Colleges have long way to go to end gender bias

A Hunan teacher hands a bouquet to one of his female coworker, on Tuesday. [Photo/CFP]

SINCE SHANDONG UNIVERSITY INITIATED it in the early 1990s, so-called Girls' Day on Mar 7, one day before International Women's Day, has been celebrated by an increasing number of Chinese universities. On this day, male students are supposed to take care of their female peers, but in recent years some of them have resorted to banners embroidered with abusive quips that they then display on campus. Rednet.cn condemned such sexual harassment on Tuesday:

Apparently, the celebration of "Girls' Day" has unnecessarily involved into male chauvinism, as the "celebratory" banners displayed by male students usually show little respect to women. The language used by many banners is not only vulgar but also discriminatory, deeming female students as sexual partners and child-bearers.

In general, women now enjoy better career and education choices, as well as more political participation, but sex discrimination still exists, especially when it comes to employment. Married women with children are more likely to get their dream job in comparison to unmarried women, some of whom are required to sign a contract promising that they will not get married during a certain period of time.

Although the Girls' Day banners were designed to generate sensational effects, the embedded sexism and male superiority displayed are still worth noting.

That the 30 million plus bachelors, or "leftover men", in China's rural areas keep hitting the headlines lately is also a case in point.

Stressing the need to address the "leftover men" issues, apparently, fails to take into consideration women's interests. It is even more lamentable that such a mentality has made easy inroads into universities, which are supposed to be home to fairness, equality, and knowledge.

China still has a long way to go to promote gender equality, despite what it has achieved in the past decades. In particular, the well-educated college students should be taught to respect women and their legitimate interests, and the legislative authorities should speed up their efforts to eradicate sexism.