OMG, a Woman

When my quantitative stats class (I know, it sounds horrific - at least to me!) started, the professor wasn't able to make it to the first session. Instead, the professor sent an assistant to go over the syllabus and so on. At the next class session, the professor walked in and lo and behold, the professor was (is!) a woman. Not only a woman but one who is younger. Even though one would presume that her first name would indicate a woman, I realized that my stereotype of a stats professor is of an older man overrode the somewhat obvious indicator that the professor was a woman.

Malcolm Gladwell discussed in his book, The Tipping Point, the strength of stereotyping while also making clear how we can be intentional in changing stereotypes, which is often about exposure and engagement with difference. I found this be true as I spent more time with LGBTQQ colleagues and friends and had my stereotypes busted years ago.

Even so, those moments that remind me of my own biases are such a disappointment to me considering my work and life experience in diversity and social justice. Then again, it was a stark reminder of how stereotypes are so deeply embedded in my psyche. Yet, in time, disappointment often transforms into learning as those stereotypes are disrupted again and again.