KD2GTM Vlog 9: Is there sexism in amateur radio?

Sexism? No-Code-ism is much more prevalent. And some may even doubt your ability to draw a Colpitts oscillator on demand, haha... Anyhow, have fun with the radio waves!

 

jimmy-bob........... now you're talking respect.

 

Yeah... talk about stereotyping!

"Backwoods OM's" is another good one. Ive seen those pin-up pics coming from stations of all walks.

 

I'm 60 years old and when I look back to when I was in my 20's I thought that I knew everything about everything, so misread allot of other peoples actions. But as I have aged and learned more about life I came to realize all of my screw ups and have personally been embarrassed by them.

I welcome all to the hamateur radio hobby no matter their gender, race, religion, etc. But having said that I would have probably reacted to your presence in a surprising manner also but it would have been a positive surprise to see a young person joining our ranks. Let's face it the median age in hamateur radio keeps getting older, grumpier and uglier and we need lot's of new and younger ham's to join.

It's great hobby with many facets so pick yours and enjoy them.

A few years ago I joined my local radio club here in Lakeland, FL with most of the membership made up old white guys. Virtually no one was welcoming and friendly so I dropped out after a couple of months. I fit no gender, race, religion, etc that I could claim to be a victim of, they just treated all new members that way. It's sad but true.

 

Hi Sarah--
I wouldn't get overly defensive about people's assumptions, if I were you. The "average" ham, at least in the United States, IS an older, white, male. Of course there are women hams, younger hams, black hams, and so on. Hams come in a multitude of colors, genders, experiences, and backgrounds. (I don't know about the cat part--dog is spoken fluently at our house.)

What you have experienced is not really a bias but rather an expectation based on experience. I happen to know some women hams who are great operators and every bit as good at managing an unruly pileup as their male counterparts--but that doesn't alter the fact that probably 95% or more of hams are in fact men.

In two particular areas of ham radio, contesting and DXing, women hams probably make up less than 1% of the participants. I am unaware of any "bias," conscious or unconscious, that would tend to discriminate against women contesters or DXers, and there is no reason that I can think of that would prevent women from being effective in those pursuits. There is empirical evidence, in fact, which suggests that women's voices tend to cut through a pileup much better than men's, which would suggest that women should be more effective in racking up high contest scores or rare DX than their male counterparts. I therefore tend to believe that the relative scarcity of women in those pursuits is due to a choice the women themselves make rather than some form of discrimination.

Must hams are undeniably men; it's still fairly unusual to find a woman who genuinely enjoys the hobby. Please don't mistake people's expression of surprise as an expression of disapproval. There may be scattered instances of male resentment, but I would hope they are rare and short-lived. Every day more and more women are becoming police officers, soldiers, airline pilots, race car drivers, and so on. I can't speak for others, but I'm delighted to find women increasingly able to pursue whatever activities suit them.

Welcome to amateur radio--I hope you have a long and enjoyable experience in the hobby!

Barrie, W6DX
Riverside, CA

 

I think it is a age thing more than a sex thing.

Never trust a old fart.

 

This question just seems so irrelevant. There is bias everywhere. People make judgements about other people all the time, and too often they voice those opinions. Sexism isn't part of ham radio, it's just a byproduct of the opinions of some ham radio operators. There is absolutely nothing about ham radio -the learning process, the exam process, talking on the radio, etc- that blatantly excludes women based solely on their gender. Yes, you may encounter a few jerks on the radio, but so what? Simply change frequencies and continue doing your thing.

As a side note, I am a female ham and have experienced only very cursory 'sexism' from another male ham (he was mostly posturing about his excellent radio skills and making fun of me because I want to learn CW). That guy's attitude has nothing to do with him being a ham. He's just a dude with outdated opinions and no game.

 

In fact, a relevant question, but one answered very well by your response. There are sexist asshats all over, as there are haters of every stripe; and some of them have entered ham radio. But as you point out, the essence of ham radio is neutral with respect to gender ( and race, religion, ethnicity, location, and all the rest); and hams as a group, despite a few of these folks, are VERY nice people.

 

Yes! I absolutely agree with you, especially about hams as a group. That guy that I encountered was definitely the exception. "Asshats" -- haha, haven't heard that one in while. Expertly used!

 

I didn't watch the video. I can read what someone thinks regarding a topic much faster than I can listen to them talking. It's a personality quirk. Judging from the commentary in this thread, from which I am assuming and inferring certain things the OP speaks about, that had I encouragingly and enthusiastically congratulated someone on acing an exam, which I have done for well over twenty years on the rare occasion that it occurs, and then later been essentially accused of sexism I would be greatly insulted and deeply betrayed. For the record I am a man, in my early 50s, with 32 1/2 years in the hobby as a licensed radio amateur. I suppose that puts me into the category of dirty old man.

BTW, this doesn't seem to be a news item. It seems better suited to the Discussions, Opinions, and Editorials forum.

 

I would highly suggest watching the video! The surprise was mostly a non-issue. I was much more concerned with a few other situations mentioned. For instance, when I went to take my technician's exam, there were many people waiting outside the room before it started. When everyone was let in, I was the only one stopped and asked "Are you in the right place?". I was also the only female

 

I've made a response video to all the comments I've been receiving. Check it out!

 

Of course. No sexism. No racism either. Hams are a perfect group of humans.

Come on... Do people really buy that, or have they never been in a group of 2 or more hams?

 

Good vlog on your initial experiences with sexism in Ham radio!
"Some unconscious bias" doesn't even scratch the surface of the good ole boys club behind the scenes.

Since you are in engineering, I'm sure you can handle yourself gracefully in those situations, but don't ever let them discourage you!

I've seen things improve slowly for women in ham radio during my 50 years in it, thanks to societal norms moving at a glacial pace toward equality.
On one hand, we get pile-ups, sometimes unwanted. On the other hand, in the old days, there were guys who said stuff on the air like "QRX one, I'll have to put on headphones, 'cause I don't want my xyl to hear your voice on the speaker".
At a hamfest in 2014, a guy running a ham equipment booth asked me "are you getting this for your husband?"
The irony: I was wearing my callsign nametag at the time.
I simply told him: "I don't have a husband."

Just like any other technical field, if you are outspoken, there's potential for you to become a target for miscreants who may cross the "unconscious bias" line, so please be careful.

I hope to QSO with you on HF sometime when you get your new QTH going!
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