Want to Support Education? Eliminate Gender Discrimination

This month, I have been celebrating and reflecting on Women's History Month more than ever. I've found myself consuming content celebrating women and reflecting on the challenges facing women on a daily basis. I've even found myself being bolder than ever in naming patriarchal practices and systems and challenging them. What makes this year different? I'm also reflecting hard on the field of education. With a female-dominated workforce, it should be no surprise that the challenges facing education are often the same challenges facing women. Just to name a few:

• The labor of teachers/women is highly undervalued and many are assumed to be incompetent until they are able to demonstrate otherwise
• We fail to recognize the emotional labor women/teachers do and acknowledge it as equally strenuous as other kinds of labor. This also means we don't adequately compensate them for this work.
• Teachers/women are not expected to draw healthy boundaries for themselves and those boundaries that attempt to be drawn are often ignored. Sacrifice for the common good is encouraged either implicitly or explicitly.

It is absolutely mind-blowing that despite having a massive saturation of female employees, the percentage of women in leadership positions pales in comparison to demographic of the workforce. Those who do enter into leadership roles often are expected to emulate more masculine qualities to navigate the terrain and be 'successful'. Being in education does not exclude them from facing all of the same challenges in other industries. When I talk to folks about gender discrimination and I tell them I work in education, they often assume I don't face as many challenges when it comes to problematic patriarchal behavior and practices. Nothing could be farther from the truth. I have actually found that because education has so many women in the industry, the challenges of gender discrimination hurt more because a larger percentage of the workforce is being crushed by this weight. This is why I believe that until we reckon with gender discrimination in the workplace (and world), we don't stand a chance at making progress toward a better education system. This includes fighting for equal dignity, rights, and protections for people of all gender identities. Because of this, I have dedicated a good portion of my self-development and learning to inform myself about the challenges of the patriarchy, root causes, and ways we can build a better and more inclusive world. In honor of Women's History Month, below are some of the resources I've found helpful in learning more about women's issues, which are a portion of the broader fight for gender equality. 

We should all be feminists
One of my favorite TED talks is from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie called We should all be feminists. Her perspective and delivery of the importance of feminism is masterful. She swiftly pushes against the misconception that feminism is about hating men while illustrating the microaggressions experienced by women on a daily basis that are harmful to everyone. Her book with the same title is a quick read worth digging into.

Buffering the Vampire Slayer Podcast
​This is my favorite podcast of all time. ALL TIME! While the show Buffy the Vampire Slayer is no stranger to pushing against patriarchal narratives, Kristin Russo and Jenny Owen Youngs take it to whole new level with critical analysis and witty banter. In this Buffy re-watch podcast, they do a masterful job showing how to love a show while also holding it accountable for problematic components and writers. They keep this patriarchy jingle handy for the sexist moments in the show and dig deep into a wide variety of societal issues, including a deep focus on queer communities. If you want to fight the patriarchy and have fun at the same time, this is the place for you.

Books I've Read

• Invisible Women by Caroline Criado Perez - This book highlights an infuriating number of ways that this world has literally left women out of its design. When data is used to create products and systems, leaving women out of this data has a detrimental effect on half of the world's population. This book artfully combines data and narrative to expose how society has let women down by leaving them out. I listened to this as an audio book and was captivated by every minute of it. If you or someone you know is compelled by data, this is a must-read/listen. Even if data doesn't compel you, it's worth the listen.
• Cassandra Speaks by ​Elizabeth Lesser -  This book centers women as storytellers and provides historical context for the oppression of women, taking us back to the age-old tale of Cassandra. It challenges problematic narratives and provides suggestions for the ways we can change our language be more inclusive. 
• Untamed by Glennon Doyle - I read this book twice each year. It is the reminder I need to shape and live my life for myself - disappointing others before disappointing myself. I feel bombarded with messages that tell me to be small and sacrifice for others and it is easy to lose my way. As the mother of a young child, this book provides me the courage to create a life that is continually more beautiful and true each day.
• The Body is Not and Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor - While body shame is not isolated to women, this book helps empower folks to view their bodies more kindly and embrace what she calls 'Radical Self Love'. This book is a great push on the boxes women are often asked to neatly fit into and encourages a different perspective on your physical existence in the world.

My Family
This post would not be complete without mention of my family. I grew up with 4 younger sisters and parents who always told us there was absolutely nothing we couldn't do. They believed every dream we had for our future was a good and valid one simply because it was ours. My mother modeled strength and care as she managed our household. It was challenging to juggle all of the moving pieces, but she did it with immense love and honesty. My dad was far ahead of his time - truly valuing women as completely equal in value to men. At the time, this wasn't remarkable to me. It was a foundational cornerstone to my upbringing to appreciate the unique contributions each person brings to the world and not see anyone as better or worse than anyone else. I didn't understand why the other moms flocked to my dad on the sidelines during soccer games, but I get it now. The simple act of treating them with equal dignity and seeing them as equal partners in this world was a revolution all on its own and contrary to so much of what still happens in society. It's this partnership that made my parents a great team - each seeing and valuing each other's strengths and what it brought to our family. While I have done a lot of research on feminism since, it is this upbringing that keeps me grounded and holds me steady. This foundation helps me see how dismantling gender discrimination will be necessary to move forward on the issues facing the field of education and we must all do out part.

I would like to close this post with a quote from Emma Watson. My dad casually referenced this quote one afternoon while discussing problematic patriarchal behaviors and how eliminating gender stereotypes frees everyone. When I laughed at how easily he pulled this reference, he didn't understand how rare it was for a man to care so deeply about gender equality, much less be able to quote a woman for rationale on why it is important. I can only hope that we see more people like this in the next generations to come.
"We don't often talk about men being imprisoned by gender stereotypes... but I can see that that they are and that when they are free, things will change for women as a natural consequence. ~Emma Watson