# Gender-blind

Part of a series on :
Feminism :
History
Feminist history
History of feminism
Women's history
American
British
Canadian
German
Waves
First
Second
Third
Fourth
Timelines
Women's suffrage
Muslim countries
US
Other women's rights
Women's suffrage by country
Austria
Australia
Canada
Colombia
India
Japan
Kuwait
Liechtenstein
New Zealand
Spain
Second Republic
Francoist
Switzerland
United Kingdom
Cayman Islands
Wales
United States
states :
Intersectional variants
Fat
Lesbian
Lesbian of color
Radical lesbianism
Separatist
Sex-positive
Transfeminism
Postgenderism
Vegetarian ecofeminism
Socialist
Anarchist
Queer
Jineology
Marxist
Critical theory
Standpoint
Materialist
Ecofeminist
Postcolonial
Global
Transnational
Xenofeminism
Multicultural
Africana womanism
Black
Hip hop
Lesbian
Ratchet
Chicana
Lesbian
Indigenous
Native American
Multiracial
Romani
Womanism :
Other variants
Anti-abortion
Equity
Femonationalism
Maternal
Postfeminism
Neofeminism
Reactionary
State
Carceral
Imperial
Embedded
Gender-critical or trans-exclusionary
Victim
White :
Religious variants
Atheist
Buddhist
Christian
Mormon
New
Womanist
Asian
Neopagan
Dianic Wicca
Reclaiming
Ecofeminist
Hindu
Islamic
Jewish
Orthodox
Sikh :
Movements and ideologies
Analytical
Anti-fascist
Anti-pornography
Cyberfeminism
HCI
Networked
Ecofeminism
Eugenic
Individualist
Lipstick
Stiletto
Liberal
Difference
Equality
Social
Labor
Libertarian
Post-structural
Postmodern
Radical
Cultural
Political lesbianism
Separatist
Technofeminism
Women's liberation :
Concepts
Cognitive labor
Complementarianism
Literature
Children's literature
Discrimination against transgender women
Diversity (politics)
Diversity, equity, and inclusion
Effects on society
Equality
Female education
Female genital mutilation
Femicide
Feminationalism
Feminism in culture
Feminist movement
African-American women's suffrage movement
Art movement
In hip hop
Feminist stripper
Formal equality
Gender equality
Gender quota
Girl power
Honor killing
Ideal womanhood
Invisible labour
Internalized sexism
International Girl's Day and Women's Day
Language reform
Feminist capitalism
Gender-blind
Likeability trap
Male privilege
Matriarchal religion
Media
Men in feminism
Misogyny
Oedipus complex
Opposition to feminism
Pro-feminism
Protofeminism
Purplewashing
Racism
Reproductive justice
Sex workers' rights
Sexual harassment
Sexual objectification
Substantive equality
Toxic masculinity
Transmisogyny
Triple oppression
Violence against women
War on women
Women's empowerment
Women-only space
Women's health
Women's rights
Women in the workforce :
Outlooks
Bicycling and feminism
Criticism of marriage
Views on BDSM
Views on pornography
Views on prostitution
Views on sexual orientation
Views on sexuality
Views on transgender topics
SCUM Manifesto :
Theory
Feminist method
Gender studies
Gender mainstreaming
Gynocentrism
Kyriarchy
Male gaze
Matriarchy
Women's studies
Men's studies
Patriarchy
Écriture féminine
Areas of study
Anthropology
Archaeology
Architecture
Art
Art criticism
Literary criticism
Film theory
Science fiction
Biology
Composition studies
Criminology
Pathways perspective
Economics
FDPA
Geography
International relations
Constructivism
Legal theory
Pedagogy
Philosophy
Aesthetics
Empiricism
Epistemology
Ethics
Justice ethics
Existentialism
Metaphysics
science
Political ecology
Political theory
Pornography
Psychology
Therapy
Revisionist mythology
Sex wars
Sexology
Sociology
Technoscience
Theology
womanist theology :
By continent/country
Africa
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Egypt
Ethiopia
Ghana
Mali
Nigeria
Senegal
South Africa
Albania
Australia
Bangladesh
Canada
China
Denmark
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hong Kong
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Republic of Ireland
Israel
Italy
Japan
Latin America
Argentina
Brazil
Chile
Haiti
Honduras
Mexico
Paraguay
Trinidad and Tobago
Lebanon
Malaysia
Nepal
Netherlands
New Zealand
Northern Cyprus
Norway
Pakistan
Philippines
Poland
Russia
Saudi Arabia
South Korea
Sweden
Syria
Taiwan
Thailand
Turkey
Vietnam
Ukraine
United Kingdom
United States
History of women :
Lists and categories
Lists
Articles
Feminists
by nationality
Literature
American feminist literature
Feminist comic books
Feminist songs
Conservative feminisms
Ecofeminist authors
Feminist art critics
Feminist economists
Feminist philosophers
Feminist poets
Feminist rhetoricians
Jewish feminists
Muslim feminists
Feminist parties
Suffragists and suffragettes
Women's rights activists
Women's studies journals
Women's suffrage organizations
Categories
Women's rights by country
Feminists by nationality :
Feminism portal :
vte :
In education, business, law, and other fields, gender blindness or sex blindness is the practice of disregarding gender as a significant factor in interactions between people and applying equal rules across genders (formal equality of opportunity).

## In education

Krista Ratcliffe writes that gender blindness functions in the classroom to downplay the existence of gender differences, which tends to reinforce existing gender substantive inequality.
The National Student Genderblind Campaign, founded in the United States in 2006, has argued in favor of gender-neutral campus housing at colleges and universities to better serve gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and intersex students.

## In health care

The use of mixed-gender hospital rooms has proved controversial in both the United Kingdom and Canada. Manitoba's Health Minister, Theresa Oswald, has campaigned actively against such rooms, saying that if humanity can "put somebody on the moon", it can find a way to honor gender requests without leading to delays for patients. Great Britain agreed to phase out such rooms by 2010.
Some medical ethicists have been critical of efforts to return to single-sex rooms. Jacob M. Appel, an advocate for mixed rooms in the United States, has written that opposition to gender-mixed rooms stems from "old-fashioned prejudice", arguing: "Because some people have been brought up to fear or dislike sharing a room with a person of the opposite sex, or blush at the prospect of catching a glimpse of an unwelcome body part when a robe slips open, we enshrine and perpetuate this prejudice in social policy."

## In law

The legal test of the "reasonable person" has been criticised for being genderblind to be applied in some areas of the law, particularly sexual harassment. Women are subjected to more normalised and endemic sexual harassment than men. On the grounds of this, the American case of Ellison v. Brady 924 F.2d 872 (1991), the court held that "a sex-blind reasonable person standard tends to be male-based and tends to systematically ignore the experiences of women".

## Research

Gendered treatment prevails all over the world. Of a study of organisations which offered women-only services, 23% said that their reason was based on women's inequality and the desire to address that imbalance; 20% that women-only spaces promote female development and empowerment; 18% that they were providing a service not being met by unisex services and which focused on the specific needs of women.
Studies indicate a broad support for single-sex service options to remain available. In a 2011 poll of 1,000 women by the Women's Resource Centre, 97% stated that women should have the option of accessing female-only services if they were victims of sexual assault. 57% indicated that they would choose a women-only gym over a mixed gym. Single-sex services can provide greater comfort and engagement for participants who would otherwise not get involved.