Like a bloody girl

[Shallowstreams]

Name changed for this.

I'm on another boards' mums' forum where I'm currently being had at go at because I took offence at thread where numerous posters were talking about their husbands behaving like a girl i.e. being pathetic. An example 'he's built like a brick shithouse but is like a big girl with spiders'.

I pointed out why this isn't a good thing and have been told 'it's just a turn of phrase', 'stop being so serious', 'don't take it out of context (??), and 'just chill'

Am I going insane? This isn't okay to do is it??

[curren]

lanark I worked in a call centre for years. I started on the phones and became a senior manager.

I do get the same impression you do from other people. But there companies out there that don't think that like this.

They saw people as people. Not men , not women. Management was a huge mix of people all from different backgrounds as well. Not all university educated etc. It was a great place to work. I hope that culture continues to spread.

[VashtaNerada]

YAsoooooNBU OP, what a terrible thing to say! Boys and girls cry the same, are scared the same, get angry the same. It only changes as they get older and pick up on nasty sexist comments like that one.
My DS has just turned four and is a lovely sweet little boy who plays with dolls as often as he plays with cars but I'm betting he'll start to act like a "typical boy" once he starts school because he'll pick up on sexist attitudes coming from other parents. And that is absolute shit.

[WellErrr]

The boys mostly wanted to be footballers, firemen and policemen. The girls all wanted to be singers, teachers and fashion designers.

Why do you think this is?

[PerspicaciaTick]

WellErrr, I really don't know? Possibly because these are things they see men and women doing in RL and on TV?

Personally, if I had been class teacher, I would have changed that part of the assembly when I realised which way it was going and tried to come up with something that didn't compel the children to make stereotypical choices (I suspect that some of the girls had copied one another's replies - especially as I'm not sure that 6/7 year old see a lot of fashion designers).

[ClaudiaApfelstrudel]

I don't think your going insane at all OP, I think your thinking is right and casual misogyny like this is totally unacceptable the problem is I wonder for your own sanity if it's worthwhile trying to take issue with it, I don't know

[Lanark2]

Cakeycake face, I always thought 'grow a pair' was 'of tits'

[Lanark2]

Curren, yes I guess I am aware of that the problem in our case is that its a remote location and there isn't turnover so managers may be using clichés to fix staff, however I do think there is a problem in general with entry jobs often being female dominated as on paper it sounds like more women enter companies, but as these are often adminy/service it also feeds the cliche of typing pool and "serious' job levels being 'more male' so I sometimes think there ought to be reverse reverse discrimination at entry! Anyway this is a bit off-topic. ..the older version also bugs me, eg a guy taking longer to get ready being 'worse than a woman' (better than a woman??? ) or 'like a bunch of old women' if men are gossiping. How could that be reversed? 'you mean forming relationships and reinforcing the norms of the group' is not as catchy!

[Lanark2]

Actually I have to say the torrent in the call centre is the other way 'disorganised like a men, late like a man (women are sympathised with), eating big meals 'like a man', forgetting things 'typical bloke don't worry', etc etc

[floraldresser]

Misandry at its finest

[Shallowstreams]

MrsBadger77 that guy who used to be in the apprentice and now presents Countdown insisted the other day that men wouldn't like Pride and Prejudice as it was a girls book. A man said he liked it and the guy said he 'was unconvinced it was a book for men'. I was open mouthed.