Allport dismissed sex discrimination as a rare male quirk

Evidence

While Allport’s chapter 4, “Rejection of Out-Groups,” contains many alarming instances of discrimination, nowhere does he address the pervasiveness of sex discrimination. In his sole reference to gender, Allport noted that misogynists viewed women as their inferiors, but he characterized them as rare, stating that, for these men, “the cleavage between male and female was a cleavage between accepted in-group and rejected outgroup. But for many people this ‘war of the sexes’ seems totally unreal. They do not find in it a ground for prejudice” (Allport, 1954/1979, p. 34, emphases added). Indeed, although Allport lists official forms of discrimination (as recognized by the United Nations), including inequality in “access to public office,” “the enjoyment of free choice of employment,” and “the regulation and treatment of ownership” (p. 52), he failed to acknowledge how they readily applied to half the population – women. — , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 741

Categorization

• SEED: Essay angle: how canonical thinkers’ framing of a phenomenon as ‘rare’ or ‘unreal’ can actively delay recognition of systemic harm to half the population.
• ADDENDUM: Related in spirit to ‘Complaints About Immodesty Go Way Back’ — both show how framing discourses, here Allport’s dismissal of the ‘war of the sexes,’ can write off structurally pervasive social facts.