Scwla teaching materials revised

WHAT’S NEXT FOR WORKING WOMEN
AT THE INTERSECTION OF SEXUALITY AND IMPLICIT BIAS?
Gloria Feldt, Gloria Steinem, Jamia Wilson, Shelby Knox
Moderator: Victoria Pynchon

Shelby Knox
nationally known subject of Sundance award-winning film, The Education of Shelby Knox
teenage activist for comprehensive sex education and gay rights
feminist organizer
Change.org activist
Authoring book about fourth wave of feminist activism

Jamia Wilson
Media activist
Organizer
Networker
Storyteller
Women's Media Center VP of Programs

Gloria Feldt
Author, Speaker
Author, No Excuses, 9 Ways Women Can Change How We Think About Power
teaches "Women, Power, and Leadership”
former CEO Planned Parenthood

Gloria Steinem
Founder, Ms. Magazine
Feminist activist
Author
Speaker

Implicit Bias
Cognitive biases – universal tendencies of thought
Cultural biases – stereotypes associated with the culture in which we live
No one is unbiased
We need to quickly characterize people to make quick decisions on trustworthiness

Assumptions We Make
what people do
Who they are
What they’re are thinking
Their Character
Their Attitudes
Their Beliefs
Their Desires
Their Needs
Their Sensitivities
Their Opinions
Their Ideas about us
And we treat them
accordingly

Blind Orchestra Auditions

Confusion
Resentment
Resistance
Denial
Fear
Scorn
Humor

Romance or assault?

Even a dog knows whether he’s been kicked or stumbled over

Rules don’t give us certainty
They are categories of behavior that are possibly offensive
The appropriate behavior is an exercise in communication
The challenge is to respect other people’s boundaries.
I’m staying on the road but does it matter how fast or slow, I go, how long it takes me to get there, whether I can stop and start again, what I should do if someone is coming my way .

I don’t like it when you call me [honey, baby cakes, girlfriend, chick, whore, bitch]
I’m not comfortable being touched at work; I’d appreciate it if you’d stop
When you shake hands with the men but give me a peck on the cheek I feel less professional; I’d appreciate a handshake instead

Is it really happening to me?
Am I biased?
Am I doing it to someone else?
What can I do?

Pick a characteristic
2. Blow it out of proportion
3. collapse the person into the characteristic
4. Ignore individual differences and variations
5. Disregard subtleties and complexities
6. Overlook commonalities
7. Match it to your own worst fears
8. Make it cruel

Does this have to be placed in historical context?

The Intersection of Bias and Harassment

How Would Women Create a Work Environment Hostile to Men?

$63,000 to lesbian worker for disparaging remarks about her appearance being masculine + withheld tools provided to me
Man awarded $475K for harassment by gay supervisor
1st woman police officer $2 million – men watched Howard Stern & made vulgar remarks, compared her physique to those women on show
The price of the jokes we tell and disrespect we show

Men who endorse BSexism more likely to blame female victim of acquaintance rape if she has violated gender role expectations for feminine ‘‘purity’’ and chastity
Women led to expect BSexism in workplace perform worse
Women who endorse BSexismmore likely to accept a male romantic partner’s sexist restriction despite potentially negative career impact
priming BSexismactivates greater system justification among women, undermining resistance to inequality
Relationship Between Hostile and Benevolent Sexism

Implicit bias research . . can function as a convenient scientific justification for interpreting any behavior as proof of sexism (or racism).
In practice, [implicit bias] training discourages dissent from campus orthodoxies and discussion of uncomfortable ideas.
Sexual harassment training attempts to coerce people into “identifying themselves as either victims or oppressors.”
Op-Ed Column Boston Globe, May 29, 2005
Addressing the Blow Back

Legal Responses to Implicit Bias
whether or not discrimination is the “fault” of any individual discriminator, it has systematically harmful effects on the life chances of members of particular socially salient groups
Too MUCH evidence of gender discrimination
Compare Brown v. Board of Education

Do We Need a Brown v. Board of Education for Women?

Scwla teaching materials revised

by Victoria Pynchon

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