Posted on 04/11/2022 1:06:08 PM PDT by Brookhaven
My organization recently sent out an email announcing its annual “Men’s Forum” and I immediately felt icky about it. To me, it feels different than a women’s forum or an ERG for minorities because it focuses on a group that, historically, is not marginalized. For context, I work in finance which has a history of “the good old boys club.” The email even mentions “men and their allies” which also feels wrong to me.
Ick, yes. What is the event’s mission? Unless it’s to be an ally to women and other marginalized groups in your field or office, what exactly is the need it’s responding to? Affinity groups exist to help demographics that have been systemically marginalized and kept out of spaces controlled by the dominant group. The point is to level the playing field in places where it’s unbalanced and good lord, that’s not men in finance.
If this “Men’s Forum” exists to provide special networking or development opportunities to men, it’s hard to see it as anything other than a hostile response to similar efforts for women and people of color.
Justice-um!D
“And hot women.”
And how they get fat and moody when they get older and had a few kids.
There’s also Zulu Dawn, when the Zulus completely trounced the British at Mount Kitzelewaya, but one junior officer escaped with the flag, and everyone kept a stiff upper lip even though they knew they were doomed.
The workplace? They drink bottled water now and I doubt if there’s a lot of people standing around the water cooler anymore or the coffee maker for that matter... Most of conversation happens either in the gym, or perhaps at the Chinese buffet during lunch.
No sour grapes here because I was toast at that point in my career anyway but I did get passed over and denied a promotion by a selected female who had less credentials than I did.
There were more people mad about that than I was, like I said I was toast at that point in my career. I went ahead and retired and the illustrious person that took the promotion didn’t even make it through the obligation period to retire at that paygrade... 🙄 I could have managed at least that.
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