Mercedes McAllister McAllister 1Mrs. UriarteAP Lit and Comp31 March 2014Connections: Gender Equality and EducationClose your eyes and imagine that you are a woman, living in a country once known for its infinite freedoms, but now known only for its infinite restrictions. It is not permitted to wear makeup, go out in public except to do household shopping, read, write or even speak out of turn. Offred, a woman in the novel “The Handmaid's Tale,” is going through a scenario exactly like this. She was once a citizen of the United States, but the once-free country fell to rubble and from it was born the oppressive Republic of Gilead. Offred's experiences in the novel are only fictional, however, many women around the world actually go through situations similar to hers. Too many countries, like Nigeria, experience serious inequalities in the treatment and rights of men and women. This is a major obstacle for the future of the world. One of the biggest inequality problems is both a consequence and an obstacle to gender inequality. It's a simple lack of education. Many countries are working to close this gap, but those countries that simply ignore it are much further from a world of equality. To begin, let's enter the world of Gilead. Right-wing fundamentalists had killed the president and massacred the entire congress. With the government gone, they began a war that ended with a completely new, church-based government. In this new government, men ruled and “protected” at all costs, destroying anything and anyone who stood in the way of the “perfect society” they had created. Women were made slaves of their homes and were stripped of any previous rights... middle of the paper... and sexual harassment in the workplace was outlawed." These, among many other laws put in place act, have dramatically pushed women towards an equal place among men Despite the drastic changes made towards improving equal rights, there are still many problems that have been overlooked, or simply ignored. “Thirty years after the adoption of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), many girls and women still do not have equal opportunities to realize the rights recognized by law they have the right to own property or inherit land. Social exclusion, “honor” crimes, female genital mutilation, trafficking, limited mobility and early marriage, among others, deny women and girls the right to health. girls and increases illness and death throughout life." (Shah 1)