MELBOURNE: Pedestrian traffic lights showing female figures rather than male have been installed in Melbourne to reduce “unconscious bias” and promote gender equality, officials said on International Women’s Day Wednesday.
Ten stop/go lights depicting a figure in a dress were switched on at one of the city’s busiest intersections, though some questioned the point of the 12-month trial.
Some Australians are complaining that it’s backward and discriminatory to assume the conventional figure in pants is male and the new figure, wearing a dress, is female.
The move has drawn mockery as well as rage on the social media. (Scroll down for reactions on Twitter).
“The idea behind this equal crossings initiative … is to promote gender equality and reduce unconscious bias through changing some of the iconography we see every day,” Martine Letts from advocacy group The Committee of Melbourne, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
The move met with a mixed response, with some poking fun.
“I like to think of Melbourne’s new traffic lights as little green men in drag,” tweeted Thomas John Jaspers.
Melbourne Mayor Robert Doyle questioned the value of the initiative.
“I’m all for doing anything we can for gender equity, but really?” he told reporters.
“Unfortunately I think this sort of costly exercise is more likely to bring derision rather than support to what is a very important issue.”
Advocates insist no taxpayer money was spent on the trial.
Victoria state’s Minister for Women Fiona Richardson threw her support behind the gender-adjusted lights, saying they would help to tackle sexism.
“There are many small — but symbolically significant — ways that women are excluded from public space,” she said.
“A culture of sexism is made up of very small issues, like how the default pedestrian crossings use a male figure, and large issues such as the rate of family violence facing women.”
“We are a government working towards gender equality for all women,” she added.
Reactions on Twitter
Better equality PR would be if Melbourne left pedestrian light signals the same and said “See, it doesn’t matter what women choose to wear!”
— Tudor Holton (@LordHootNut) March 6, 2017
@abcnewsMelb Standard symbol can be woman in pants, no? With short hair or hair tied back. What’s with “skirt denotes woman”?
— Gina V Dow (@ArtsandCulture) March 7, 2017
So wearing the dress makes it a woman – this is going to backfire and deservedly so – spend money on deserving things #Melbourne madness 😒 pic.twitter.com/PlE92m70aQ
— MaryB 👋🏻 (@MaryBHand) March 7, 2017
The pedestrian lights outside Flinders St station have been officially changed over from male to female https://t.co/vuWEixhjn8 pic.twitter.com/vwVJ2qopF5
— ABC News Melbourne (@abcnewsMelb) March 7, 2017
https://t.co/tQSkI5a7bU #melbourne pic.twitter.com/HWGqCkb5MR
— WSU Sceptics Society (@ScepticsSociety) March 7, 2017
New #Melbourne #traffic #lights tries to be all things to all people. pic.twitter.com/5kVE07lZqD
— David Turnbull (@drtalbion) March 7, 2017
