Hmmm. 
Some of my middle schoolers have these same questions. Little 7th grade boys and girls. The realization of gender differences and inevitable conflict between two different things starts young.
So when they ask me if I think men and women are equal I say yes they are. And they ask me "how?"
So I say, "I can put two ounces of rice on a scale and a piece of fruit on a scale with the same weight.
Are they not equal despite being very different?"
They nod.
Equality is a simple measurement of value. It doesn't imply sameness except in the value that defines it.
So yes. Men and women are equal. They are equal in value.
But that doesn't imply that they are the same. They share many similarities but have many differences as well.
An apple doesn't boast about being better than an orange and vice versa. They can weigh the same in value and still be different.
Equality also doesn't always mean both entities get the same thing. In some cases they do. But in some they don't. A blind man and a handicapped man both have something that disadvantages them, but what I give to the blind man to help him is going to be completely different from what I give to the handicapped man. Just b/c they are equal doesn't mean I would give crutches to a blind man and a walking stick to the handicapped.
Similarly with men and women. Men are silly to act like women aren't equal and women are silly to act like they have to act like men to validate their equal worth.
But both are caught in a cyclical reflexive hell where u devalue one and then the other mimics something outside of themselves to get that value back, which in turn actually becomes a justification used by the other to devalue them which in turn...
If both would stop the ignorance, stop trying to limit, or control or lie to either of themselves, find common ground in the myriad of similarities between them, while respecting each other differences and seeing to each other's unique needs, then all us apples and oranges could have some juice.
But noooooooooooooo. "I'm better!" "Ur inferior!" "Ur stupid!" "Fukk u what are u even crying about" "Fukk u ur ignorant."
And the beat goes on.
Some of my middle schoolers have these same questions. Little 7th grade boys and girls. The realization of gender differences and inevitable conflict between two different things starts young.
So when they ask me if I think men and women are equal I say yes they are. And they ask me "how?"
So I say, "I can put two ounces of rice on a scale and a piece of fruit on a scale with the same weight.
Are they not equal despite being very different?"
They nod.
Equality is a simple measurement of value. It doesn't imply sameness except in the value that defines it.
So yes. Men and women are equal. They are equal in value.
But that doesn't imply that they are the same. They share many similarities but have many differences as well.
An apple doesn't boast about being better than an orange and vice versa. They can weigh the same in value and still be different.
Equality also doesn't always mean both entities get the same thing. In some cases they do. But in some they don't. A blind man and a handicapped man both have something that disadvantages them, but what I give to the blind man to help him is going to be completely different from what I give to the handicapped man. Just b/c they are equal doesn't mean I would give crutches to a blind man and a walking stick to the handicapped.
Similarly with men and women. Men are silly to act like women aren't equal and women are silly to act like they have to act like men to validate their equal worth.
But both are caught in a cyclical reflexive hell where u devalue one and then the other mimics something outside of themselves to get that value back, which in turn actually becomes a justification used by the other to devalue them which in turn...
If both would stop the ignorance, stop trying to limit, or control or lie to either of themselves, find common ground in the myriad of similarities between them, while respecting each other differences and seeing to each other's unique needs, then all us apples and oranges could have some juice.
But noooooooooooooo. "I'm better!" "Ur inferior!" "Ur stupid!" "Fukk u what are u even crying about" "Fukk u ur ignorant."
And the beat goes on.
I'm really curious if you're a woman masquerading as a man?
