From the economy to frogs—that’s how we roll here at the Babblery. It’s all connected through women’s experiences and how those experiences shape our lives. The upcoming episode is an interview with three herpetologists who were involved in creating the book, Women in Herpetology, 50 Stories from Around the World.
And that begs the question: Why do we need a book like this? As I said to last month’s guest, Rickey Gard Diamond, the devil’s advocate would say the battle has been won. Women are now graduating from college at a greater rate than men, women are able to choose any profession, and it’s technically illegal to discriminate against women. So what’s the need? Aren’t we all equal now?
Well, no. Listen to last month’s episode for thoughts on how women are left out of our economy. Furthermore, we’re not equal under the law until we’ve done away with all laws the govern women’s choices in ways different from men’s, and well, enough said there. But most importantly, equal doesn’t mean the same. And equality under law doesn’t guarantee sameness of experience.
The three herpetologists talked about what a revelation it was for them to meet all together on their first Zoom meeting—50 women in a profession where some of them had never come across another woman. One of the participants described being able to find the other in an 800-person lecture hall because that hall was filled with mostly white men. Another participant described being told by a colleague, looking at her pregnant body, that she shouldn’t have started a family before getting tenure. As she pointed out, the colleague didn’t say that to her husband, who was standing right next to her.
The reality of women’s lives is that we are different from men and we’re treated differently from men. That’s not all bad: that difference brought together 50 women from around the world who would never have come together otherwise. As one of them told me, she now has a place to stay wherever her research might take her. And the parts of being treated differently that are bad, such as being passed up for tenure because you have young children, are part of why women seek each other out and support each other.
In the past few years, our culture’s concept of gender has been blown wide open, and that’s a good thing. People should always be able to be who they are without fear, and that includes those whose gender aligns with their identified sex.
We live in a world where a woman can expect to be belittled, harassed, and discriminated against because of her gender. Should we think it’s OK that women put off having kids because they fear not getting a promotion? That women avoid a career they would do well in because there’s no other woman to welcome them into it? That in 2023 a woman could walk into a conference room of 800 people and easily see the other woman?
Speaking to three women who made a very unusual career choice was so inspiring. Because although they share some negative experiences, they created a community by focusing on the positive. And because people kept noticing that one woman in a headscarf and asking for her story, now 50 women get to share their stories. Stay tuned for tadpoles, laboratories, and the science of finding each other with herpetologists Umilaela Arifin, Sheila Sinlan Poo, and Jessica Hua.
I hope you enjoy our upcoming episode!