The feminist cupcake sale that led to death and rape threats
April 5, 2016 7:53 PM   Subscribe

The now infamous Gender Pay Gap Bake Sale was an afterthought, a supplementary event to the panel discussions, "If someone had told me, one week ago today, that a simple bake sale aiming to educate students about wage disparity in Australia would rile up a university campus to the point of death threats to the organisers, would reach media sources across Australia, the UK and USA, and would result in the single most successful bake sale ever to be held on campus, I would have told them not be silly; no one cares about a bake sale."
posted by AGameOfMoans (8 comments total)

This post was deleted for the following reason: This is a shitty thing that happened but not really an article that supports another go-round on this topic. -- restless_nomad



 
Patriarchy is a more powerful opiate than religion could hope to be.
posted by Sophie1 at 8:09 PM on April 5, 2016 [3 favorites]


Yike!

At my work, a graduate student organization which operates a restaurant, we have celebrated women's day for three years now with a pay equity lunch special. For men it is $10, for women it has ranged ... most recently $8.20 with the menu/leaflet focusing on the 82% academic gender pay gap in Canada. We also allow people to obtain the 82% rate by self identifying as in other pay equity categories -- first nations people, for example, are the worst paid, male or female, in Canada, and include all the rates on our menu/cited stats sheet.

The lunch special has a menu that has the stats and info. It is also interesting that we often run a salad and that makes me think how gendered menus are even beyond prices...

I have witnessed some difficult conversations when workmates arrive together. We also set it up so that a server can just give the discount to any complainers without discussing it with them. (It's not all bad -- one server supports it so much she requests the shift specifically).

This year a group of older women came in fr dinner after a campus feminist talk, and the first woman in had a rose for each other woman to celebrate "bread and roses" and they were there specifically because of the special. That was super lovely.

Another nice thing is a few of my male staff who every year order the $10 special as a solidarity statement. And this in an office with all women in management, so I appreciate that.

Anyway ... the facebook response captured in this article is horrible and it makes me think about how we run ours and my staff in particular, and what we might do to make it better in case of the obnoxious parade or misogyny showing up.

I do like the cupcake idea, though. I would like to have a cupcake part so people can spend less... and also that all the feminists get cake. I am also thrilled that this is being done elsewhere.
posted by chapps at 8:15 PM on April 5, 2016 [7 favorites]


wait "anonymous keyboard warriors?" The screenshot seems to imply they were using real names (or why would you redact it) which is always what astonishes me.
posted by atoxyl at 8:18 PM on April 5, 2016


"it all started because a couple of male students were upset that they would have to pay $1 for a cupcake".

The absurdity of this is beyond belief, yet it still manages to be more appalling than it is absurd. That takes some doing.
posted by langtonsant at 8:19 PM on April 5, 2016


Not trying to be a dick but SO BORED with the predictable threats to anyone anywhere who ever thinks that things are not 100% equal between men and women at all times everywhere. Like yeah yeah, you'll kill them and kill their whole family, whatever man. Fucking jerkoffs are not just histrionic children they're tedious. Get a new fucking schtick. It's so hair trigger now I fully expect to witness the following exchange in the future:

Non-jerkoff: I was just noticing that women...
Jerkoff: I will murder you.
Non-jerkoff:...are sometimes...
Jerkoff: Murder.
Non-jerkoff:...uh....
Jerkoff: Mah-mah-mah-murder.

There is no space small enough a woman can squeeze herself into that will not still be too big for a misogynist. If we confined ourselves to our homes this sort of dude would complain that he can see us through our kitchen curtains.
posted by supercrayon at 8:32 PM on April 5, 2016 [20 favorites]


It does look like the worst of the hate is gone from the Facebook page -- still many snarky comments, but no direct threats or anything.
posted by miyabo at 8:43 PM on April 5, 2016


The [completely innocuous thing women did] that led to death and rape threats.

(Sigh)
posted by [insert clever name here] at 8:52 PM on April 5, 2016 [2 favorites]


Sounds like a good idea for a Crone Island fundraiser.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 9:07 PM on April 5, 2016 [2 favorites]


« Older Welcome to the most eye-popping development in the...   |   Djrum: aiming for the dancefloor, but ending up... Newer »


This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments