We know that women students and staff remain underrepresented in Higher Education STEM disciplines. Even in subjects where equivalent numbers of men and women participate, however, many women are still disadvantaged by everyday sexism. Our recent research found that women who study STEM subjects at undergraduate level in England were up to twice as likely as non-STEM students to have experienced sexism. The main perpetrators of this sexism were not university staff, however, but were men STEM degree students.

  • Lemminary@lemmy.world
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    6 months ago

    Not to mention that gay STEM students are more likely to face homophobia. It was rampant at my uni. We could not keep any sort of gay-related posters up without them getting ripped off and trampled within hours. Which in retrospect is wild because there were so many of us, and more who came out years later. lol

    • silverhand@reddthat.com
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      6 months ago

      Uh… aren’t gay people the only segment likely to face homophobia? Like, you can’t be homophobic to a straight person…

      • Sneezycat@sopuli.xyz
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        6 months ago

        Can’t you? What about not having “girly” hobbies because that “makes you gay”? Or having to dress a certain way? I feel like straight people aren’t excluded from homophobia…

        • MrFunnyMoustache@lemmy.ml
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          6 months ago

          100%, when I was in middle school and highschool I was regularly called gay for not liking football, or not knowing random car facts, or not liking spicy food, and other stuff like that. It was much better in university, but it was in a different region so I can’t compare directly.

          Interestingly, one of these bullies came out as gay 10 years later, which I find sad that someone had so much internalised self hatred that he had to project it outwards to feel better about himself.

          I don’t know what middle/high schools are like today since I don’t know anyone in that age range, but I bet it’s much better now with today’s internet culture being much more queer positive.

      • sir_reginald@lemmy.world
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        6 months ago

        I’ve seen people being homophobic to straight but feminine men.

        Anyway, OP meant that homophobia, just like sexism, seems to be more present in STEM.

      • afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world
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        5 months ago

        Meh not sure if it counts but an ex-client of mine decided to work out his fox news rage on me about my trans sister-in-law. Don’t worry, his manager was informed, the Google maps review of his employer now mentions it, and he really wasn’t expecting me when I knocked on his door late one night smirking and telling him what I did.

        Christians going to Christian.

      • uriel238@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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        6 months ago

        I was called gay long before I ever had a gay thought in my head (on account of being prepubescent).

        When I was being brutalized by bullies, gay was a generic derisive, associating things with homosexuality, the way cuck (now a generic derisive) associates with cuckold fetishists.