All male panels must end
By Emma.
I’ve written about this before in the context of the Labour Party conference, but it’s a wide spread problem and if anything it seems to be getting worse. Panels at political events are, more frequently than ever, men only affairs. I’m very glad today to be a signatory to a letter in today’s Guardian calling for a stop to this practice.
When I wrote about this last time, I was (yawn, of course) accused of tokenism. I suspect I will be again. Here’s why that’s so much nonsense: in the decade that I’ve been managing successful political events – on topics as wide ranging as the environment, democracy, housing, culture, science and a host of others – I never, not once have had an all male panel.
In fact, I am so confident that it’s twaddle, I challenge my challengers. Find me an all male panel – in fact, find me any topic on which you could reasonably hold an informed public debate – and I’ll give you the names of five women who could hold their own on the panel. It’s not tokenism you see, it’s research.
And it matters. It matters because women are being shut out of public debate. We don’t see other women on panels, delivering their thoughts to a roomful of people waiting to be inspired. Just as when we close our eyes and think of a politician, we think of a bloke in a suit, so too do we picture him when we think of a political speaker.This is taking it’s toll. Women are vastly under-represented in think tanks for example.
Having run events for so long, I know that the easy thing to do is to invite the bloke who was good on this topic the last time it was discussed. But it’s the lazy thing to do. It’s part of what is making our political discourse so stale, jaded and unable to cope with the really big questions of our times.
Giving women a platform to share their thoughts isn’t just good for those individual women, but for all of us – male and female – who understand the true value of diversity in voices and thought.
Tags: Feminism
Friday, November 18th 2011 at 13:59
the problem isn t have more women or men in politic or in panels
the problem is that we should have PEOLPLE who really can be the voice of all the popolation
the fact is that the people who rapresent us and who are the only choice that we have in the election don t rapresent the popolation at all cause they are members of a wery small lobby with all the economical power.don t matter if male or female.
i don t care if there is a 100% of woman if they really rapresent me and my social class.
if there is a gender problem is far more little than the social class rapresentation in parlament.
how somebody who earn hundred of time more then me,have his childrens in expensive private schools,or can afford a private medical care for all his family can be rapresentative of me and the 90% of the popolation who cannot be sure if the next month i still have my job or my rights?sorry for my english hope you undestud