Female farmers honoured...
Female farmers honoured
Date: January 1, 1970
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This is a story about women farmers that are being honoured for excellence in various categories of agricultural production and their contribution to the economy.
This article may be used to:
- Challenge stereotypes
- Illustrate the use of gender aware language
- Illustrate journalists can find stories about women doing work traditionally believed to be in the male domain if only they invest the time.
Trainer’s notes
The article can be used to demonstrate that women can be portrayed in a positive way in much the same way men are portrayed when they are making positive contributions to society. This is demonstrated as follows;
The Language used shows that the author of the story is aware that the achievements by the women being covered should be viewed from a gender lense as the industry they are involved in is traditionally seen as a male domain. Hence the author says the annual awards are aimed at “recognising women who are making a mark in what used to be a man’s world”.
The significance of this achievement is also noted by the author who links the achievements by the women farmers to “improving the economy of the province and creating jobs for our people”. Thus, the symbolism of their achievement and its significance or impact to the economy is recognised.
What is also refreshing is that, the story identifies these women in their own right as farmers and not as wives or sisters to men as if to say this linkage is related to the success in farming. This story is a good example to use for stories that challenge stereotypes. In its covert and matter of fact terms, the story just presents the women as farmers who are doing their job and doing it successfully.
Discussions questions
- What can be improved about this story?
- Do you think this story is not balanced because there is no male voice even though there is reference to gender?
Training exercises
- Seek out women who are working in non-traditional areas such as farming and write feature stories about their work, vision and contribution to society
- What are the barriers, if any, for women entering into farming?
- Find out what government, banks and other lending institutions are doing to help develop women farmers.
Links to other training resources
Picture our lives: Gender and images https://www.genderlinks.org.za/page.php?p_id=97
Business Unusual: Gender and the economy https://www.genderlinks.org.za/page.php?p_id=310
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