Friday, October 26, 2018

R*E*S*P*E*C*T


Two issues arose during a recent swapping of the “bathroom fliers”—one of the fliers to be replaced had already been pulled from one of the single stall spaces.  This was disappointing, but not unexpected, as this is a recurring thing in that particular very private space, with the fliers or URL label removed (fortunately, we’ve only had to replace the holder once).  But also, one of the fliers in one of the most public restrooms had been altered:


ironically demonstrating the point of the cartoon, that the “feminist agenda” (nyuk, nyuk) IS not to "hate on men" (the word for that is "misandry") but that everyone (regardless of gender or gender identity) should indeed be treated respectfully.   But that this is such a novel concept for some that without scheduling, it doesn't get done.   Admittedly, the first few feminist waves ignored (or outright squashed) the intersections with other identities, but the current one aims to do better, for the betterment of all.  Which brings me to another interpretation of this graphic:  to mindfully consider group composition, to ensure there are women and other historically underrepresented groups at the table.  Make no mistake, while women are >50% of the population and in some undergraduate student bodies, they remain underrepresented in a number of fields and levels of academia.