attiya, "we brought to the forefront the current status and reality of a girl's life and, on the other hand, we have compiled the historical and anthropological analysis on why and how girls have come to occupy the position they do in South Asia."

"The outcome of these efforts is a better understanding of the rights and problems of the girl child and fifteen success stories in this regard are presented before you in this symposium of South Asian countries, organized under a joint effort of the Government of Pakistan and UNICEF," she said.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Nigel Fisher, UNICEF Regional Director for South Asia, said that "this symposium is one of a number of events and activities taking place around the world," in preparation for the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on Children (UNGASS) that will take place in September this year.

A unique feature of this meeting is the presence of children from all the countries in South Asia. These girls and boys are in this meeting to share their first-hand experiences in terms of discrimination against girls. Even more importantly these children are showing the adults the path to overcoming the obstacles in the way to fulfilling the equal rights of girls.

"The September meeting of world leaders," said Fisher "will examine the progress or lack of it, made in children's rights and wellbeing since the 1990 World Summit for Children, at which the leaders of the world committed themselves to a series of goals to be achieved for children by the year 2000." This symposium in Pakistan should take a message of hope for the girls of South Asia to the UNGASS.

Talking about the UNICEF's mandate, Nigel said that the mandate "centres on the rights and wellbeing of children on equal basis, but girls in South Asia tend to be the most unequal." UNICEF, therefore, places particular emphasis on the rights of girls to health, education, protection, participation and love, he said.

Earlier, Ms. Carroll Long, UNICEF Representative to Pakistan, welcomed all the participants and thanked the Government of Pakistan for collaborating with UNICEF in arranging this important event that will go a long way for protecting the rights of girls in South Asia.

The 3-day symposium will review the progress made in South Asia 11 years after the World Summit for Children, and ten years after the SAARC declaration of the Girl Child Decade."

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Sorry for copy-pasting long articles, but hope that this will give you food for thought as to how disadvantages the girls all over the world are placed in societies where the Heads of State or Government have to set aside special decade to improve the lot of girl-child. So, it is not that Oprah is saying, rather it is the wake-up call before the society gets degenerated further than what we can see all around us!

Answer 12

It's important to educate children regardless of gender, and is equally important to educate both genders.

Also, we're talking about the woman who threw a hissy fit and cried racism because a store wouldn't open just for her while they were trying to host a special event.

I don't take anything she says seriously.

Answer 13

that's cause oprah a man hating l***o who is trying to take over the world

EDIT

what its true

Answer 14

oprah is a sexist b*tch who cares alot about girls but wouldn't care if a boy was drowning.

b*tches like her is the reason why boys don't get any attention in school.

Answer 15

It doesn't take intelligence to ejaculate, for one thing.

But, yes, I do agree with you completely. She's a freaking feminist for Christ's sakes!

And it does take two to tango. But I guess she feels that sperm in sperm banks needs to be cloned so that men are utterly useless. What she fails to realize, of course, is that cloning--in my opinion anyway--is a bad idea and a s***w-up.

Doesn't she even realize that there are boy child soldiers in Africa who need it just as badly? I mean, gee, she thinks blacks are suffering here, wait until she gets a load of the Invisible Children.  

Answer 16

You watch Oprah lol

Who cares what she says, she isn't the Queen of America. She has also said it's more important to try harder teaching blacks because whites are already favored first.

I think I speak for all the smart people when I say, F-off Oprah  

Answer 17

Oprah is a hypocrite like most feminists.

She truly believes that the welfare of WOMEN is more important than the welfare of men. This isn't just Oprah. Most women have this attitude.. even the non-feminists ones. The attitude is: "Let the men take care of themselves".

But when a man has that same attitude towards women.. he is called "selfish", "sexist", "insensitive" etc etc etc.

Can anyone say.. HYPOCRISY?

Answer 18

Yes they are. Don't listen to Oprah, she's trying to fund out her own religion.

Answer 19

Uh, it takes very little to "plant the seed" -- and no education at all.

That's not to say that boys shouldn't be educated; everyone should.

IF she was saying that it's more important to educate girls than boys, then she's just being batshit crazy. IF she was referring to the greater need to emphasize education for girls in those places where girls are undereducated, or not educated, then she has a point.

Answer 20

In my opinion, Oprah hates men.

It probably has something to do with having suffered sexual abuse.

Answer 21

Abso-friggin-lutely. Oprha is an idiot for suggesting women/girls need/deserve more education than men/boys. Certainly the field needs to be level--equal education for all.

In terms of education, consider this: girls get far more education about s*x and human development from friends, families, doctors, teachers, trusted adults elsewhere in their life, etc. Boys get p**n and a few laughs with the guys about the first girl they kissed and how far did you get up her shirt, ha-ha-ha..Bunch of c**p.

Is it any wonder that we have problems likes rape, spousal abuse, and straying husbands? If we spent some time educating them when they are boys, we might have a better situation across the board.