At a time when America sees more social equality than ever before, many may ask themselves: Why is a club like Women in STEM still necessary?
It is easy to give statistics exposing the extreme disparity of men versus women in the STEM workforce, but for many the importance of something like Women in STEM is much deeper, much more personal, than that.
In a series of questions, I asked a few OSSM students about their personal opinion on this disparity and on Women in STEM. This is how they responded:
Jared Crawford:
"As an organization, it's progressive, and it helps eliminate stereotypes set by generations before us. As a concept, it is entirely agreeable, however it’s long past revolutionary as there are already many women scientists and engineers.
The best way to combat any discrimination is to prove to them what you already know to be true."
Faith Thompson:
"The key is awareness. To be honest, most boys are completely unaware that we still live in a sexist society. A lot of men see sexism being a thing of the past that happened when women still did not have voting rights. I think that awareness and a call to change is key.
A lot of people treat the word feminism as a bad word. Awareness can change this."
Maxx Ibara:
"I believe that Women in STEM is a very important movement that doesn't get as much recognition as it should. Women in the STEM workforce have been discriminated against for long enough, and equal treatment is long overdue. Women getting paid less than their work is worth is absolutely ridiculous, and the issue is only perpetuated by ignorance. Removing this ignorance is the only way that we can resolve this issue, meaning that the participation of BOTH genders is important.
As annoying as it is, I feel that the first step to removing these biases is to do our best to work through them without allowing the hateful thoughts and actions of others to affect our decisions.
I can only imagine how much it infuriates women, considering that it occurs at almost every level of society."
Catherine Tang:
"It's always been the little things. It's phrases like "you ____ like a girl." It's having to justify liking certain sports or subjects. It's being told to dress and act a certain way.
In today's world, the discrimination in the US against women is less overt and more based in micro-aggressions. But these micro-aggressions stack up, and it results in a feeling that you always have to live up this male standard.
Ultimately, feminism comes down to thought. It’s about changing opinions. The best way we can do that is to talk to people about the issues. That's why I like Women in STEM so much: it raises awareness."
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Growing up as a female, certain aspects and characteristics have always been, even if unintentionally, assigned to me. The underlying expectation that I would be “less”— less ambitious, less intelligent, less interested, less capable — has always been present. I remember when I was young and I would work on group projects with others, I was never listened to or taken seriously. Growing up, it never truly changed; it only became subtler. I remember one time at my old school, when I set the curve on one of my tests, one of the guys said I “must be good at guessing.” It wasn’t the first time I’ve heard something like that, and it won’t be the last. That stigma against women has always been around, and it probably will be for a long time. Even so, all this stigma has done is drive me to change this view of women. Despite what I am “supposed” to like, the truth is I love math and science. And so many other women do as well.
That is why Women in STEM is so vital. Even at OSSM, the top classes and competitions are dominated by males. It's not the school itself, or that the women here are less qualified, it's the intrinsic nature in society that has always presented males with more opportunities — that has always expected "more" from them, "less" from us. But Women in STEM is working against this. Women in STEM stands as a place of support, of encouragement, of freedom from this stigma of "less."
In our society, we, women, are progressing forward in a lot of ways. But there are still obstacles holding us back. Unequal pay. Unequal representation. Sexual harassment. However, the people that have the most power in changing this is us. Our generation. We are the future. All it takes is awareness and determination. Women in STEM brings awareness and instills determination.
Maybe Women in STEM is just a small organization at OSSM. But these small organizations are what make up the movement that creates the change.