pic: We left the boys at home

[Schnabel]

Originally Posted by whytheheckme

I don't believe in any respect that females are the 'weakest' members of any team. On our team, all of the drivers get equal practice time, including the girls. Our girls have all of the 'chances' that our guys have, right from the start. I don't believe that we need to send ONLY girls to a regional for them to have an equal opportunity; in fact, I believe that sending a co-ed team gives EVERYONE an equal opportunity, because everyone who is eligible to participate is at the event, and the driver with the best skills and the most probability to win drives that match. Our girls are in no way 'rookies', unless if they are truely rookies to the team.

I'm still a little bit confused as to why your whole team couldnt travel, and perhaps you let some inexperienced drivers drive, and if they were girls, great. It appears that the male members of your team DID seem to mind, at least a first, that they couldn't compete simply because they were male.

I really don't want to make a big deal here, and I hate posts about people complaining about other's ideals and beliefs. But this is a topic that I personally find very disturbing and disheartening. If a team wants their girls to have the same experience as the boys, I believe that they should have the SAME opportunity, and not be given special treatment, simply because they are girls.

Please don't get me wrong. I completely support girls in FIRST in EVERY aspect, I would love to see a pure 50-50 mix, both in numbers, and in 'job' opportunity. But creating an environment in which to fix the situation, you simply eliminate the boys, I don't think is in the spirit of FIRST.

Perhaps this post is very radical, and I may get bashed because of it. But I am simply standing for what I believe is right, and perhaps some others agree with me.

This is just an opinion. I am not forcing it on anyone.

Jacob

I really agree with him in the fact that the true FIRST team was to get EVERYONE involved in science and engineering. If you ask me, a team with both guys and girls is better because then the girls can get used to having to compete with the guys that are there trying for the same thing. If in FIRST you take away the guys so that the girls can get an experience, then, if you ask me, you have taken away the true experience as a major corporation won't get rid of the guys just to give a girl the job. They would rather find the person who has the best skill. If it is a guy, then so be it, but if it is a girl, then so be it. Just because there is a difference in gender doesn't mean that there is a difference in skill.