Before you starting shouting at me this video is in defense of geek girls like me. I will admit the rise of the fake geek girl meme has rarely made me laugh but frequently leaves me mad. If, for some reason, you have been hiding in a cave that didn’t have 3G, here is an example of the meme to which I am referring:
I have actually been trying to recall if there has been a time where I have felt judged as a fake by geek males and if I’m honest I can’t recall anything. But why is that? I have been a geek girl for a long time now, I have been to conventions, took part in forums and discussions even written for a geek themed awesome website (yes it is this one). Yet I have never been seriously questioned or berated for my opinion, until I realised that may be it is because I am afraid of my true opinion. Weird I know, but I’m aware there are some serious hardcore geeks out there and I have seen how they react to someone making the smallest errors and how that reaction is increased ten fold and becomes far more personal if the error is made by a female geek. Then follows by accusations of fakery, jumping on the band wagon, only liking the movies etc etc I have seen this many times and I’m now so afraid of the potential backlash if I did make a genuine error or have an opinion different to the majority that I choose not to voice my thoughts in certain arenas. But, really if someone is wrong the shape of the genitalia shouldn’t be a factor in their error.
Male and female alike, we geeks should be encouraging anyone who shows an interest in ‘geek’ culture. We should welcome them with open arms and a list of recommended comics, an X-Box and the gift of funny shaped dice. So that we may pass on our greatness and hope it spreads and engulfs the world. Cos let’s be honest, it’s the only way we are going to get another series of Firefly.
I would like to point out that when writing for Geek Pride I am confident that I am not going to encounter any of the above, we have good moderators and any offensive comments are dealt with swiftly, so feel free to interact and mingle with us here, you are safe.
Anyway I could go on and on about this topic but a lot of my point is summed up in this video. For all those small minded people poisoning the reputations of all geeks I ask you one question, who are you to judge? WARNING: Language.
Less “Geek Girls Unite”, more Women’s liberation movement, delete the word geek from most of the sentences and replace with whatever social circle you feel dejected from and you pretty much come up with the same stuff. I hate fake guy geeks just as much as fake girl geeks. Also, most male comic book heroes run around in skin tight lycra or some other revealing garment, you don’t see all the blokes running around showing off their bits do you ?
For those that take things too literally, I think girls probably do get a hard time, more so than guys, but that’s because girls in a majority are relatively new to the geek world. I say embrace it, others fear it, some just can’t talk to girls, so it makes them feel uncomfortable, and all of a sudden they realise that they are feeling uncomfortable in the place where previously they felt most comfortable. When you look at it that way, you kind of understand. It’s a lot about social status and unfortunately society has us believe that the better looking you are, the higher up the social ladder you belong. Suddenly you get all these “beautiful” people invading and you can understand why some people feel the way they do.
I say group hug’s all around !
After reading this article and then watching the (painful) youtube video I find myself thinking only one thing, women may get hit up on in mainstream media for being not real geeks/gamers/nerds but I have never actually seen a women get quizzed a convention or expo about how geeky they are; though I have heard (and made) comments about how some attendees both male and female are part of the hipster crowd who like to just wear ‘geek branded’ clothing.
I think the bigger issue is that anyone who doesn’t constantly conform to small set of rules then they are no longer a true geek and instead are just jumping on the band wagon or dressing in geek-chic fashion. I myself have faced these accusations for multiple reasons and I know many others that have (once again both male and females). Part of the reason women will get ‘attacked?’ (is that the best word) so much on the internet specifically is due to that large quantity of people who abuse the fact the joke can easily be taken to far with repercussions.
If we look at gaming by itself for a moment. Any girl who games online will be able to claim several times that they have been hit on simply because they are a female online and many occasions that they have been told to get back into the kitchen, but please do remember that it is not women who are solely targeted here, males give each other far far more stick than women get in this culture and the majority is just being called ‘gay/fat or being informed that the entirety of the internet has slept with your mother’. I speak from experience with this because I play with a CoD clan that seeks to promote female gaming and they give out far worse than is ever given to them, but they still complain.
Long story short, this is not an issue that will ever fade until people stop grouping us as male and female nerds and real and fake nerds. Those who are doing it as part of a fad and fashion will fade away in a few years; and if some stay and actually get involved in all the events then be happy because it will mean greater acceptance for being geeky. As for the male/female divide, that will not fade away until people stop protesting unfair treatment and just get on with what they are doing. Think women’s rights in the UK and the Suffrage, they got the vote because they stopped protesting and started putting in for the war effort, it’s the same thing but obviously less drastic.
But yes, I agree with Soulreape, Group hug all round and let’s stop with the crap.