Equal Opportunities Work - Theories about Practice

In this context, gender must be highlighted as one aspect of our identity, and
we must see its relationship to the autonomy aspect of the ego of every
individual. We must also stress that woman is a human being with freedom to
act, an independent agent who can bring an influence to bear. We must then
see that sexual harassrnent is, precisely, an impediment to action, a restriction
on freedom of action.
Our behavior is rooted both in socialization and autonomy, to different
extents and in different ways for every individual. Certain socially-determined
positions imply very little autonomy. There are occasions on which we
unreflectingly fulfill the expectations of others and act as if we were virtually
"socially determined". But there are other occasions on which we act with
great independence and in violation of social conventions and expectations.
Of course, not everything is possible. We live in a world that restricts our
options for action. To some extent, these restrictions are attributable to the
unequal conditions applying to women and men. This is the context in which
we, as agents, can act. But we can also change the context in which we
operate. This is the aim of working with sexual harassment: to change the
work environment to one in which such offenses do not occur.
It is possible to reform basic structures, both in an organization and in
society as a whole. But doing so is extremely demanding and requires
accepting the notion that things could be different, analyzing the situation and
being able to see its opportunities, possessing the capacity to bring about
change, and having the opportunity to utilize this ability.
To a large extent, equal opportunities work with a view to combating sexual
harassment is about circulating information that will enable every individual to
personally analyze the situation in order to open up to efforts to achieve
change. Such an analysis can give a person who is being harassed the power
and the energy to act instead of remaining in an enervating state of confusion.
And it may sow the seeds of self-insight in the harasser.
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