well i thought i would like to get into this discussion on how younger
women respond to gender equity. to locate myself in this "generation"
thing i am 33, and therefore older. when i first started my phd program
in geography, i have to admit i was frustrated by the younger women's
optimism about careers and seeming ignorance to sexual harassment. but
then i looked back when i was 23, and i had that same optimism as a
liberated young woman of the eighties. i sincerely believed that if i
worked hard enough and was good enough the sky was the limit career
wise. after 8 years in the work force as a woman officer in the
military, my opinions really changed ---- it seemed in most situations
that certain male coworkers were threatened by the presence of a woman in
their work place and i experienced many forms of exclusions from the good
ol boys club, to include a few incidences of sexual harassment. i also
experienced some preferential treatment by older men who saw me as their
daughter -- and they wanted to protect me from the grind of being a woman
in a masculine environment, and some sincerely felt that women needed
special treatment to break that glass ceiling. as a woman officer i was
somehwat successful, but i got sick of the comments that i earned a
promotion or medal because i was a "quota" or i had nice legs.
when i transitioned to academic life two years ago -- i really thought
that finally here is a place where i can work hard and advance, and
openly discuss feminism. yet again i was overly optimistic -- geography
is primarily a male dominated field in our dept there are only two women
professors out of a staff of around thirty, and that is the norm.
presently there are many female grad students, but for some reason the
transition from grad student to tenured professor is a rarity for women
in geography. i also encountered many young women profs who sincerely
believed that sexism doesn't exist in academia -- just work hard enough
and you will make -- and these women well, i don't want to offend anyone,
but they acted like men. i mean it was not cool for them to express any
traits culturally associated with femininity (no emotions, no sexuality,
work only etc., no need for a women's support group). as far as the
young students i have encountered many women who are as optimistic as i
was in my twenties, and also some incredibly knowledgeable women about
feminism --- and i cannot believe how together and mature they are for
there age -- and i have learned so much from them too.
to end this -- i think from my experience that college life is still
somewhat "sheltered" concerning gender equity issues. i in no way was
prepared to deal with the gender inequalities of my military career from
my college education -- and i wish i was. i felt so alone at times
dealing with it in the military. but i also want to say that in academia
gender inequality is pervasive -- it is just more covert and subtle than
in many working arenas outside academia.
finally, i am abhorred to about the lack of equal health care available
in this country. it is really bad in the military (few ob/gyns and you
have to fight to get a yearly pap smear and pelvic exam).
so that is enough for my soap box
interested to hear some responses -- it is refreshing to honestly discuss
this.
