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A double whammy occurs if one is an ethnic minority. It is a burden that I, as an Indian in Malaysia, had to bear. I have a parent who thought that sending me to university was a waste of money since I would eventually become someone's wife. However, I realized that the only way out of the clutch of customs is education, and I defied the system. After obtaining my master's degree in Malaysia, I came to the U.S. to complete my Ph.D. This is where I presumed men and women have equal stature. In my graduate student community where female students tend to outnumber males, one can almost live in a bubble. Alas, it did not take long for the bubble to burst. Has the Western attitude toward women changed? Unfortunately, no. However, relative to the Asian mentality, indeed it has. I have encountered many men who have indirectly equated a woman's intelligence with her external attributes. My answer to them is, "If you cannot see past my exterior, I really do not have time for you." I am proud to be a woman. I will not compromise being what I am. Apparently, soon after a female colleague arrived at Florida International University, a female Hispanic student told her that she was so happy to have a "female Hispanic scientist" as a faculty member. Clearly, this is an example of lack of role models for the ever-expanding minority student body at the University. It becomes especially important when one is lacking in the immediate or distant family. Although there have been many eminent female scientists, they are few and far between. Often the identity of female scientists is hidden by the use of only the last name. Until recently, even I did not know that one member of the famous biochemistry duo, Michaelis-Menten, was a female. I had assumed both were males. This clearly indicates how attitudes become biased. I wonder how many generations it will take before such biased attitudes will change? Should we just wait for a change to occur or should we be proactive? How often do we talk about Dr. Rosalind Franklin, whose results were instrumental in the discovery of DNA by the Nobel Laureates Watson and Crick? As women scientists we need to showcase women who have succeeded. It is important for young students who watch us struggle to know that there were many who have walked the same path before and succeeded. As women we do pay a price for being successful. More often than not, women are described as abrasive and aggressive, whereas a man would be ambitious and a go-getter. This may be simply due to the notion of a woman being the nice homemaker. This limited stereotype has to change. Women need to be recognized and rewarded equally. Such a change may take generations, but it has to start with all of us. Fortunately for us, there are a few men who are allies but often find their hands tied by traditional and institutional constraints. With the new millennium, more doors will be opened if we take an active role. We need an awareness campaign at all levels. A campaign that requires the support of both women and men who are committed to excellence and to equal opportunity. Kalai Mathee, Ph.D., is assistant professor of Biological Sciences at Florida International University. |
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Several
days were spent pondering this subject...what can I say that is
different from what has been said many times before? What was it
that I have to deal with that can be of use to other women? How
has my experience been different from any other woman in science
or business? Perhaps all of us first deal with the fact that we
are women and are labeled as the daughter, the wife, and the mother.
Anything else that we do is considered secondary even by our immediate
relatives, be they parents or siblings or spouses. It does not matter
that we have spent over 25 years in school working toward attaining
academic degrees and acquiring recognition. How can we change the
attitudes at the grass root level?
