Helen Searls

In September 1995, the UN Fourth World Conference on Women convened in Beijing, China, to discuss violence against women, abortion, and related issues. In the following viewpoint, written prior to that conference, Helen Searls asserts that the agenda is misguided and reflects the biases of Western feminists and politicians. According to Searls, women in the Third World are more concerned about poverty than they are about sexual freedom or domestic abuse. Searls writes for Living Marxism, a British political magazine.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. Why do women in the Third World bear large numbers of children, in Searls’s view?
2. According to the author, what is the misleading message presented by the United Nations?
3. What does Searls say could solve women&rsquo...