Today's award goes to the President of the Undergraduate Council of Students at Brown University in Rhode Island.
Nguyen sent a campus-wide email Tuesday announcing the initiative, which has made Brown one of the first higher-education institutions to implement such a widespread program. University officials have not yet responded.
By putting menstrual products in women’s, men’s and gender-inclusive bathrooms, Nguyen’s campaign highlights an often-ignored fact: Not all people who menstruate are women. “We wanted to set a tone of trans-inclusivity, and not forget that they’re an important part of the population,” he says. “I’d be naïve to say there won’t be push back. I’ve had questions about why we’re implementing this in male bathrooms as well. It’s an initial confusion, but people generally understand when we explain it.”
There's more at the link. Bold, underlined text is my emphasis.
Why has no-one called "Bullshit!!!" on this nonsense?
Mr. Nguyen, I have news for you. If someone menstruates, then:
- They never have been;
- They are not; and
- They never will be
I don't give a damn about political correctness, cultural sensitivity or any flavor of the nonsense du jour. Facts are facts. Biology is biology. For all except the vanishingly small proportion of so-called 'intersex' individuals, what one may feel about one's gender identity is irrelevant in comparison to the biological, chromosomal, hormonal reality that defines, conclusively, whether one is male or female. Even for intersex persons, if they menstruate, they must obviously have all the elements of feminine anatomy necessary to be medically identified as female. Tampons in mens' restrooms won't do a thing to change that.
(On the other hand, soldiers - particularly those cut off from other supplies - have been known to use tampons and sanitary napkins to make very useful, practical, effective wound dressings in the field. Does that bring out their feminine side?)
Peter
EDITED TO ADD: To all those who think we should indulge the psychiatric and psychological issues of those who dither about their 'gender identity': THIS is the end result of such nonsense.
21 comments:
Comment on this topic I saw elsewhere that made me chuckle:
I'm told that they're pretty good for packing gunshot wounds. Is that something the college administration is worried about?
I don't get the bit about "period shaming". Menstruation is a natural bodily function, and one that's a bit messy. As such, it is generally considered polite to not discuss it in public.
Amongst friends, sure, sometimes it's appropriate. I rather expect that menstruation discussed more than, say, urination. If this particular woman is embarrassed by the topic, that's her problem - no need to project it on the world at large.
"tampons and sanitary napkins to make very useful, practical, effective wound dressings in the field"
I've been given to understand that they are also useful in polishing those dress shoes. I've never tried, so I do not know if this is as true as the claim about nylon hose and shoe polishin.
And gentlemen get MAJOR points for rescuing a lady in difficulty, if said gentleman discreetly hands her a needed pad. Sometimes we run out, sometimes our cycle is 'off' by a few days.
With all due respect, un-bunch your panties, Peter. Your own position argues biology (or attempts to, at least), but you have your info wrong. "Female" and "male" refer to sexual reproduction...they are biological roles. Only females menstruate. "Woman/girl/feminine" and "man/boy/masculine" are social terms...they may apply to either male or female based on prevalent social standards (and, as we are currently witnessing, individuals are applying those social terms to themselves in whatever manner they feel is appropriate). While I am of the opinion that the action of Mr. Nguyen is stupid (after all, let people take care of their own hygiene needs), let's look at it this way: a female that thinks they are a man still menstruates, a male that thinks they are a woman will never menstruate...any hygiene issues relevant to a person's biological condition (male or female) will still need to be addressed. I guess what irks me the most about this post isn't the apparent opposition to changing identities (because, frankly, who cares...), but rather that I expect a better command of terminology from a writer.
"...but rather that I expect a better command of terminology from a writer."
Said the man who used a plural pronoun ("they") in reference to singular subjects ("a female" and "a male").
People been calling BS on this for quite a while, and they are called sexist, bigots, ignorant, trans-phobic, haters, and more in reply. It gets old after a while.
@ Anonymous 9:18...
First, I did not claim to be a professional writer, such as our host. Second, I did not refer to the singular subjects "a female" and "a male", but rather the potentially plural terminology "female" and "male"...there is a distinct difference between the two uses. Third, regardless of wether or not I was using the term "female/male" or (as you erroneously said) "a female/ a male", the use of "they" in that context is clearly a grouping of the two terms together, not a misuse of pronouns. Fourth, my complaint is with Peter's terminology, not his grammar (...your rebuttal of my comment is based on grammar). Finally, please have enough conviction in your critique to position your argument with supporting facts (not a primary school misunderstanding of grammar), and identify yourself to the group rather than hiding behind an "anonymous" label.
@Bill Lorton: I am neither interested in nor concerned with what people identify themselves as being. I am only interested in what they actually are - and that's a medical and biological issue. If they have a psychological and/or psychiatric problem that causes them to wrongly identify their actual gender, that certainly requires treatment, but it does not require that we allow them to get away with their problem. It requires correction, not sycophantic corroboration!
@Peter
I am also not concerned with what other people identify themselves as being. As I said...who cares? I agree 100% that we are biologically male or female, as determined by our DNA. However, in response to the sentence "Not all people who menstruate are women", you emphatically wonder why no one has called "bullshit". The answer to your query is right there in the use of the word "women". "Woman/man/etcetera" are social descriptions, not biological terms. A female may claim to be a man (a pretension, for sure...), but cannot (in light of scientific fact) legitimately claim to be a male. Therefore, a "man" (as they may want to call themselves, despite biological imperative) is capable of menstruating, because they are (biologically) a female.
Bill Lorton:
"Woman" refers to an adult female human. That is the definition of the word. That is what that word means. The meaning of the word "woman" is "adult female human being".
"Man" refers to an adult male human. That is the definition of the word. That is what that word means. The meaning of the word "man" is "adult male human being".
To say that a man can be a woman or a woman can be a man is to completely ignore (or maliciously destroy) the actual defined meanings of the words.
Stop being obtuse.
Like any virtue, tolerance, when taken to excess, becomes a vice.
While I don't generally care what a person identifies as, it does become my problem when people push for laws based on feelings and personal perceptions rather than on reality. Such feelings-based laws will always collapse under their own weight, because those laws always lead to tyranny. And eventually reality, who doesn't really care how many pronouns/genders people can come up with on tumbler, will win out.
Looking forward to the day when sanity regains its foothold in society.
@Feather Blade: Well said.
If a man self-identifies as an alien from Zenon 14, do you play along, or tell them they have psych problems, and possibly get them institutionalized? If he seriously identified as Napoleon, do you play along, or get them help? If an obviously Caucasian man of average height tells you he's a seven-foot-tall Chinese woman, do you play along, or get them help? At what point do such bizarre mental issues pass beyond childish "make-believe" into "serious need of a shrink"? I'm not quite ready to say the whole "self-identify" thing is a way for people with serious psych issues to bully others and refuse to take responsibility for their own choices, but it sure provides great cover that do.
Thanks, Peter and Feather Blade.
What I resent, more than anything, is the way this issue has become such a red herring.
With all the issues of much greater importance, and those more deserving of our attention, to deal with the media wants us to waste our time with what are essentially the personal issues of certain individuals which they themselves should be working out on their own.
None of this concerns me or my own life. Why am I supposed to "care about" it?
If someone menstruates, then:
They never have been;
They are not; and
They never will be
anything but a woman, with or without medical intervention, and irrespective of surgical 'adjustments'. Period. (Pun intended.)
Male menstruation is a very old thing. Since in many tropical countries, boys were sent to work in the fields at about the same time as women started menstruating, and work in the fields mostly led to them getting Schistosomiasis which makes you piss blood ..
Elizabeth, I guess we're very different kinds of people, because any man who hands me a pad goes down in my book as a creep. There are no points for being weirdly prepared for something that you cannot have happen to you, or for weirdly knowing our caring that I need one. Weird, weird, weird. I'm not ashamed of my periods, but I expect men to be aloof and disinterested in the process. Any man who isn't is thinking far too much about my private parts.
I once used a sanitary napkin to muffle the head of a Bass drum. Peeled and stuck that sucker right on there, added a litter gaffer's tape and no more ringing so there's that...
Bill Lorton, Peter and Feather Blade: It all depends on what the meaning of the word "is" is.
This kind of attitude (as in "Bae's" statements) seem to be prevalent only on college campuses and by people who make money being professionally offended. I really wonder what is going to happen with some of the college students when they finally graduate to the real world, where most people are too busy to listen to such statements.
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