Jobs and gender (was: Gender, Race, and Publishing on the Left)

[Wojtek Sokolowski]

At 12:22 PM 6/16/98 -0500, Carrol Cox wrote:
>I won't argue that this is false (or that it is true), but I do want to
>point out that the assumption of a "deeply entrenched" *concept* not being
>changeable except over a long period of time is just that, an assumption,
>and a relatively unexamined one at that.

-- snip --

I agree that duration of attitude change can be a moot point.  To use your
parachute example, it might be a necessity for someone falling down 20,000
feet, but if the guy refuses a parachute because it is too 'sissy' - you
have to do a hell of a job to convince him f that necesasity.  And if that
convincing takes too long, the guy's attitude may never change, as he
crashes into the ground.

I've seen people unable or uwilling to give up their culture-embedded
mythology even as they were sinking.  That may or may not be representatibe
of the whole working class or, for that matter, any social groups, but can
be a problem.  

The example of Zulu oligarchy's resistance to the dismantling of apartheid
in South Africa is telling.  While these guys were clearly inferior to
Whites under the apartheid regime, they were relatively superior to other
Blacks.  And they were unwilling to give up that little superiority even in
exchange for the dismantling of the whole racist system.

I am not arguing such misguided attitudes cannot be changed, my point is
that they may not change fast enough.  And, of course, there is the
perennial 'What is the best way to change them?

Regards,
Wojtek