Hope for a Brighter Morning
The development of women in the STEM industry is being globalized and can be seen in school hallways.
More stories from Diana Anghel
On January 7, Oprah Winfrey accepted the Cecil B. Demille award at the Golden Globes, after which she delivered a speech that brought the audience to their feet. She specifically addressed the girls in the audience and those watching from home, empowering them to have hope for a brighter future where feminist movements will continue to develop and bring justice and equality to all.
One of the most powerful and moving quotes of her speech was, “For too long, women have not been heard or believed if they dare speak the truth to the power of those men. But their time is up. Their time is up.”
Winfrey, along with many other celebrities, has taken on the slogan “their time is up” as a way to support the feminist movement. Celebrities are using their platforms to spread the idea of equality.
When talking about feminism in the industrial field, one of the biggest gaps between men and women is found in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) field. Women have always been traditionally pushed towards other careers, as men have been the dominant gender in this field. According to The American Association of University Women (AAUW), stereotypes can lower girls’ aspirations for science and engineering careers. Although the stereotypes have been and continue to lower in today’s America, they’re still very alive in other societies that don’t see women as being equals. This is why celebrities like Winfrey, who have a globalized audience, use their power to support this idea. Eventually, if this movement is successful, the number of men and women in STEM fields should be equal.
According to the National Girls Collaborative Project, 35% of chemists are women, 22% of chemical engineers are women, 17% of industrial engineers are women, 11% of physicists and astronomers are women and 8% of mechanical engineers are women. These statistics evidently show how the STEM field lacks the presence of women. This is a worrisome topic, but with hope for a brighter future, this generation could be the one to change these numbers.
In Antioch Community High School, many women teachers can be found working in the STEM field. Math teacher Megan Troyer believes women need equal opportunities in positions along with equal pay in those positions.
“The challenges that I faced were in college when I was in my mathematics classes,” Troyer said. “My math classes were 80% male and 20% female. There were many comments about not being smart enough or taking the easy way out of going into education instead of a math heavy career.”
With the recognition of a problem, there can sooner come solutions. It seems that the broad public is getting informed of the lack of equality when it comes to gender through the internet and celebrity platforms. Despite this very evident problem, there is hope for a brighter future.
