Gender Roles Experiment

[Guest Kenna Dixon]

http://www.campusreform.org/?ID=5735

[Charlize]

Thanks for sharing this. I wish i'd had that chance in college. What i find disturbing is the reactions and comments at the close of the page. Breaking gender stereotypes which are simply expressions of fashion is a positive experience that can teach a great deal about the reality and power of stereotypes. Perhaps the comments even reinforce the (ignorance) foolishness of fashion.

Hugs,

Charlize

[Ravin]

I remember how adamant my father would get that I shave when I was a teenager. I always hated to do it. He seemed to think it was a matter of hygiene--which is ridiculous. When I went off to college at 16, my roommate was a girl who, being an army brat who'd lived in Germany for several years, had never actually started shaving. I was so jealous!

Long before thoughts of gender identity or transition came to the surface for me, when I was pregnant with my now-10yo. daughter, I quit shaving my legs because I'd started getting a very itchy rash every time I did. It got to the point where it was a hygiene issue, as well as a comfort issue and hair would look better than a rash on anyone.

I also seldom actually showed my legs back then when out in public, since I favored ankle-length skirts, so it was pretty much a non-issue.

I didn't give up on shaving my pits until much later, though. One of the best things about being where I'm at in transition is not having to shave. Now that I've started T, it's only a matter of time before I'll have to start dealing with facial hair, of course, but for now I enjoy being low-maintenance.

My daughter has brought up shaving her legs. I am not going to forbid her from doing so, but I'll not be rushing her, either.

[Guest ashleynikole]

Yeah, I would've jumped at the chance at this assignment as well. Heck, I don't even get extra credit now and I'm doing it...lol.

But what troubles me, and is my commentary, is the degradation of society as a whole, only I don't think those commenters see what I see. They think because one teacher gives one extra credit assignment, that tuition money is being wasted? o_O Really? But the callous joking and some with outright hatred, spewing from their mouths isn't causing a degradation of society? Riiiiiight.

I have lived on both sides of many aisles. The D aisle, the R aisle, the conservative aisle, the liberal aisle, the ignorant aisle, the educated aisle, the non-believer aisle and the believer aisle, the male aisle and now working toward my experience on the female aisle. The one thing that is common to all of them is the people that think the other side of the aisle is causing the world to go to hades in a handbasket. It saddens me, not that people will disagree...that's a given, but that people will resort to name calling and denigration of the other side just because. Just sad.

Ashley

[Guest KimberlyF]

That's a new one. Extra credit for part time transing gender. And what do they learn from this exactly?

[tracy_j]

Confusing!

Its a bit like raising money for charity by having people sponsor you to have your hair shaved off!

As a man a reason not to shave is that it takes time and causes all manner of issues with rashes etc.

As a woman - the feminists did that years ago (at least sterotypically anyway).

I would do it whether male or female as I like soft smooth skin (perhaps I am biased anyway)

Tracy