4
October-November 2016
NEWS & OPINION
The Stentorian I NCSSM
Prominent World Leaders Address
Sexism in Politics
By MARGAUX WINTER
The last few decades have
led rise to a new era in politics.
Notably, it has become an
era where women are taking
charge. From the outside, it
may appear that coming into
a position of power is easy for
any women that works as hard
as a the men that currently hold
the reigns, this is not always
the case.
One example in particular
is Germany’s Chancellor,
Angela Merkel. Political
positions aside, having a
female lead a country is
notable. However, Merkel has
recently been commenting on
the discrimination she faced
before becoming chancellor,
and the sexism that she still
must combat, even as a world
leader.
Merkel is the leader of the
Christian Democratic Union
(CDU), a liberal-conservative
political party in Germany.
Essentially, it represents
those politicians that fall in
the center-right of German
politics. This party supports
a ffee-market economy and
social welfare, but tends to be
conservative on social issues.
The CDU advocates European
integration, and during it time
in power, has solidified bonds
with the United States. The
CDU is know as a “catch-all”
party, as it presents itself as
representing an entire people,
rather than a group with a
Angela Merkel, Chancellor of Germany, has spoke out against sexism in politics and the discrimination she has faced.
BBC NEWS
particular set of interests.
Merkel was appointed
as Germany’s first female
chancellor in 2005, and in
2013 won the federal election
with 41.5% of the votes.
Since her appointment and
election, Merkel has played
a part in negotiation of the
Treaty of Lisbon and the
Berlin Declaration, and also
strengthened transatlantic
economic relations by
signing the agreement for
the Transatlantic Economic
Council.
Recently, Merkel has made
public the kind of sexism
that exists within her own
conservative party, after
CDU junior politician Jenna
Brehrends made public the
defamatory comments that
were frequently made against
her. Many of those comments
included crude language and
sexual remarks. Not only were
these comments coming from
men, but also from fellow
females in her party. She was
held to a double standard,
being labeled as cut-through
and a career-obsessed climber,
for simply being as ambitious
as the men in her party.
Merkel took this information
in stride, calling out her party
for these unacceptable actions.
Merkel herself combats these
sexist comments, made worse
by the fact that she has more
power and shatters societal
norms. Following a long line of
Roman Catholic leaders from
the west, she took power as a
childless, Protestant woman
from the former communist
East.
During a conversation about
Germany’s new quota for its
biggest companies to fill at
least 30% of their supervisory
board seats with women,
Merkel said, “It is pathetic that
in more than 65 years of the
Federal Republic of Germany,
it was not possible for the Dax-
30 companies to get a few
more women on supervisory
boards on a voluntary basis.”
Uncovering these deep-
seated issues has led rise to
productive conversations about
future goals not only within the
party but also within Germany
as a whole. Recognizing that
this problem exists has sparked
a global conversation, and will
hopefully lead to the reduction
of not onfy sexist rhetoric,
but will also break down
barriers that have been created
within countless industries
and vocations, which prevent
women from reaching their full
potential.
On Vegetarianism at Science and Math
By KARENNA LEVIN
Forjunior Tamar McMahon,
being a vegetarian is all she has
ever known. Both McMahon’s
parents were vegetarian when
she was bom and she has never
eaten meat. When asked about
her reasons for choosing to
remain a vegetarian, McMahon
said, “I don’t want the suffering
of a bunch of animals on me,
but for the most part, it’s just
the way I’ve always lived.
Junior Archit Kulkami, grew
up with the familial influence
of his mother being vegetarian.
Kulkami mentioned the
impact of watching P.E.T.A.
videos, which depict animal
cmelty at its worst, on his
decision to be vegetarian.
According to the American
Society for the Prevention of
Cmelty of Animals, 99% of
the ten billion farm animals
in the United States are
raised on industrial farms,
which prioritize efficiency
and cost over animal welfare.
This prioritization causes
animals to be raised in
inhumane conditions that
would make even those with
a strong stomach squeamish.
Others, such as seniors Cary
Shindell and Abby Fanchur,
cited environmental reasons
as one of their main reasons
for choosing vegetarianism.
Fanchur said that being
a vegetarian is “more
environmental ly sound because
it takes more energy to produce
beef and pork than it does
to produce plant products.”
Remember learning about
the food chain in elementary
school? Only 10% of the
energy in the food chain
advances from one level to the
next. This means that it takes
far more plants, particularly
grains, to provide the same
number of calories though meat
consumption than through
direct plant consumption.
Shindell is a self-proclaimed
“kind of vegetarian” in that
he rarely eats meat and
doesn’t eat beef at all. He
added that along with energy
consumption, deforestation,
pollution, and depletion of
resources are some of the
many negative environmental
effects of a meat-based diet.
It turns out that 30%
of the ice-free land on
earth is used for livestock
production, according to the
United Nations Food and
Agriculture Organization.
It is also estimated that
the industry of livestock
production accounts for
18%, almost a fifth, of
greenhouse gases, which is
even more than the amount
generated by transportation.
Then, there’s the food
choices in public places.
“It’s hard in the P.F.M.
because on a lot of days there
aren’t many options and other
days there are just bad options,”
said Fanchur. McMahon had
much to say on the matter as
well: “as much as 1 love and
appreciate the PFM workers,
they don’t understand that a
certain amount of vegetarian
protein is not as much as the
same size of meat protein.”
McMahon also said
that she has lost weight
since coming here, despite
supplementing her RF.M.
meals with vegetarian protein
she has stored in her dorm.
Shindell stated that he finds
eating in the RF.M. slightly
inconvenient, as does junior
Chloe Pickell, who said, “I
have protein shakes and I
buy a lot of my own food.”
For senior Jessica
Buchanan, the options are
even more limited, being a
vegan. “I feel like when I was
a vegetarian I could always
find something here, but now I
don’t eat as much because the
vegan options, such as plain
avra janz
Not all vegetarian options at school are appealing, students say.
com, aren’t enough to make a
meal, and sometimes they say
something is vegan when it’s
not.” However, not everyone
is dissatisfied with the options;
Kulkami said, “I usually
just eat at the P.F.M. and I
don’t find it inconvenient.”
According to a 2008 Harris
Interactive survey, only about
3%of adults in the U.S. follow
a vegetarian diet. With such
small numbers, sometimes
it’s hard for the meat-eating
majority to understand.
Buchanan said that “a lot
of people joke - they aren’t
mean; it’s just annoying -
more people do it on purpose
than you would think.”
Fanchur added that in the
P.F.M., “People who aren’t
vegetarian get the vegetarian
options and it annoys me.
There’ll be one slice of cheese
pizza left and someone in
front of me in line who I know
isn’t vegetarian will take it.”