Date: 12/6/95
Subject: Could we just forget semantics for a minute?
From: Betty
Ronald--
I understand what you're trying to say. Reverse sexism is just as much a problem as sexism directed at females. But, come on, those facts stand as they do. You can pick them apart as much as you want -- but as a society, we cannot and must not downplay the tragedies of sexual abuse, of death by AIDS, of inequality and of discrimination just because we feel it necessary to debate the manner in which these facts are presented. I agree -- it is just as tragic when a man is abused or when a woman is abused by her lesbian lover as it is when a woman is abused in a heterosexual relationship -- the fact is that abuse of and by any person is horrible and must be stopped. This was not a feminist list that was presented -- it was a humanist list. It called to our attention the terrible things that happen to people, not only in our country, but in our communities. In this sheltered Stanford environment, it is easy to forget that many of our neighbors and fellow citizens are in a lot of pain. We're wasting time with petty arguments about wording and transmission of information, when we should be doing something about the facts that lie beneath the words. If you want to fight the stereotype that men don't care about women or problems like the ones in the e-mail, then show it with your actions. Start volunteering at a battered people's shelter. Volunteer with AIDS patients. Write to congressmen and demand more money and more attention paid to cancer research and programs to help people in abusive relationships. And most importantly, treat everyone around you with the respect you know we ALL deserve. Again, here's to equality and respect -- and this time to proaction and compassion too.
Betty
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