gayheckie:

tempestleopard:

being my friend means you never have to apologize for texting back late. you can respond four days late or drop off in the middle of a slow conversation and that’s okay! i know you’re busy or tired or just don’t have the energy to text anymore. you can hang up a phone call and start texting me instead. it’s so hard to do social interaction. i get it. send me a meme once a week so i know you’re alive. i love you.

@0oowoo0

madscientistmerle:

isaacsapphire:

shwetanarayan:

hssanya:

Did you know that after they switched to blind auditions, major symphony orchestras hired women between 30% to 55% more? Before bringing in “blind auditions” with a screen to conceal the the candidate, women in the top 5 major orchestras made up less than 5% of the musicians performing.

so I believe it was actually more complicated than that, in interesting ways. Because at first, when they did blind auditions, they were STILL hiring more men.

…Then they put down a carpet, so that high heels didn’t clack on the floor,  and BOOM women were suddenly getting hired.

The testers didn’t even know that’s what they were picking up on, which just goes to show how tiny of a cue it takes for misogyny to kick in.

The case of blind auditions for orchestras and how it dramatically changed the gender makeup of orchestras is a very illuminating example of gender bias, and an interesting possible way of countering it.

You can be sexist without knowing it. You can be racist without knowing it. This is not a moral failing; it is a moral imperative to remember that you are fallible, and take steps to limit the damage your squishy ape brain’s foibles can cause.