The consequences of patriarchy have led people to believe in many problematic assumptions about women. From being called over-emotional, asking questions like “why are you angry, are you PMSing?” to not being able to make better career choices, we have a long list that screams mansplaining.
Women on Reddit, like you and me, are tired of these assumptions and wish people would put a hold on it.
1. “Drive. (There’s a stupid stereotype that women can’t drive. I come from a family of drivers) I’m a very good, fast and safe driver.”
2. “Wear a suit or a tuxedo, I decided I’m going to wear that on special occasions from now on. Edit: every time I talk with my mom about this, she keeps telling me “why would you wear a suit or a tuxedo? You’re not a lesbian” No I’m straight, but male fashion is my clothing style.”
3. “Do my job. I regularly print on large material, and even though I do this on a daily basis many of the men think I’m incapable of moving this material from the storage rack to the printer.”
4. “Having a good sense of orientation and humor. Being pretty just for myself and not for attention and/or validation. Doing stuff seen as typically “manly” (I like hunting, my dad taught me how to shoot at 7 and he always kept guns away when not training until I was 14).”
5. “Everything. No matter what I am doing, there is always a man explaining to me how I could do it better. I watch men talk to each other with mutual respect. When most men talk to me, I can tell I don’t get the benefit of the doubt. I have to prove my worth and skills despite my assigned gender, whereas men seem to receive a default expectation of competence/knowledge.”
6. “Being strong! I hate when people compare things like women’s sports with men’s sports, and make subtle comments about how women are nowhere near as good as men. Idk about you guys but I know a shit tonne of dudes that I could outrun, tackle, overpower & win against.”
7. “Be in a high ranked position without looking like a model and “seducing people” what kind of telenovela are you watching sir? I have brain cells, I think and act fast and I recognize a waste of time when I see one. I could also punch you with my “weak” hands but, another waste.”
8.”Make my own decisions regarding my life/my future and my body. Seriously, I am a woman, not a clueless child. My brain is no less functional just because I’m not male.”
9. “Have male friends and a boyfriend at the same time. Except actually, my bf is the only one who thinks that.”
10. “Play video games. Yes, I KNOW there’s a good community now but in some areas, people just seem to think that girl gamers don’t have a skill or it’s cute.”
11. “Feeling justifiably angry. So often I feel like expressing my anger is taken as me being overly emotional. I’ll get comments like are you in your period/hangry/in your feelings. This even happens to other women occasionally. I am allowed to be upset about things, women aren’t just unreasonably upset all the time. Sometimes things are shitty!”
samonilla
12. “Look after my money! They think just because I’m a woman, I have no concept of budgeting and I must go about buying clothes and stuff. I think you’ll find I’m the best at it I know and all my friends are men!”
Read more: 20 Things We Think Are A Woman’s Responsibility But, They Actually Are Not.