{"id":3104,"date":"2015-09-30T21:37:59","date_gmt":"2015-10-01T02:37:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bizwomenrock.com\/?p=3104"},"modified":"2015-10-01T16:25:33","modified_gmt":"2015-10-01T21:25:33","slug":"are-women-only-businesses-and-groups-discriminatory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/bizwomenrock.com\/beta\/are-women-only-businesses-and-groups-discriminatory\/","title":{"rendered":"Are Women Only Businesses and Groups Discriminatory?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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(Host) “Do you ever have male guests on your show?”<\/p>\n

(Katie) “I do not…it’s called Biz\u00a0WOMEN<\/em> Rock.”<\/p>\n

(Host) “So, because I have a penis, I’m discriminated against. \u00a0Don’t you think that’s sexist?”<\/p>\n

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This is how my morning started last Friday.<\/p>\n

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I was interviewed on a local terrestrial business radio show and within the first few minutes, I was hit with this. \u00a0My friend, Topher, happened to be the guest host of the show…he’s someone I really like and respect in business. \u00a0He’s funny and wanted to make sure that the show and its 3 guests had a good time, weren’t too “formal” and just had fun together. \u00a0It wasn’t a surprise that he brought this up…he had let me know he wanted to touch on it. \u00a0But I figured I could address it, laugh it off and move on with the interview.<\/p>\n

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What ensued was a long conversation about discrimination, sexism and bashing women only groups that left my insides unsettled and ultimately – as the day passed – really\u00a0fucking angry.<\/p>\n

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(you can watch full interview in the video at the end of this post)<\/p>\n

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To see if my emotions were out of line,\u00a0I posted my thoughts and a link to the interview in my private Biz Women Rock Facebook Group<\/a>. \u00a0Just to see if anyone else might see my point of view or show me another way of looking at things.<\/p>\n

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Thirty comments and 3 private unsolicited messages later…I realized I was not alone.<\/p>\n

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Here’s just a sampling of some of the comments I received…<\/p>\n

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So, I decided I wanted to address two things:<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

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1) The topic of whether women-centered businesses and groups are\u00a0discriminatory.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

2) Why this topic continues to be\u00a0the center of conversation with the\u00a0leaders of women-centered\u00a0companies.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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Let’s break this down using Biz Women Rock as an example.<\/h3>\n

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Biz Women Rock is a company that provides resources for amazing business women all over the world. \u00a0One of those resources is a weekly podcast<\/a>, where I have the privilege of interviewing phenomenal business women about their entrepreneurial journeys.<\/p>\n

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I made the decision early on to make the podcast for<\/em> business women, featuring<\/em> business women. \u00a0Mainly because\u00a0I knew I needed a super niche (and, of course, I love business women!). \u00a0As any savvy business person can attest to, focusing on a niche is foundational to a company’s success. \u00a0Additionally, it didn’t really exist in the podcasting space when I launched. \u00a0There was only one other show that had the same model. \u00a0So, I figured…plenty of room for this niche, right?<\/p>\n

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In the beginning, I struggled with it a bit. \u00a0There are so many men out there who have great things to share with my female listeners!<\/em> \u00a0And while that’s absolutely true, that’s not what\u00a0my\u00a0<\/em>platform was. \u00a0It was women-centered, women-celebratory and women-focused.<\/p>\n

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That being said, I had made a conscious decision that I did NOT want my community or the podcast to be male-bashing or focused on a women vs. men attitude.<\/p>\n

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It IS possible to CELEBRATE something without being AGAINST its opposite.<\/h3>\n

\"It's\"<\/p>\n

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So when I get asked the question, “why can’t I be on your podcast just because I’m a man?” my answer is simple.<\/p>\n

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Because it\u00a0doesn’t\u00a0fit my business model. \u00a0<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n

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Can men listen to my show?<\/strong> \u00a0Absolutely and they do all the time.<\/p>\n

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Can men sponsor my show?<\/strong> \u00a0Absolutely, because in the space of sponsorship and advertising, it’s in line with my business model to connect my community with resources that will be helpful to them.<\/p>\n

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Can men buy my course and my book?<\/strong> \u00a0Absolutely.<\/p>\n

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Can men join my private Facebook Group?<\/strong> \u00a0Nope.<\/p>\n

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Can men be a guest on my show?<\/strong> \u00a0Nope.<\/p>\n

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Topher made a comment about these niche-based groups being counterproductive to the forward movement of women.<\/p>\n

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“We’ll never get to that place of equality as long as there’s segregation…a women’s organization which doesn’t let men join them is actually counter-productive to the progress of women.”<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

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I completely disagree and here’s why.<\/h3>\n

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The purpose of women-centered business and groups is to provide a place or a service that is unique to the experience of being a woman. And guess what?<\/p>\n

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The\u00a0experience<\/em> of being a woman is NOT equal to the\u00a0experience<\/em> of being a man.<\/span><\/h4>\n

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Men and women are not equal.<\/h3>\n

Gasp! \u00a0I can’t believe she just said that!<\/em><\/p>\n

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That’s right. \u00a0We are not equal. \u00a0We are different.<\/strong> \u00a0If we’re looking at the human experience\u00a0just<\/em>\u00a0through the lens of gender, the experience of being a man in this world is simply different than the experience of being a woman.<\/p>\n

In my opinion, it’s not better or worse…it’s…just…DIFFERENT.<\/p>\n

(I’m sure some of you may argue that better\/worse part).<\/p>\n

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Therefore, women-centered groups and businesses that focus on women are merely being GENIUS in their decision to meet the needs of their target market.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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If women did not have a desire to be around other women, to connect with other women, to buy products and services that are just for women, then these businesses would not exist. \u00a0But they DO exist because because there’s a DEMAND\u00a0for them in the marketplace.<\/p>\n

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Business 101: Supply the Demand in the Marketplace.<\/h2>\n

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Now, I will<\/span> back Topher up on what I really think he was trying<\/em> to say.<\/p>\n

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If the primary purpose of a niche group is to degrade those who are not allowed to be a part of it and to rule themselves as superior, then yes…I think it is counterproductive to progress.<\/p>\n

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But, as Nerlan stated in her Facebook post above, that has never been within the culture of the Biz Women Rock community. \u00a0And I’ll argue that it’s not the motive of most niche groups!<\/p>\n

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There are plenty of…<\/p>\n

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  • Men’s prayer groups<\/li>\n
  • Mommy meetups<\/li>\n
  • Bootcamp groups for high level athletes<\/li>\n
  • Realtor associations<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    …and so on whose purpose it is to bring together like-minded individuals…not<\/em> to tout their superiority over anyone on the “outside.”<\/p>\n

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    No group – and definitely no business – can be all things to all people!<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

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    Let’s finally address why this topic seems to\u00a0keep coming up for women like me who are the leaders of women-centered groups and businesses.<\/h3>\n

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    Truthfully, I don’t have an answer for this.<\/p>\n

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    The reason I got so angry as my experience marinated all day was because I was disappointed that the knowledge I was there to share was overshadowed by a topic I am not particularly interested in discussing.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

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    End of story.<\/p>\n

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    Do I think Topher meant any harm?<\/strong><\/em> \u00a0No.<\/p>\n

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    Do I think he threw\u00a0it out there for entertainment’s sake?<\/strong> <\/em>\u00a0Sure.<\/p>\n

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    Do I think I should have been compared to the KKK? (oh yes, he did). \u00a0<\/strong><\/em>Nope.<\/p>\n

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    Do I think it ate up my\u00a0time that I could have spent talking about cool business concepts and more interesting things?<\/strong> <\/em>\u00a0Hell yeah.<\/p>\n

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    All I know is that I’m not the only woman leader who has been forced to have this conversation. \u00a0And unfortunately I won’t be the last.<\/p>\n

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    I could have decided to remain silent and “polite” about my experience, but I decided to post this because I\u00a0obviously got the feedback that I wasn’t the only one who felt unsettled about this and I figured it’s about time we plow through the noise of bullshit conversations like these so we can get to talking about important stuff…you know, like\u00a0business concepts<\/em> on a show dedicated to business. \u00a0\ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n

    Here’s the video of the interview. \u00a019:00 minutes is where I come in.<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

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