Culture plays a large part in our being sexist; but sexism is also deeply entrenched in every last one of us. The reason? Millions of years of evolution. And what drives evolution? Sex. The drive to have sex is what fuels natural seletion. Every single solitary sexist thing in us comes from this fact.
Q) Why is it cool for men to sleep around, but women are "whores" if they do the same?
A) Evolution.
While males in our species have a past of trying to impregnate as many females as possible so that his genes will live on for as long as possible, it's almost the opposite for the females in our ancestry. Females have a history of being much more selective, choosing the best possible males available to them.
Q) Why aren't there more male daycare workers?
A) Evolution.
While the males were out hunting, competing with each other, fighting in wars, building cities, etc., females had to watch the offspring out of necessity. The evolved female biology also played a major role in females being the primary care-takers of offspring; breasts were the only source of nutrition for offspring, and the mothers had to be with their young at all time to feed them, if they got hungry. So logically, the job of raising young became theirs.
Q) Why wouldn't most people ever hire a male nanny or babysitter?
A) Evolution.
The male drive for sex is so high, it has lead many males do unpeakable things with chilren. Couple that with the testosterone males have evolved (which makes them more agressive), and the potential for physical harm is even higher. No matter how much feminists chant they should be allowed to do anything men can't, everyone, no matter how feminist, is unappologetically sexist in this area.
Male babysitters: don't dare apply.
Q) Why does almost everyone prefer a female masseuse?
A) Evolution.
Being the main care-takers of children, females have evolved a natural ability to be better at healing, and better at taking care of the sick. The generally lower sex drive (compared to the average male) also makes females less creepy when they touch you. Both men and women generally agree, they would NOT want a male masseuse.
Every single sexist thing about us stems from a long, deep-routed evolutionary history. Why is not such a big deal if a woman slaps a man as it would be the other way around? Evolution. Why do women a slap on the wrist for sex with a minor, compared to men? Evolution. Why are women expected to look beautiful at all times (often going to extremely uncomfortable or dangerous lenghts do so), while men can be much sloppier? Evolution. Why is okay for women to shriek at spiders and mice, and okay for them to cry and sob in public, but men must be hardcore at all times? Evolution.
Men are bigger, stronger, scarier creatures with sometimes dangerously high sex-drives. Males have a history where they were forced to fight to become the alpha male in order to ensure their genes would pass on. Women are smaller, weaker, cry more, and are more beautiful. As such, there are double-standards for each, some having pros and cons.
Conclusion? Sexism in of its self isn't bad; in fact, in can be beneficial. Too much "open-mindedness" or "equality" can lead to disaster in some cases (like male babysitters). The line comes when there's absolutely no justification for the sexism (like paying women lower wages for the same job, or not letting them hold public office).
I'm sexist. If I ever have kids, she won't get to stay out as late as my son. Sorry. But honestly, it's so much safer, and so much better that way.
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