EDWARDS… everywhere I go I hear women saying that; that women don’t support women

Women have long since lobbied for their inclusion in areas of governance and for equal pay and rights as men; but despite the strides women have made over the years, some believe that their lack of support for each other has been one of the primary reasons for them not being as effective as they should.

President of the People’s National Party Women’s Movement Jennifer Edwards, raised the issue which she believes needs to be addressed if women are expected to participate at the highest levels of society, instead of serving in the middle or at the bottom for the most part.

WEBSTER… research has been out there that have highlighted the fact that women tend not to be team players“Everywhere I go I hear women saying that; that women don’t support women,” she said while being keen to point out that there needs to be a process where women can discuss what has hindered their support of each other.

“Despite the recent successes that women have had in the areas of education and the area of inclusion in the governance process, there is a sense that we have not yet tapped into the full potential, the full utilisation, the full involvement of women in the decision-making processes at all levels,” she said, addressing reporters and editors at last week’s Observer Monday Exchange.

SEMAJ… some women cannot stand to see others outdo themCo-founder of the Women’s Resource and Outreach Centre Linnette Vassell said she too has heard other women complaining of not getting support from persons of their gender.

“It is such a strongly held view that we feel that we need to penetrate that issue,” she said. “I don’t think it is a given that women don’t support other women, I think it is a complex issue that relates to how we are socialised generally to compete with each other, and to hold up certain values of what it means to be a woman.”

She points out that sometimes women who take on non-traditional roles are often criticised, since what is expected from a man is oftentimes not expected from a woman.

BLAINE… we get as much support from women as we get from men Vassell said her organisation has been trying to address these issues in a series of workshops they have been having with women in various areas of leadership.

“We have to take practical steps which is why the whole business of encouraging women to network, and to be trained in a new approach to leadership is so important,” she said.

She explained that part of the reason for the antagonism among women is the fact that power is a scarce commodity, and also that women oftentimes don’t see other women in authority working on their behalf.

But even as she acknowledged the high levels of competitiveness among women, she also noted that men were just as competitive as women.

“I think we should be careful to recognise too that men compete against each other and men will hold each other down, but because it is accepted that men are in the so-called public sphere, and the ones in leadership, when we see this happening, we think it is a part of what society accepts,” she said.

Executive Director of the Bureau of Women’s Affairs Faith Webster said while she has heard women express that they do not get support from other women in their endeavours, no study has been done to indicate whether this is indeed the case.

“There is some element of truth to that, but we would want to see empirical studies to indicate this,” she said, before adding, “Research has been out there that has highlighted the fact that women tend not to be team players, and this has to do with how they were socialised.”

The gender specialist said the matter has been brought up at most forums and sessions hosted by her group.

“There is always a tendency to draw back and not to speak about it, but if it is to change, then it is something that we need to address by first re-socialising our girls,” she said.

Psychologist Dr Leachim Semaj said that some women cannot stand to see others outdo them, which is one of the reasons for the competitiveness that is sometimes evident among women.

“Women were socialised to be competitive in terms of who would get the best husband and who would get the best mate and so on, so it personifies into other areas, that even when they don’t need to be [competitive], some women still see everything in a competitive light,” he pointed out.

Meanwhile, Betty-Ann Blaine, convenor for Jamaica’s newest political party the New Nation Coalition (NNC), said she doesn’t find women to be any more competitive than men.

“From my own experience of working as a children’s advocate and certainly now from my experience of being the convenor of a political movement, I don’t see that as being the case. We get as much support from women as we get from men,” she said.

Source: Jamaica Observer/NADINE WILSON All Woman writer