In the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower tragedy, Lewisham council in co-operation with the London Fire Brigade decided that the removal of all steel gates in the Tanners Hill estate would be the best way to ensure the safety of residents residing on the council property. Hard to argue with that.
Aside from the feared lack of security caused by the safeguarding move, another point of controversy came to light when the voids left by the removed gates were filled by floor signs (as pictured above) which read: Danger - Men at work.
At a glance, this would go unnoticed by passers-by but this small piece of text, regardless of its intentions, is in fact quite detrimental to females as a whole. Construction or any other type of ‘heavy-lifting’ would be considered as a male-dominated field of work and quite rightly so according to statistical evidence, but it mustn’t be confused with women being somehow incapable of fully participating in such an environment due to long-standing stereotypes around women which still continue to hamper them even in a society as progressive as this one.
This example serves as a reminder to everyone that sexism still very much exists in modern western society and the signs are (quite literally) all around us. It’s our responsibility to be more aware of these symptoms and treat them at their source.
