I'm finding that my relationships with other individuals, now that I am out, are starting to re-align themselves along more traditional male-female lines. The novelty of my situation is wearing off, and I am starting to be accepted as a woman and less like the person I used to be.
On the up side I have made some new friends who I've met in the ladies room where we strike up conversations and are now wanting to get together for lunch and things. Before, of course, we would only interact if there were some reason for one or the other of us to talk, usually about something technical. Naturally, I am very pleased at being accepted so readily.
I'm also starting to see a difference in the way I am treated by the more coarse males. These are guys who have enough political correctness not to insult me or say anything unpleasant to my face. But these individuals have a demeanor in meetings to want to dominate the conversation in the first place and are less accepting of ideas from others. Now maybe I'm just being overly sensitive, and I have to admit that I am. But it seems like before I came out, I could at least get a hearing of my ideas in a meeting without too much static. Now, I feel like I am being shouted down before I get a chance to explain my position. I haven't had an opportunity to see if that type of attitude happens to other women. As so far I've been the only female in these meetings. But, I see life a little differently now and would be more sensitive to another woman being treated poorly in a meeting.
Now I've only been in a couple of meetings like that since I came out and maybe I'm being sensitive and they got up on the wrong side of the bed. But if that isn't the case, I'm getting a small taste of what women went through to gain equality. And that gender discrimination still exists and needs to be combated.
I guess I'm turning into a feminist...
I knew I would be an advocate, but this is new.
-Sandy (I'm *not* burning my bra!)
On the up side I have made some new friends who I've met in the ladies room where we strike up conversations and are now wanting to get together for lunch and things. Before, of course, we would only interact if there were some reason for one or the other of us to talk, usually about something technical. Naturally, I am very pleased at being accepted so readily.
I'm also starting to see a difference in the way I am treated by the more coarse males. These are guys who have enough political correctness not to insult me or say anything unpleasant to my face. But these individuals have a demeanor in meetings to want to dominate the conversation in the first place and are less accepting of ideas from others. Now maybe I'm just being overly sensitive, and I have to admit that I am. But it seems like before I came out, I could at least get a hearing of my ideas in a meeting without too much static. Now, I feel like I am being shouted down before I get a chance to explain my position. I haven't had an opportunity to see if that type of attitude happens to other women. As so far I've been the only female in these meetings. But, I see life a little differently now and would be more sensitive to another woman being treated poorly in a meeting.
Now I've only been in a couple of meetings like that since I came out and maybe I'm being sensitive and they got up on the wrong side of the bed. But if that isn't the case, I'm getting a small taste of what women went through to gain equality. And that gender discrimination still exists and needs to be combated.
I guess I'm turning into a feminist...
I knew I would be an advocate, but this is new.
-Sandy (I'm *not* burning my bra!)
No comments:
Post a Comment