The Huffington Post – Njideka U. Harry
“In many societies, a girl’s choice to study science is seen as making her appear less feminine. In situations where a girl’s material circumstances, as well as those of her family, are tied to her marriage prospects, the implications of challenging the dominant construction of her femininity are impossible to ignore. Cultural biases hold that science is a male domain and that girls are not as capable as boys when it comes to learning about it (Ekine, Abay. Enhancing Girls’ Participation in Science in Nigeria). I refer to this as the masculinity of STEM.”(more)