My reading project for the past two years has been diving into the history of women — and it’s been fascinating.

What I’ve learned is that women have been treated like shit for thousands of years, regardless of race or socioeconomic status. If you’re a woman, you’re treated like you ain’t worth two dead flies.

I learned there was no real difference between wives and mistresses — because the men didn’t respect either.

Depending on the era, mistresses either ruled behind the scenes or were publicly shamed — their heads shorn, dressed in a plain shift, and forced to walk barefoot through the streets as a warning to other wayward women.

The wives? Tolerated, but barely respected — often valued more for duty and status than for their humanity, expected to endure betrayal quietly and smile. And have a baby every year.

The most fascinating thing I found in my study is how religion has played a huge role in the hatred of women — often shaping the rules, roles, and restrictions placed on their bodies, voices, and freedom.

And what really gets me is this: after thousands of years, the hatred still hasn’t gone away. It’s changed shape, changed language, put on nicer clothes — but it’s still there in how women are judged, dismissed, controlled, and blamed.

The timeline moves forward, but the attitudes are stubborn as stone.