Thursday Thought

ok, here I go again with thinking. It always gets me in trouble.

the thought of the day is political correctness and sexual harassment.

Let me first say that I believe that women are equal to men and should be given every opportunity that men are given. I believe that women can do just about anything that men can do. I believe that women have come a long way with regards to lessening the discrepancy between opportunities, pay and respect given them in comparison to men. Furthermore, I have been the victim of sexual harassment - not innuendo or even overt come-ons but rather unwelcome and somewhat persistent physical contact from a person who was supposed to be evaluating my product. (haha) Not my supervisor, but definitely someone I wanted to impress. I probably should have lodged a formal complaint, but instead I just asked a male team member to not leave me alone with the other guy, and to sit between us. So, yeah it's still out there.

Nevertheless, I think that to some extent, sensitivity training and a constant awareness of the issue, causes a different and more subtle culture of separation to manifest. Now, men have to constantly be on guard about what they say, lest it be perceived as sexual harassment or at the very least, in poor taste. I guess it totally depends on the situation, but for me, working with mostly men, I sometimes feel like I am excluded or relegated to the fringes of social interaction because it is just easier that way. Nothing to worry about for them if I am just not present in the first place. I guess sometimes I want to be 'just one of the guys' but realistically, that is never going to happen.

No conclusion, just something to ponder.