This past January, Kyle Smith, American film critic for the NY Post, wrote an article where he harshly attacked the Golden Globes, not for being boring, or for giving awards to the wrong people, but simply for having too many women. His article described the night as “a deep dive into a pool of estrogen” while simultaneously attacking Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, the hosts of the show. While a relatively isolated event, it’s still disturbing to see how primitive some of the attitudes toward women in the world can be, even ones coming from a supposedly “progressive” country.
Thankfully, our little red brick oasis is light years ahead of the rest of the world. From sweating it out on the field in a soccer game to designing dresses for the annual fashion show, this school is chock full of outlets for girls to be exactly who they want to be. Roughly 70% of all club presidents at TAS are women, including the current Student Government president, Berlin C. (12). Three out of the four Language Honor Society presidents are also female. Even our very own superintendent, Dr Sharon Hennessy, is a woman.

And as counterintuitive as it may seem, the best part about all this is that no one talks about it. It’s not a subject of conversation that we have a female Student Government president. No one is going to write an article titled “Too Much Estrogen” about one of the most decorated athletes in the school, Mallorie H. (11). When we talk about these people, it’s about the accomplishments they have achieved, not the shape of their chromosomes. Berlin sums this up perfectly as she describes the opportunities offered at TAS. “Ultimately, it’s really up to you in terms of how much time and effort you want to invest in your interests. If you genuinely love what you’re doing and have the discipline to stick to it, then there are always opportunities.” Georgia H. (12), president of Spanish Honor Society echoed this.“What I love about TAS is the fact that people really do focus on ability. Gender is virtually a non-issue when it comes to working for what you want.”
This is what the world ought to strive for: a society where your gender affects the way you are treated as much as the angle of your eyebrow arch does. As Vivian C. (11) and Alliee C. (12), co-presidents of World Vision, put it, “At TAS, opportunities are available to everyone, regardless of gender. Success, however, is determined by the decision to take advantage of these opportunities and the willingness to work hard.” If it weren’t for the massive amounts of homework, I might even call this a utopia. The only downside is that moment when you walk out of this red brick castle and realize the rest of the world hasn’t caught up yet.
This is not to say that TAS is perfect. Like many high schools, there’s definitely a fight to find the balance between maintaining a generally attractive appearance and not caring too much about the way you look. Eating lunch in unwashed hair and sweat pants? Slob. But show up to Biology in a nice dress and makeup and you’ll be accused of being shallow. While it may not involve protesting for our basic human rights, there is still room for improvement here.