On Wed, Nov 5, 2008 at 12:40 AM, Monique Y. Mudama <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > Why would skills not have an innate gender bias?* Good question. But > I don't put much faith in these studies and anecdotes, because it's > hard to control for known bias in our culture, let alone be able to > recognize it in all of its possible forms. From inside our cultures, > we may be able to see certain patterns, but others will elude us > because they're as invisible as air.
Sometimes folks that have grown up with such (negative?) patterns will/may not go against the system ...probably due to lack of knowledge or choose to live within it because they lack the resources to bring about lasting change. I suppose recognizing and accepting it is the first step. > It's the subconscious things that will > get you every time, and even if somehow parents managed to be > miraculously completely free of any societal bias, they certainly > can't ensure that everyone the child interacts with is free of these > biases. There are grandparents, aunts and uncles, neighbors, > teachers, random people on the street. Kids are good at picking up > subtle signals; it's how they survive and learn to function in > society. Nicely put. These cultural layers (for lack of a better term) can be so difficult to overcome that sometimes people may give in to the sheer magnitude and social pressure (or other reasons I am unaware of) as they learn that it does not pay to upset the applecart. -- Vid || http://www.svaksha.com || -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED]
