The online newspaper/blogging site Patch has a pretty strong presence in my hometown. Everyone reads the Newport Patch–or at least, all my teachers and adult community members do. A lot of Newport residents even have their own Patch blogs. On Sunday, May 19, a Newport blogger under the name of Charity Dash posted about sexism in our town of Newport. Since then, the blog has become a pretty big deal here.
In the blog, Dash explains her experiences living in Newport as a young woman. She talks about street harassment, being assaulted in bars and nothing ever really being done about it. She writes about how sailors and other men act as though women are merely objects. The blog is not well written–she makes drastic and broad statements that aren’t exactly true. She writes about how “Particularly in Newport, not only are women much more concerned with education than men, but also the only ones who go to work. ” While yes, it is true that many university students are young women, that is not to say that women are more concerned with their education than men. Nor is it to say that women are the only ones who go to work.
Sexism, in fact, effects men. Men are socialized to fit in a box–being strong and aggressive; being unemotional are just a few of the things men are pressured to be. What Dash does not mention in her post is that the Women’s Resource Center has recently developed a men’s work program alongside community leaders.
The Newport Buzz picked up Dash’s blog and posted a response. The response, written by Tristan Pinnock, starts out alright. He breaks down the flaws in Dash’s blog, starting with her generally poor writing. The post is actually almost funny until Pinnock starts to break down what Dash writes about sexism in Newport. As Lewis’ Law states, “the comments on any article about feminism justify feminism.” Pinnock seems to think sexism doesn’t exist and isn’t a big deal. In the same vein of Pinnock’s “rebuttle”, I’d like to go through his article bit by bit.
“As a twenty-three year old woman, I can’t walk to work without expecting street harassment. I can’t go to a bar without the fear of a fifty year old man sitting next to me and chanting demeaning and derogatory terms.”
You know who else has that fear? Every other bar patron in America.
It’s not every bar patron that experiences that fear–it’s mostly women. According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, “25 percent of American women have experienced sexual assault, including rape. Approximately one-half of those cases involve alcohol consumption by the perpetrator, victim, or both.”
“I can’t call the police when the aforementioned gentleman throws glass cups at my sandaled feet and expect any sort of protection or resolution.”
Why not? That’s assault. If he didn’t immediately get tossed out by a bouncer, then you’re hanging out at the wrong bar.
Sexual assault is one of the most underreported crimes in the nation. The New York Times ran an article written by John Eligeon in 2010 on victim’s poor treatment by the NYPD. One woman, who had been drugged, was told by police that she was drunk. Another was laughed at by officers. Women who find the strength to report their attacks despite the overwhelming odds against them still find themselves under the oppressive nature of rape culture. Hmm, I wonder why women feel as though they can not call the police when they’re attacked.
“In Newport, it’s okay for the drunk sailor-bros to treat women like blow up dolls.”
I hate to be the one to let you in on this, but gender relations come down to whatever each party is willing to put up with. Men will behave as badly as they can get away with. We’d be living in cardboard boxes if we thought we could bring girls home to them.
I hate to be the one to let you in on this, but gender relations come down to how society trains men to view women as objects. Take, for example, this ultra-creepy ad for PlayStation Vita:
The gaming system has touch interface on both sides — so obviously the best way to advertise for it is a photo of a women with breasts on both sides of her body. Also notice that she has no face. She is literally synonymous with a gaming console.
“We make eighty cents on your dollar. What do we know?”
That you would rather have children than advance your careers through your 30′s, you’re not really into engineering and you don’t like to negotiate for bigger pay raises.
Too bad being a full-time mother doesn’t “earn” the same pay rate of being a full-time jackass. (Or, I don’t know, if you’re still confused, ask the CEO of Yahoo!, or the newest president of NBC News, or the SEO of Facebook–all women.)
“Over the past fifty years women became the primary gender to obtain degrees in higher education. Particularly in Newport, not only are women much more concerned with education than men, but also the only ones who go to work.
This sad phenomenon does not make the city inherently unsafe for women; it does, however, create and perpetuate a culture of male entitlement. That entitlement should end when it comes to a woman’s body. But it doesn’t.”
So women being better-educated and gainfully-employed sexually empowers…unemployed men?
That is some really nice deflection–it’s pretty telling that you have nothing to say about how men do, in fact, feel entitled to women’s bodies.
“Just saying “no” doesn’t work when you’re not heard. My $120,000 education doesn’t humanize me in this town. So long as I’m out alone or with other female friends I’m viewed as property. Take me. I’m for sale. No worth.”
A Bachelor’s degree doesn’t humanize you anywhere. In the current economy, it just means that you’re at the top of the list when you apply for any given job that might require a high school diploma. Your degree barely puts you at par. If you’ve got a lot of student loans, then there’s actually a good chance you’re going to be behind the people who just went straight into the workforce. You want to be humanized? Don’t hang out at meat markets full of drunken people looking to get some. Be interesting and fun and you should have no problem finding a decent social circle or two.
We tell young people that their worth lies in their ability to succeed in schools and receive a college degree. After we’ve gotten those degrees, though, not a whole lot changes. And despite poor writing, Dash does touch on this point. It is also interesting to point out that Pinnock doesn’t comment on how women cannot say “no”. Seeing as in a survey of boys 11-14 years old, over half believed that if a man spent money on a girl or had they been dating, rape was acceptable while in a survey of girls 11-14 nearly half believed that if a man spent money on a girl or they had been dating, rape was acceptable. I could go on and on about how real rape culture is but I’ll let the statistics do that talking.
“While I know that’s not what the public education system teaches, (what exactly does it teach?) that’s the outcome.”
But education is another female-dominated profession. Surely you’re not suggesting that your sisters in the teaching trade are encouraging male privilege, are you?
Male privilege exists because men are the dominant group in society. Male privilege, as defined by Finally, A Feminism 101 Blog, is:
“The long term effects translate into an impossible-to-break cycle of: drunkenness, revictimization and a consistent affirmation of worthlessness.
Fundamentally, this environment breeds a culture that’s abusive but familiar. It’s dangerous to be a woman in this town because it’s easy to drown.
And there’s no one to help you.”
Oh, so you’re depressed. Well, dwelling on everything you learned in your Wome(y?)n’s Studies classes isn’t going to cheer you up. You’re right that you shouldn’t have to go somewhere else. It’s almost summertime in Newport. Anywhere else is just going to be worse.
You’re right, Tristan Pinnock. What we learn in our Women’s and Gender Studies classes aren’t cheerful things. But women (and any gender minority) don’t have to learn that in a college class. We learn it on the street. From men like you. And it sure is depressing when you’re considered a “gender correspondent” for a legitimate publication.