(July 12, 2015 at 1:22 pm)Catholic_Lady Wrote:(July 12, 2015 at 1:10 pm)Pyrrho Wrote: That sort of thing is unfortunately common. It is unfortunate that there is no simple, easy fix to stop people from being prejudiced. Stupid bigots are stupid, so it is hard to get them to see reason.
To avoid it online for oneself, one can select a gender neutral name (or one associated with males) and never post a picture of oneself and never say that one is female. For men who want to observe the difference, they can join a forum with a feminine name and never say they are male, and see how they are treated over time.
Long ago, my wife communicated on computer message boards, and used a gender neutral name. She noticed very different treatment than what happened in real life, as she was treated just like an adult man on the message boards. She was an underage girl at the time. But she could hold her own in conversations with adult men, and they had no idea who they were communicating with.
Thanks for the advice and the sympathies. It is sad that a woman would need to do that.
It is important to me, though, to be upfront and honest about who I am (at least to a certain extent, obviously I'm not gonna give my name lol). Whatever consequences in treatment people give me as a result... well, so be it.
Thank you for treating me with respect. :
...
I am not exactly suggesting that you do use a gender neutral name. I am merely presenting it as an option for you to consider. If you tire of dealing with sexist jerks, it is an option available to you for online communication. Unfortunately, most sites (including this one) forbid multiple accounts, so you would have to start out that way on a site if you are going to follow the rules.
Also, you do not have to lie to do this. You just don't reveal that information to people. You may regard it as personal information that is no one's business, just like your real name, social security number, etc. Not telling us your social security number does not require any lies, and not telling us your sex does not require any lies. That was the way my wife did it, as people just assumed she was a man.
And if I am ever disrespectful to you, it will not be because you are a woman.
(Besides, I do not know that you are a woman. You might be a guy just messing with us. )
"A wise man ... proportions his belief to the evidence."
— David Hume, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, Section X, Part I.