The orphans always seem to be girls…
I’ve only been in China for a few months, but I keep hearing about orphans. We go to a church full of people who want to make a difference here, but still, it’s uncanny. Matt and I have attended a charity auction for a large girls home in Tibet, we were invited to participate in hosting weekend activities for local orphans, and we know of a program training Chinese teachers within Shenzhen’s Social Welfare Centers (the equivalent of American orphanages). I didn’t initially understand why the Social Welfare Centers ran their own schools, given the surfeit of public schools. Nearly all have special needs, it turns out, from learning disabilities to emotional disorders, barring them from public school attendance. Thus, they literally live and learn within government-run orphanages.
But why are they usually girls?
Before arriving in Shenzhen, I was vaguely aware of a significant gender imbalance in the Chinese equivalent of my generation (with men greatly outnumbering women). I’m sure the issues are rather complex, but my understanding is that the one-child policy and prenatal gender tests have only intensified the existing preference for baby boys, especially in poor areas, where sons are usually a financial asset, daughters a liability.
I got curious about the actual imbalance and turned, as usual, to Wikipedia for visual aids. The first chart below shows the worldwide gender ratio, accounting for all ages. As women tend to live longer, many of the countries are pink. Blue dominates the Middle East, Northern Africa, China, and India, with pockets in other areas
Human sex ratio, all ages. Pink=more women; Green=same number; Blue=more men
This next chart, which focuses on the sex ratio of the population below age 15, really throws the Chinese problem into sharper relief.
Blue=more women, red=more men than world average of 1.06 males/female
You won’t be surprised to learn, then, that China’s gender imbalance leads the world. According to Wikipedia:
“Sex-selective abortion and infanticide are thought to significantly skew the naturally occurring ratio in some populations, such as China, where the introduction of ultrasound scans in the late 1980s has led to a birth sex ratio (males to females) of 1.133 (2011 CIA estimate data).”
I should add that China has banned sex determination prior to birth, but as doctors can easily tell from routine ultrasounds, the legal measure will never be foolproof.
This 2007 opinion piece from the New York Times squarely addresses the issue:
“Demographers in China found a ratio of 117 boys per 100 girls under the age of 5 in the 2000 census…this gender gap could result in as many as 60 million “missing” girls from the population by the end of the decade. And what happened to these girls? According to the International Planned Parenthood Federation (a term that takes on a whole new meaning when referring to China), there are about 7 million abortions in China per year, 70 percent of which are estimated to be of females. That adds up to around 5 million per year, or 50 million by the end of the decade; so where are the other 10 million girls? If even 10 percent end up in orphanages — well, you do the math.”
A grim picture, to be sure.
I am starting to grasp, however, that 1.13 boys per girl is only the beginning of this weighty and disheartening problem. The preference for boys ripples beyond the eradication of girls in utero or after birth. In the current social stew, girls are also more likely to be abandoned, or to receive fewer family resources (food, education, opportunities) over their lifetime.
When push comes to shove, it’s usually girls who lose out, which explains why in every brochure I see over here, orphans always have smiling, pig-tail-framed faces.
Oddly enough, I might learn more about the problem first-hand tomorrow. Last Friday, Matt and I visited a Bible study hosted by the director of the Tibetan girls home. I was chatting afterwards with a woman in the group, and when I casually mentioned that I was a social worker, she straightened up and said “Really? You’re kidding.”
She then explained that she was none other than the director of the special education initiative in the local Social Welfare Centers. (We had apparently wandered into a group of heavy hitters…) That very afternoon, she had spent over an hour researching American social work because she was presenting at the National Symposium of Social Welfare Directors the following week. Her organization has developed a good relationship with this group, comprised mainly of high-level government officials, all of whom hail from the Community Party. In fact, her group recently succeeded in becoming a foreign NGO in China, a rare distinction to say the least. The symposium had called upon her staff to present their educational model, but also to explain what social workers do in America. Like most Americans, she wasn’t really sure.
You know where this going. In about ten minutes, I was invited to the symposium, and a preparatory meeting on Monday. So I’ve been ironing work clothes…haven’t used those in a while.
This would only happen in China.
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Beautiful Middle Country 
Pondering the Orphan Problem
Posted in Social Commentary, tagged abortion, Chinese orphans, infanticide, PR China, Shenzhen, special education on November 7, 2011| 6 Comments »
I’ve only been in China for a few months, but I keep hearing about orphans. We go to a church full of people who want to make a difference here, but still, it’s uncanny. Matt and I have attended a charity auction for a large girls home in Tibet, we were invited to participate in hosting weekend activities for local orphans, and we know of a program training Chinese teachers within Shenzhen’s Social Welfare Centers (the equivalent of American orphanages). I didn’t initially understand why the Social Welfare Centers ran their own schools, given the surfeit of public schools. Nearly all have special needs, it turns out, from learning disabilities to emotional disorders, barring them from public school attendance. Thus, they literally live and learn within government-run orphanages.
But why are they usually girls?
Before arriving in Shenzhen, I was vaguely aware of a significant gender imbalance in the Chinese equivalent of my generation (with men greatly outnumbering women). I’m sure the issues are rather complex, but my understanding is that the one-child policy and prenatal gender tests have only intensified the existing preference for baby boys, especially in poor areas, where sons are usually a financial asset, daughters a liability.
I got curious about the actual imbalance and turned, as usual, to Wikipedia for visual aids. The first chart below shows the worldwide gender ratio, accounting for all ages. As women tend to live longer, many of the countries are pink. Blue dominates the Middle East, Northern Africa, China, and India, with pockets in other areas
Human sex ratio, all ages. Pink=more women; Green=same number; Blue=more men
This next chart, which focuses on the sex ratio of the population below age 15, really throws the Chinese problem into sharper relief.
Blue=more women, red=more men than world average of 1.06 males/female
You won’t be surprised to learn, then, that China’s gender imbalance leads the world. According to Wikipedia:
“Sex-selective abortion and infanticide are thought to significantly skew the naturally occurring ratio in some populations, such as China, where the introduction of ultrasound scans in the late 1980s has led to a birth sex ratio (males to females) of 1.133 (2011 CIA estimate data).”
I should add that China has banned sex determination prior to birth, but as doctors can easily tell from routine ultrasounds, the legal measure will never be foolproof.
This 2007 opinion piece from the New York Times squarely addresses the issue:
“Demographers in China found a ratio of 117 boys per 100 girls under the age of 5 in the 2000 census…this gender gap could result in as many as 60 million “missing” girls from the population by the end of the decade. And what happened to these girls? According to the International Planned Parenthood Federation (a term that takes on a whole new meaning when referring to China), there are about 7 million abortions in China per year, 70 percent of which are estimated to be of females. That adds up to around 5 million per year, or 50 million by the end of the decade; so where are the other 10 million girls? If even 10 percent end up in orphanages — well, you do the math.”
A grim picture, to be sure.
I am starting to grasp, however, that 1.13 boys per girl is only the beginning of this weighty and disheartening problem. The preference for boys ripples beyond the eradication of girls in utero or after birth. In the current social stew, girls are also more likely to be abandoned, or to receive fewer family resources (food, education, opportunities) over their lifetime.
When push comes to shove, it’s usually girls who lose out, which explains why in every brochure I see over here, orphans always have smiling, pig-tail-framed faces.
Oddly enough, I might learn more about the problem first-hand tomorrow. Last Friday, Matt and I visited a Bible study hosted by the director of the Tibetan girls home. I was chatting afterwards with a woman in the group, and when I casually mentioned that I was a social worker, she straightened up and said “Really? You’re kidding.”
She then explained that she was none other than the director of the special education initiative in the local Social Welfare Centers. (We had apparently wandered into a group of heavy hitters…) That very afternoon, she had spent over an hour researching American social work because she was presenting at the National Symposium of Social Welfare Directors the following week. Her organization has developed a good relationship with this group, comprised mainly of high-level government officials, all of whom hail from the Community Party. In fact, her group recently succeeded in becoming a foreign NGO in China, a rare distinction to say the least. The symposium had called upon her staff to present their educational model, but also to explain what social workers do in America. Like most Americans, she wasn’t really sure.
You know where this going. In about ten minutes, I was invited to the symposium, and a preparatory meeting on Monday. So I’ve been ironing work clothes…haven’t used those in a while.
This would only happen in China.
Read Full Post »