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RE: Women in Brass Bands

Guy said:

To say that excluding women from a band on the basis of their gender isn't
sexist is ludicrous!!  Exclusion on the basis of gender is sexist by
definition!

	You are, of course, quite wrong. Sexism is the oppression of women by men
and vice versa. Wanting to belong to a single sex organisation, for
whatever reason, is not, of itself, sexist, merely a matter of preference,
and is quite valid for men and women.

To try to state that such exclusion is acceptable is reprehensible.  How
would you like it if you belonged to the group being excluded.  What if your
job forced you to move to the USA and we had some stupid rule against
allowing Brits in our bands?  Wouldn't that make you feel angry?

	Not if I was politely informed that the band in question was an all girl
band, nor if I was told that it was all American, in which case I would
qualify to join as soon as I took American citizenship.

Who else would you like to exclude?  Jews?  People of African extraction?
Irish?  Scots?  People whose noses are bigger than yours?  Where do you draw
the line?

	In the case in point, only if they were female, since we are discussing
the preference, by a very small number of men, to have an all male band.

  This sort of discrimination is one of the first steps on the
slippery path that Nazi Germany took, or that of  Slobodan Milosevic in
Yugoslavia!

	If you really believe that I can only feel sorry for you.


In America, we make a strong effort to be INCLUSIVE rather than EXCLUSIVE
and generally judge people on their abilities.

	Everybody can join everything, no single sex, single ethnic origin, single
State, organisations. Are you sure? How many women in the local Pro
baseball team, basketball team, football team? How many men in the
cheerleaders for the above teams, you know, the ones with the Pom Poms? Can
you not see how ridiculous your argument is when taken to its conclusion.


 My band, the Illinois Brass
Band, would be a much poorer organization without the talents and abilities
of our female members.  Our first two solo cornets and principal
percussionist (to name a few) are women, and amongst the best brass banders
on this continent.

	So would my band, and I am very proud of the achievements of all our
members in getting from the UK 3rd section to the top of the 1st section
with the same players, males, females and youngsters. But that doesn't
prevent me from being tolerant and allowing that if 30 men, or women, want
to be in a single sex band they should be allowed to do so without
intolerant people with ridiculous PC ideas trying to prevent them.

 I am proud to be a member of such an organization.
I suggest that you rethink your attitudes toward your fellow brass banders
and humans.


	It is not I that is displaying the intolerant attitude, nor I that cannot
distinguish between genocide, sexism, and a preference of some people, male
or female, to play in a single sex band.

	Rod G

	A proud, tolerant Englishman in a mixed band.


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