Sociology

Major cities in the world are the central places for both urbanization and civilization. This is because most of the factors that foster development are found in the major cities. However, there are some transgresive behaviours in these cities that create a bad picture of the same. In UK, such behaviours are evident in large cities like London, Manchester and others. This study shall therefore describe how such behaviours like homelessness and graffiti in the UK cities, particularly in London both disfigure and threaten its functioning.

The homeless people in the cities are those who do not have any place they have established to be their permanent dwelling place. This includes those who sleep in the streets due to lack of enough finances to rent houses. Some of the homeless people are forced out of their own house after their failure to pay mortgage loans while others find themselves there due to lack of any employment to support their up keep. According to Bowcott (2009), the number of the homeless in UK has continued to increase and in the year 2009 it increased by 15.

Bowcott continues to note that those people suffering from mental health problems constitute about 85 of the total homeless people and also 85 of these people are drug users (2009). Further studies of the same reveal that these people either take drugs so as to cope with the hardships and due to that they develop mental health problems. There is still a possibility that these people do suffer from mental health problems and due to this they lose their jobs and end up in the streets. Whichever the case, homelessness has never been tolerated in any city. The government as well as other charitable organisations offer some support to these people so as to reduce the ever increasing number of these homeless people.

The law requires every person to have a well established dwelling place to ensure that law and order is maintained. This is the reason why it is illegal to be homeless. Every city is supposed to be well planed. For instance, residential houses and the business premises are supposed to be located in different places. Homeless people interfere with the arrangement of the city because they can occupy any place. They generally disfigure the city and interfere with its functioning especially where law and order is concerned. This is more so because the criminals also tend to stay in the same places.
Moreover, most of the homeless people also engage in the criminal acts in order to survive. Studies have revealed that most of these people have mental problems as a result of substance abuse. People who are mentally unstable do not only create a bad site but are also a security threat because they can easily engage in any unlawful acts. In fact, their in activities lead to transgressive performance which is law violation.

The homeless people do not usually have access to facilities like toilets and other sanitation facilities. They usually cause a lot of sanitation problems in the cities. It is therefore quite difficult to maintain the proper sanitation where there are a large numbers of homeless people. These people do not have access to clean water and thus they cannot afford to maintain their general cleanliness.

While there are people who are usually homeless with genuine reasons, others are homeless due to mismanagement of their finances. Others who actually do not want to work hard to earn a living may also find themselves in such situations. Under age persons who cannot get housing benefits also find themselves in the streets especially when they ran away from home (St Mungo, 2010). Nevertheless, the government and charity organisations work towards eradicating homelessness and therefore it is only under limited circumstances that a person is supposed to be homeless.

Homeless people may sleep at the back of business premises or on the verandas of such premises.  Since the owners would not allow them to, they usually occupy without anyones permission. Once a certain person or a certain family acquires such a place then it becomes their dwelling place and another homeless family cannot occupy such. Generally, the first group to access a certain place becomes the rightful owner of the place.

According to (Halifax Regional Municipality, 2006), graffiti is any form of writing, drawing or symbols applied to any surface without the prior permission of the owner. It can either be created using spray paint, engraving, using crayons or even permanent paint. Despite the fact that it can be found anywhere, some places like recreational facilities, post mail boxes, walls of public and also private buildings, in vehicles, play ground equipment among others are more prone to it.

Graffiti affects everyone including the citizens, organizations and also businesses. It is considered to be a criminal offence and also vandalism if it is placed in any facility whether private or public without the permission of the owner. In case where graffiti is not removed then the problem intensifies because such a site attracts more to be placed in the same place. This is because people conclude that may be it is not unlawful to put more in such places.

As any other transgressive act would, graffiti has serious impacts not only to the owners of the properties where it is placed, but also to all members of the citizens. Moreover, the impacts are not only social but also financial. Halifax Regional Municipality (2006)

 records that, financially the owners of the properties where graffiti is placed incur a lot of costs while cleaning and repainting their properties. Corby Borough council (2008) reports that, in London alone the cost due to graffiti is approximately 2.5m annually. Due to the fact that it ruins the outlook of a city, the investors and also the tourists are turned off. If the graffiti contains messages that may be targeting a certain group of people then such peoples feeling are often hurt by such messages.

As it has been recorded earlier in this study graffiti increases once the already existing graffiti is not removed. People who put graffiti in buildings and other places put more in areas where they find such. In cases where regular clean ups are not done, more and more graffiti accumulate leading to more destruction of property. Graffiti is an unlawful act because it is actually done without the permission of the owner of the property. The drawing and the writings sometimes contain hateful, offensive or unpleasant writings or paintings. Moreover, the fact that graffiti disfigures buildings and generally the city makes it unlawful. As the law does not allow such acts, it is usually done at night and that is the reason why very few graffiti artists are arrested (Graffiti News, n.d.). The same studies reveal that the only way to deal with graffiti is only to remove it within twenty four hours so as to prevent more to be put in the same place.

Both homelessness and graffiti are unlawful acts which threaten the development of the city of London and other cities in the world. This is because they affect the functioning of the city by creating unnecessary problems.  They contrast the beauty and the beautiful outlook of the city. For instance, the homeless create quite a bad site as they always move with belongings since they do not have any storage place. In cases where they possess a cart they even interfere with the traffic. Just like in any other city or town, in London you will mostly find them in garbage selection sites where they look for items to sell so as to get money for the upkeep. Any visitor who sees such people and the graffiti in all building gets a poor impression of the city.

Failure for the action to be taken on such unlawful acts creates continuity. History records that, despite the fact that the government has been having programs to help eliminate the homeless the number is still on the increase. As long as there are people on the streets there would still be more. People who have a problem with affording housing for their families will always results to sleeping in the streets because that has been the norm for a very long time. The same case applies to graffiti. In the cities where graffiti is mostly found, there will always be more. Due to the fact that people are used to putting graffiti in vehicles is an indication that even in future people will continue with the same trend.

In conclusion, it is clear that although homelessness and graffiti have not been identified as the major problems, actually they are among the major problems. Studies of St. Mungos, (2010) reveal that of all 498 people who sleep outside in England daily 248 are from the city of London. This means that homelessness is a problem in London as is the case other cites all over the world. The two problems often interfere with the development projects in the cities. Big cities like London are mostly affected because they attract many people. Some may actually be idle and that is the reason as to why they find time to engage in such unlawful acts. Others are those who have retired from their jobs and they find it quite hard to adapt to the normal life and end up in the streets.  Graffiti itself is very destructive due to the financial and social impact. Unless interventions are put in place such problems are bound to continue not only in London but also in other cities as well.

Challenges are often present in the society. In the case of women, there had been many years where in women are given inequality. Hence, one of these is the case of women and child birth. As Latinas there are certain issues and concerns which are not widely known to the America society.  One of these remains in the issue of child birth where in children and mothers are suffering for the reason that different institutions in the United States do not understand the concept of childbirth and motherhood for most Latinas. In order to understand more of these, it is only proper that I shall create an interview with a Latina woman. In order to give her privacy, specific information regarding the interviewee shall not be provided.

Questions 1
How many times have you given birth in the United States (United States)
- I am able to give birth in the US twice already. I usually have a caesarian section because it is required by the doctor.

Question 2
Have you see a different type of child birth other than a caesarian procedure
- Yes. During the time that I was young while I was still in my home country I was able to see a normal type of delivery. It was my older sister who gave birth. I was very bloody and horrific because I am unable to think that a person could do all that. But I think women really have the capability to give birth to a new life through her body because it is made to do so. However, I feel somehow disturbed by method done in the United States. Although I went through the process of caesarian section I still disagree with such process of giving birth.

Question 3
Why do you disagree with such process In what process do you find very horrid or violent
-Giving birth is known to be horrid and dangerous to the life of the mother and the child. However, through these types of experiences a woman feel that she is really a mother. Hence, after giving birth to a child, she has the right to see her son daughter and hold her child. However, most hospitals require a twenty four hour gap before the child given to the parent. Based on my personal beliefs, a child must not be separated from his or her mother because they are intertwined.

Question 4
Given such opinion about giving birth in the United States, why did you decide to give birth in the hospitals in the United States
-I choose to give birth in United States because I wanted to provide my children a much better life. Through giving birth in a hospital and tons of nurses provides security from different kinds of harms is at hand. The files of my children are easily procedure which helped me a lot by the time they entered school.

Question 5
What can you say about the current situation of birth rights and justice of the Latinas
-I do believe that Latinas are strong individuals who fight for their right and attain equality amongst the society. Hence, they could also change the current status of Latinas. Therefore, it is only proper, different people in the United States must be equal. Whether the ethnicity of people had become very diverse, everyone should be respected and treated equally by different groups in the society.

I hope that there will come a time that birth right would simply be given and practiced and not hindered. I highly value my relationship with my children from the time I have them in my belly until this very time. Due to this, the medical community and the government must open their eyes to the beliefs of Latinas in order to have a much equal society.

1.0 Introduction
The reviews cited are based on ethnicity Ethnic minorities concept from the category sociology purporting facts on definition of the concept, measurement of concept in migration research and the use of concept in migration research. Ethnicity concept is a variable which is viewed as an important factor in research population is experiencing tremendous growth and is contributed by minority populations. It is a major concern in population as it perceived to be controversial variable in public health, economic growth, social status and demographic change factor.

The objective of the concept is to demonstrate influence on ethnic minority factors on development and the human behaviour to change the perception of ethnicity in society. The forces which stimulate ethnic minority such as new genetics, focus on health, inequalities in health care, globalization, migration, large mass movement of refugees, trafficking of human to other nations influences the research based on these concept to find facts and informed decisions in national planning.

The article relates to facts of ethnic minority and provides relevant information by explaining different perceptions of ethnicity as defined by different scholars, the use of the concept as it is mainly applied in medical planning and how it is measured in migration. The scope of research is limited only to ethnic minorities.

Definitions
Bhopal (2004) states that ethnicity refers to a specific social group of individuals sharing common characteristics such as origin of ancestry, languages, religion, geographical settings, diet, culture and physical features. The characteristics which define ethnicity are variables, thus it is perceived as imprecise and fluid, it differs from one race, nationality, religion and migrant social stature to another.
Societal collection featured with distinct social and cultural traditions passed from one generation to another sharing same past and origin with sense of identity in a group as suggested by Scarlett S. Lil and Jennifer L. Kelsey (2000).

Sumi Okazaki and Stanley Sue (1995) define Ethnicity as features that can be identified effortlessly having universal cultural past with several persons possessing similar characters such as race, country of origin, belief, verbal communication and cultural locale. These features used to identify ethnicity do not necessarily appear independent but in interrelated patterns and configuration thus the grouping is based on assumptions that individual shares psychological feature associated with cultures related to personality. Ethnicity is demographic variable which displays psychological values such as cultural activities, religious practices, self-concept and social statue (Foner, 2001).

Tim Dertwinkel (2008) statement explains that ethnic minority is perceived as to be real or imagined community having a certain sense of belonging. The bases of the attributes are identified by carriers namely religion, language and territory.

Measuring of Ethnicity Concept in Migration
Migration is physical movement of people from one place to another  sometimes over a long distances due to push or pull factors in such of employment, conducive environment or being forced to move by occurrences of natural catastrophes, these migration has effects on ethnicity as stated
Migration size and ethnicity value is on rise due to globalization and strong process of change is experienced as large mass of people are migrating. The identification of migration measurements is through assimilation, separation, integration and marginalization as stated by Klaus F. Zimmerman and same case by Mark Thomson and Maurice Crul (2007).

Tim Dertwinkel (2008) suggests that the minority suffer severe inequity in the economy, politics and social sectors with limited resources. The minority are characterized by less education, poor health, poverty, poor housing structures, roads, high school drop outs, unemployment and poor access to social amenities. He further states that the minorities in form of migrants are the most vulnerable in society as far as economic growth are concerned.

Use of Ethnic Concept in Migration Research
Ethnic minority status data has been used in applications of clinical settings by identifying inhabitants receiving unequal prevention and screening to better and prioritize public medical attention targets and strategic planning (Foner, 2001). The suggestions lead to etiology thus guide in understanding the roles of interaction between genetics and environmental factors in a given geographical setting. Findings are used to assess conceptual risk factors, symptoms and diseases which may differ from one ethnic group to another in planning future developments on health to make specific interventions for a specific group as explained by Scarlett S. Lil and Jennifer L. Kelsey (2000).

Introduction    
The data from the U.S census on white families with two parents and two children with low-income levels has been constant in census carried out in 1999 and 2009. The lack of changes in the data may be an indication of stagnation of life in the economic well being of the low earning white families over the period.

Literature Review
National Statistics      
 According to the U.S censors Bureau (2010), the number of white families with an income of less than 10,000 by the year-end 2007 was 3.6 of the white population. Out of this, 1.3 earned less than 2,500 per month. Family expenditure for families with an income less than  56,870 and with children under 2 years was  8,500 and for those with children between 15- 17 years had an expenditure of about 9,450. These figures were the same as the census carried out in 2000.  The census shows that 5,259 families under the age of 65 years earn less than 15,000. The highest age bracket is for families between 25 to 34 years where 1,496 families earn below 15,000. The age bracket with the lowest number of low earning families is those with 75years and over where only 411 families earn below  15,000 (U.S Census, 2010).
                                                       
Observations
In the statistics data above, a family that earns below 56,000 has expenditure between 8500 and 9500 per child depending on the age of the child. This is considering that the expenditure is inclusive of clothing, housing, food, medical care, and other important aspects in the familys development.
Scholars agree that stigmatized individuals possess some attribute or characteristic that conveys a social identity that is devalued in a particular social context (Wendy, 2009). We therefore find several trends within this group that are not in line with positive human development.
                                                     
Cultural group
There is a high trend of people having low education levels according to the data, most cannot afford to go above the basic levels of education and this provides a high number of young people with low education. This result into high unemployment rates compared to other classes in the society. The income from those employed is too low to support all their essential needs.

Therefore, crimes in young generations, high level of unemployment in adults as well as drug abuse are much pronounced in this society.
                                                                 
Age
There is a drastic decrease in the number of families above 75 years earning below 15000. It may be assumed that, not many families get to this age and this may explain the decrease in the number of families at this age group. Due to hard economic conditions, the living standard for these people is very low and in most cases, they are not capable of meeting their needs. Children are the most affected due to poor hygiene and harsh environmental conditions. Adults on the other hand are more likely to engage in crimes to sustain their families.
                                                               
Gender
There is a gender imbalance in this class and mostly men are the breadwinners in their families. The rate of unemployment is very high and the income from those employed too little to fully support their families due to low levels of education that cannot secure a well paying job. It leads to stigmatization of the family where women are more affected than men Dont call me out of name because I wont answer you. Dont call me a welfare mother cause thats not who I am (Wendy, 2009). This is an example of a quote from a stigmatized mother who refused to be recognized by her social class.
                                                                 
Discussion
All groups have members who feel more or less indentified with the group however unlike other groups where members are bonded based on collective responsibilities, majority do not identify themselves with their social class (Wendy, 2009). This shows a case of denial and adaptability to the low social class by the members. While others feel emotionally secure to identify themselves with their social life, others have a life of denial and mostly likely may opt for class mobility into a better class. All the same, bonding is a major factor that brings these families together. The social learning theory best explains the lives of these low-income earners as given above.

 In social learning theory, environmental factors as opposed to personal factors are more responsible for the development of a particular personality. Elements beyond the control of a person will greatly influence the career choice. The greatest task in such a case is to find ways of coping with the circumstance as it unfolds.

The latest effort to analyze, categorize, and react to poverty in America, begins with a discussion of the continuing and pervasive appeal of cultural explanations as the root cause of poverty (Marks, 1991).

Discussions on this topic have strong opponents of the theory and proponents who try to prove on either side the relation between cultural values and low income or poverty in a society.
   
The best way to work with and help this group is by making them have a perception that social class boundaries are permeable. This means giving them a positive view that they can make their way from the low social class into the upper class. For those who have made it to the upper class would motivate the others to follow suit. Having studies that portray the social class as permeable as opposed to closed boundaries may help in determining the determinants in upward mobility beliefs (Wendy, 2009). The process of liberation of these people from their social bonding is so strong and plays itself at a psychological level and in most cases, breaking the bond in upward mobility becomes difficult. This is explained by the above theory where members of this social group will just look at nature to take its course in determining their development. The sources of conflict emerge in a situation where, as the members of this group believe, their destiny depends on forces beyond their control outsiders do not usually understand them.          
                                                               
Comparison
Comparing this report with the report on poverty in black families, there are similarities and differences in both cases. The report on black families is based on feminism theory, which explains the gender inequality and segregation of roles in families. However, the rate on poverty is larger in the black clients compared to the white families. In both cases there is a social class problem where mixing with the upper class is taken with suspicions from both sides.

The issues of family conflicts due to limited resources in the family is much extensive in both reports and habits such as drug abuse are distributed regardless of the race. Working with this class might be a unique and interesting activity once you prove that the class barrier can be broken and mobility is possible into an upper class. The challenge all the same will make them to leave the norms associated with this class as explained above.
                                                         
Conclusion
How people in real communities device collective responses to their problems, attempts are underway to provide to provide a common ground which is partly cultural and structural debate. (Marks, 1991). Such a ground when provided will give more light to the cause of social group trends. It will thus be possible to understand ones situation and the reasons why people find themselves in different levels in the society.

Introduction Post divorce, fatherchild relationship posed concerns about time spent by fathers with children, emotional bonding between offspring and parents and college age daughters feeling less close to fathers. Many studies have examined the relationship and came up with different conclusions. There was agreement on importance of maintaining relationship and cross sectional studies have been carried out with reference to relationship between college age and adolescent children with their divorced father. Studies reported that the adult children and their divorced fathers have an improved relationship, owing to maturational effects and the children being married and are parents themselves. Long term father-child relationship is influenced by a number of inter related factors, which made the studies complex and confusing, most studies were observing the phenomenon over only a limited time period. This study aimed at examining the adult children and divorced father relationship from the perception of the adult children 20 years after their parents divorce and the influencing factors that might play a role in the quality of relationship.

Method Binuclear family study was conducted for 20 years beginning from 1979, by following the life of divorced families. The sample of pairs of former spouses who had at least one minor child was randomly selected from public divorce records in Dane county, WI. Interviews were conducted at 1, 3 and 5 years after a legal divorce. For this study, search was made to locate adult children of the former spouses selected for Binuclear family study and collect data from them. 193 of possible 204 children could be located and were eligible for data collection, out of which interviews could be completed from 173 adult children. The sex composition of the respondents was Male89, Female 84, their age ranged from 21 to 52. Most of the sample adult children were well educated and employed.

Their marital status presented a variety married, married and divorced, married divorced and remarried or remaining single, unmarried and unmarried but in serious relationship or cohabiting. Out of 68 of the sample who were married    63 had children biological or otherwise. Doctoral students with clinical training conducted semi structured interviews with the adult children over telephone, for drawing both quantitative and qualitative responses. Since the interviews were intended to gather elaborate information over a long period of time respondents were encouraged to tell their stories and respondents were probed where ever required. To achieve the research objectives, the interview focused on eliciting qualitative and quantitative responses for questions dealing with  changes in respondents relationships with their parents 20 years post divorce , factors contributing to the changes in relationships with their fathers, changes in respondents relationships with their fathers in relation to changes in post divorce relationships with other family members and on respondents reports of changes in their relationships with their fathers in relation to their perceptions of how they have been affected by the divorce Ten-point scale with 1 being much better and 10 being much worse  and 5 and 6 being about the same was used to capture the response for the question  How did childrens relationships with their parents change post divorce . 8 point scale measurement, categorization and summarization in terms of percentages were used for data analysis. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used in case of analysis of data on geographical proximity of sample adult children with their fathers and holiday visits. Chi-square test was used to test whether custody was related to adult childrens report on relationship change with their fathers. Father involvement scale similar to 5-point Likert scale was used to measure the frequency of involvement across eight parental activities where high scores indicated greater parental involvement.

Major finding were 49 of the respondents reported that the relationship with their father got better, 12 reported that it stayed the same and 38 said that it got worse. For those where relationship got worse after parental divorce the reasons were subsequent changes and transitions initiated by parents dating and remarriage.  98 of the respondents reported that they had at least some contact with their father by telephone. Analysis suggested that the relationship of respondents with their fathers and mothers improved in the later stages of the family life cycle than what it was in the initial stages. Where relationship got worse it was greater with father compared to mother Findings on factors that influence the relationship showed that custody did not significantly influence while father involvement had a positive influence. Early remarriage had a negative influence on the quality of relationship with father but was not so in the case of mother.59 of the respondents believed that they were better off as a result of divorce, while 12 believed to be worse off.

Conclusions Even though relationship with parents showed an improvement as children mature over the years, the study found that this positive trend did not change with divorce. The study also concluded that there was a positive influence in the relationship if the co parents played a supportive role and had low conflict parental unit outside marriage even after 20 years.

The study adopted a mix of both quantitative and qualitative techniques depending on the suitability of the situation and the variables were handled with clarity. These were the strengths while its main weakness was that the study was very complex dealing with too many interrelated issues through narratives.

Abstract for Qualitative Research Article
Introduction  Parental divorce  not only exposed children and adolescents to the risk of  adjustment problems but also the adult offspring .Studies indicated that,  parental divorce during childhood, induced drinking and smoking habits. It was also found to be a cause for psychological adjustment problems, behaviorconduct problem and lower educational attainment among adults. Studies have pointed out the significance of common ground of communication by different members of the family about the divorce event, to bring about relational closeness of the child with both parents in the post divorce family. For the child, changes like where the child would be living or making plans to visit the non resident parent may trigger stress. Factors like secured economic situation on the other hand are protective in nature. One of the important protective factors is that the child is helped by the adults to form a coherent and meaningful story or narrative of divorce. This case study based on social construction theory and narrative theory attempted to explore an adult childs various stories or narratives of the event of his parents divorce and of the living arrangements that were made for the children, under 8 conditions of instruction, with a view to bring out the coherence or divergence between opinions and stories held by significant people surrounding the adult child from its view point, using Q methodology. The eight conditions were in short termed as, As a child, Today, Mother and Sister, Friend, Children, and Wish., Father.   The study also examined the suitability of Q-methodology as a research tool for analyzing family stories or narratives. In this study only a single case was examined for which a young adult child of divorced parent from South West Norway was recruited and was given a pseudo name Magne. To select appropriate statements for Q sample, interviews were conducted with two Norwegian adult children of divorces parents in their thirties, apart from those constructed from literature. The Q-sample statements consisted of four categories 1) experiences related to divorce in the child perspective 2) experiences related to divorce in the adult perspective 3) experiences related to living arrangement in the child perspective 4) experiences related to living arrangement in the adult perspective. Each category had seven statements totaling to 28. Q-sorting for a maximum of 2 conditions in a day was carried out completing the process for eight conditions of instruction in five days. The statements were given score values ranging from -3 and 3 indicating most unlike and most like respectively and 4 statements were placed under each score.

Findings  Q-sorting and Q-factor analysis led to some of the important findings 1) factor 1 was characterized by  four conditions of instruction As a child,  Today, Mother and Sister and distinguishing statements both on the positive and negative end of the scale pointed to grief, sorrow, confusion and loneliness. 2) Factor 2 was defined by Friend, Children, and Wish. and distinguishing statements reflecting adults consideration and cooperation for the childrens feeling and wishes. 3) Factor 3 was defined by only one condition Father and the statements score reflected adult control and lack of consideration for childs future.

Conclusions  The findings were interpreted   as 1) Q-sort of factor1 highlighted that Magne perceived full of surprise and negative feeling in him, his mother and sister. There was no room for any thing positive. The sort also indicated that there was no significant change in the way he understood the situation then and now in retrospect. But the study did lead him to reflect on the past story and the possibility of a story different from the original. 2) Q-sort of factor 2 dealt about solutions which Magne wished to happen. Magne visualized that parents were responsible and caring enough to provide parental cooperation for the children in spite of divorce. 3) Q-sort of factor 3 indicated Magnes opinion of his father.  Unlike his mother sister and him, his father knew of the divorce situation, his father neither thought about Magnes opinion on where he would live nor about the care and security needs of the children in that situation. For Magne his father represented adult control and lack of consideration of child welfare. The study demonstrated the usefulness of Q-methodology in analyzing family narratives both in research and clinical settings. The story of the respondent is elicited from the way the respondent sorted the statements. The Q-Methodology was helpful in divulging the congruence and divergence among Magnes versions of family narratives. For a researcher who is interested in the subjectivity of situation from the stand point of the person living it. Q-methodology can be the appropriate qualitative analytical technique despite its mathematical substructure.

The study centered on a single case. By not bringing to the picture other family members, it was possible to explore the possible incongruence within one person which might provide valuable insight for researchers and therapists. In clinical condition, the therapists can suggest alternative narratives that provided a perspective which helped client to understand and deal with the surroundings better.

When one closely examines gender and inequality in present day United States, he will notice that there still remain remnants indicating that the United States has not yet achieved gender equality as it should. Even though much as been achieved since the last century, a lot more needs to be done, whereas women have attained a lot in some areas like education, they still lack behind in areas like income as well as political representation. This paper critically examines gender and inequality within present day American society, the paper will delve into the subject under study and examine issue with the aim of understanding the present level of the gender and inequality.
 
Gender inequality
Gender inequality implies the manner in which gender categories of men and women are differently positioned in relation to the manner in which they access the various available social services such as employment and education, political representation, income among others. Gender inequality like any other social inequality is brought by various factors (Lardner, et al, 2006).

The level of gender inequality
According to a report available from United States Census of Bureau (2000), it indicates that women have nearly attained equality when it comes to education. Thus, the report indicates that in 1999, the percentage of women and men who completed high school education was same. Those who graduated from the university that year were 23.7 percent for women and 27.5 percent for men (US Census Bureau, 2000). Though this report indicates women a little below men regarding the percentage that graduated form the university, the figures show a considerable improvement in the last 30 to 40 years.

In the past, for example looking at 1970, the percentage of women who successfully completed a university education was only 8.2 percent in comparison to men who stood at 14.2 percent. As at 1980, the number of women increased to reach 13.6 percent, but the number of men as well increased to reach 20.9 percent. This tendency evidently indicates that education level of women is catching up with that of men. Indeed, latest studies have indicated that female percentage competing university education has risen to be higher than men.

Even though educational data do indicate that there is an increase in gender equality among men and women, this has not been transformed to real world outcome. For instance, records indicate that, in 2000, a female holding a diploma certificate was earning 21, 963, while a male with same qualification were earning  30, 868. Those females holding a university degree were earning 35, 408 whereas their male counterparts were earning 49,982 (US Census Bureau, 2000).

More women are likely to be poor compared to men. Available data indicates that 29 of single mother households live under poverty line, but only 12 of single male households live under the poverty line (US Census Bureau, 2000). As Zweig (2004) notes, this data can be due to a number of reasons, however, the major reason is that women today are still mainly employed in conventional female occupation like administrative support jobs and also service jobs.

Income disparity as a reason to gender inequality
Income plays an important role in creating equality, however, the fact that the income females earn has remained significantly lower in comparison to that of men, this also has contributed to existing gender inequality. This view is supported by a number of sociologists such as (Rhonda, 1998). Yet again, there those who view that gender inequality continue to exist because of the type of occupation preferred by women. As noted by Rhonda (1998) women are likely to take into account other factors when choosing a job and consider salary amount as the last factor.

Traditional gender roles that have continued to be practiced by some communities coupled by male stereotypes could as well contribute to gender inequality. For example Zweig (2004) asserts that gender inequality remains high among women from African American and Hispanic backgrounds as compared to white background, even in cases where these women have same education standards.

Making comparisons
The best way to assess gender inequality existing in the United States is by comparing it with other countries. A study carried out by the World Bank Group to compare workforce data among four countries namely, the US, Sweden, Mexico and the UK, established that the data was nearly similar in three countries, the UK, US, and Sweden. Accordingly, Sweden topped with female employment rate of 47 followed by the US with 46 and then the UK at 35 (Smeeding, 2005).

Perhaps one of the most telling statistics used to gauge the status of women in any society is the percent of representation they have in the government. There are some surprising facts revealed from this category. For instance, in 2004 the United States had only 14 percent of its elected legislative positions held by women.

Maybe, the best reflective indictor of women status within a given society is the proportion their hold in their government. In this category, remarkable findings were established. For example in 2004, merely 14 of elective legislative seats were occupied by women in the US. In UK, this was a little higher as it stood at 18 (Smeeding, 2005).  However, in Mexico, the country had 23 of women holding elective positions (Smeeding, 2005). Only Sweden possess a higher number of women holding elective positions, as it has 45 of women in such positions (Smeeding, 2005). With regard that women comprise more than 50 of the total population in these countries, the absence of equal political representation of women is somehow alarming (Smeeding, 2005).

After analyzing the above statistics, it clear that there is no specific answer to fully explain gender inequality existing throughout many countries around the world. A good reason as to why Sweden has 45 of women in its elective legislature positions could be possibly because traditionally Sweden has been viewed to be highly socially advance compared to other three countries (US, UK and Mexico) (Smeeding, 2005). However, this reasoning fails to pass through analysis, owing to the fact that the workforce percentage and earnings of Swedish women and American women are nearly same.

Similarly, though Mexico has a high number of women in elective legislative positions, the country has a low proportion of employed women (Smeeding, 2005). This maybe could be due to the low gross national product of Mexico or due to the family system where women stays home as mothers is more ingrained in Mexico compared to highly developed countries like the United States.

Critical reflection
From our study and the past literature examine, it can be stated that gender inequality still exists. However, what is required at the present moment are further studies aimed at establishing on how females can do away with culturally established patterns particularly when it comes to employment.  Studies have to be carried out on ways of encouraging girls to go for more modern jobs instead of their traditional jobs that pay less and offer limited career advancement. Certainly, in the United States, the percentage of female and male graduating form universities with bachelor degree is same if not better for women as at now, yet as seen there is still gender inequality in income as well as elective legislative positions. Thus, another area that needs further studies is how to improve representation of women in elective legislative positions. The two issues are crucial in reducing gender inequality better modern jobs for females and more representation in elective legislative positions. This is true in any society that needs to address this issue, be it America or Mexico.

Conclusion
Certainly, there are a numbers of factors ranging from economical, social and historical that continues to perpetuate gender inequality in America as well as in other countries of the world. Historically, men have been established themselves as the leading gender for many years. Thus, the undeniable truth regarding gender inequality allover the world is that, there is a lot to be done to bring equality. Any attempts to create equality among genders can not be successful without address income, which is related to education, and elective representation which is related to women empowerment. Though the advancement in gender equality experienced in the last century remains to be remarkable, particularly in education, employment, and elective representation and general basic rights of women, there are still gaps in gender inequality, particularly in areas that include income and political representation Lardner, et al (2006). Thus, real gender equality is yet to be achieved.

The French Civil Code was the administrative hallmark of an administrative genius, enacted in 1804 it was not till 1807 that it started being called the Napoleonic Code or code de Napoleone. Its origins lie in the decrepit legal system of the times. In France, there were many variations of the legal system. The laws were either different or applied differently in the various parts of the country. The nobles enjoyed privileges over the Third Estate, which constituted the main victims of the arbitrary judicial system. This created a multitude of administrative difficulties along with injustice for the common man. A commission of four people was set up by Napoleon for the purposes of codifying the existing legal system and establishing with a greater degree of firmness the new dynamics of the revolution. The feudal system was abolished, the church was backtracked and freedom of religion was guaranteed. The code had many economic implications which meant that trade flourished the easy accessibility of the code and simplicity ensured universal enforcement and justice compared to the older times. It focused on the family life and micro management of the everyday affairs of the people to set a dynamic which would be most conducive to peace and solidarity. The code was based on a set of principles the legislative incorporation of those principles would prove to be the legacy of napoleon.

The codification of these laws was the first of its kind. They answered a lot of questions for the French people where the law was arbitrary from locality to locality. By facilitating access to the law, it answers the democratic and economic needs of the masses. Before the Revolution in France the masses were really in desperate conditions, human rights were a privilege of the nobles and officials. The civil code provided for a universal law which was applicable to each and every citizen of France irrespective of their status in society. The courts could now refer to a code while enforcing justice and thus the arbitrary nature of the previous courts vanished.

The code napoleon is considered a step backwards for women rights. In all its innovative ingenuity, it dictated the supremacy of the male as the head of the family. Although women lived in miserable conditions under previous legal systems, in retrospect, the changes that the code brought about in the rights for women are considered to be detrimental to their overall standing in society. The answers it had for the questions of their standing in society are significant in their myopic patriarchy. This chauvinism was then perpetuated in the many countries that adopted the civil code and is still perpetuated today in the world.

The wife was made subservient to the husband in all public matters. She could not buy or sell property, or engage in commercial activity by herself. Her life was inextricably bound to the life of her husband. She was given the right to divorce, in case of adultery or irreconcilable differences. The married woman was to oblige the husband, whose nationality she was to share. Women could not be witnesses in court or individually or file a lawsuit.

The individual status of men however was uplifted. In the case of divorce because of adultery, a man could not be accused of adultery unless it was committed within the vicinities of the household. It made him the head of the family and morally responsible for its well being. While women were responsible for the rearing of the family and devoting their time and faithfulness to their husbands and children, this fertilization of virtue and subordinate vision has been the thorn in the side for women right advocates everywhere. It implies an imposition rather then the freedom to choose their responsibilities and way of life (Horgan, 42).

They were economically bound to men by the property law of the code. The control of her property was in the hands of her husband. Women could not work without the consent of their husbands, who would receive their wages and any profit she made in business would not be hers to keep. In the inheritance laws, she had no right to inheritance and her descendents would receive her property only if they were tied to those of her husband.  

Napoleon is said to have a famous saying Women ought to obey us. Nature has made them our slaves. Furthermore the influence of Jean Jacques Rousseau in formulating the code ensured that his take on the subject filtered out in the code. Rousseau was of the opinion that women were subordinate to men in the intellectual and physical hierarchy of existence. In explanations of the code, emphasis was placed on the chivalry of men and their biological superiority as necessitating the patriarchal nature of the code. Men have always been perceived of being the bread earners, smart and responsible sex. Even in other socio-political systems of the world, womens rights have rarely ever been treated impartially. The perceived necessity of their protection has always resulted in their sidetracking and subservience to their male counterparts. The code marked the coming of a new age for the French people, but this was only true in the case of the male population. It was not till 150 years later that women received the right to work without the consent of their husbands, even later did they get the right to vote (Council of Europe 32).

This trend of thought is not just limited to France. Just by extensions the code was adopted in varying degrees of conformity in Italy, Belgium, Spain, Egypt, and a host of other countries. The code is the basis of the Civil Law in the world today. The rights of women seem to be decided upon by men. They are afforded little faith and freedom, or have been throughout history. As the world witnesses a change in dynamic, we see women working and taking on leading roles in economics and academia their legislative rights are equal to those of men in the developed world. But tradition has kept them locked in the attic of this deep set belief that men were created to rule over them and they were created to oblige (Smith 120).

Conclusion
The code napoleon was not the embodiment of the ideals of the revolution, women rights were not uplifted in society. Its effects reverberated throughout Europe and all those parts of the world where Napoleon lead his campaigns. The code de napoleon has undergone certain changes since the 19th century. Justice is one of the fundamental human rights, and in the patriarchal system of France at that time it weighed in for the fairer and often maltreated sex. There are many countries in the world today where women do not enjoy basic human rights owing to this traditional view of women in society and cultures. 1804 is definitely a long time ago, but as a legacy of the revolution which was supposed to deliver the people from the injustice of the 19th century, it falls quite short of the mark. Therein lies the significance of the code de napoleon for human rights, as long as men write the laws, the standard of equal rights is a mere veneer of a deeply engraved universal mindset.