What’s Holding Back Women Today?

Despite Major Advances, Women’s Counselor Says Same-Gender Infighting among Enduring Problems

It’s safe to say that women are on the ascendancy on many accounts:

• Throughout the next decade, women will be the beneficiaries of the largest transference of wealth in the history of the United States and control two thirds of consumer wealth in the country.

• Women are now the majority of the workforce in the U.S. and fill the majority of managerial positions.

• For every two men who earn a college degree, three women will get theirs.

“It’s not just college and professional women who are transforming society – and the movement is not simply money-based – because I’ve witnessed women developing a dramatically new point of view on how we view ourselves,” says Xandra “Sunny” Moon, author of The Power of the Titz…a woman’s journey back to herself (www.sunnymoonspowerworld.com). “I am one of those women.”

As a self-described “liberated, 18-wheeler-driving, 40-plus babe,” Moon meets a countless number of women who she counsels. Like her, they’ve suffered physical and emotional abuse as young women. And, like her, after raising a family and enduring a deeply unsatisfying lifestyle, they are climbing out of depression and getting back in touch with the woman they’ve always wanted to be, she says.

“But, as women, we continue to run into several obstacles; while a woman’s role has evolved, much of society has not,” Moon says. She lists some of those obstacles:

• Other women: While there certainly is a sisterhood among many women, Moon occasionally runs into some who are fearful, lacking in confidence and, therefore, judgmental. “I’ve been accused of trying to steal husbands because I embrace and show off positive physical traits such as my large breasts, and I encourage all women to take charge of their beauty,” she says. “I can assure you that stealing someone’s husband has never been on my to-do list; I’m too happy with my life partner and second husband, Lee Abzu, who coauthored my book.”

• Domestic abuse: In the U.S., a woman is beaten every nine seconds; most domestic violence victims are women – 85 percent; it’s estimated that 1.3 million women are beaten each year – a number that could be much higher since most abuse is not reported to police. In some cases, emotional abuse can be worse because it works like a “psychic prison,” Moon says, keeping women locked in awful relationships year after year.

• Human Trafficking: According to the U.S. Department of State, 80 percent of transnational victims are women and girls, 70 percent of which are supplied to the commercial sex industry. With human trafficking being a $32 billion industry, the problem will be an enduring one into the future, even as women in modernized countries earn key roles in changing the world.

• The other half of the population … Some intellectuals argue that a modern, post-industrial civilization is simply better suited for women. They argue men tend to be more shiftless, inclined to take risks and, overall, living in a society in which excessive testosterone is a liability. “But it doesn’t have to be that way,” says Abzu, who adds his outside-the-box relationship with Moon exemplifies an ability to adapt to a changing world. “Women have always been beautiful, which means they’ve always had power, so it’s not a huge leap to think of women as having significant sway in how the world operates.” Some say that women have taken a page or two from a male-dominated world in order to get ahead; soon, however, it may be that men are the ones who will need to learn from opposite-gender leaders in society, he says.