"My gender is not an insult"

These were among the words spoken by third year drama students. Their verbatim performance put together interviews, reported speech and personal testimonies from those who have been affected by everyday sexism. 
 

Shocking stories were also told by Laura Bates, the founder of the Everyday Sexism Project. She shared her personal experiences during her time as an actress when she noticed how differently male and female actors were treated at auditions.

She experienced further sexism. Some examples were extreme. Men stared at her and referred to her as "that." Some also followed her home and one stranger thought it would be okay to grope her on the bus. Disturbing statistics and other people's real-life experiences showed her how common sexism is in the 21^st century. Laura Bates realised that she wasn’t the only one and "almost all had a story to tell."

 But the session wasn't entirely negative and upsetting. The discussion panel emphasised how we all need to stand up and raise awareness. It’s not about blaming men. We ALL need to unite, stand against sexism and challenge stereotypes.

As Laura Bates said, “Whenever it crosses your path, stand up to them because if someone did challenge that man on the bus, there could’ve been a different outcome”. 

 

Humairaa Patel