I have been segregated against one time. In interviewing for a position as a vice principal many years ago, I was 28 and female. The hiring panel included 10 people, 4 which were male teachers in their 50s.
The principal in charge of the panel told me although I was likely the best candidate for the position, my age and gender and quest for perfection made me an unattractive candidate to those 4 men. If the principal was willing to tell me that much, imagine what terrible things might have been said behind closed doors! Those men felt threatened that in evaluating them I might have a suggestion for improvement that they didn't want to hear from a younger woman.
Those of us in schools know that much tact can be used in these situations.
I was teaching at that very school. I quit that year and moved out of state to a much better location with a much better professional atmosphere. I am afraid this is likely what happens in most cases of discrimination. People who are good just move on instead of seeking the justice they deserve.
That school currently has an administration that is man-handled by those 4 male teachers. They don't want to move into administration themselves, but they want one that they can tell what to do and they are getting away with it. That school is continuing to grow a reputation of discredited authority figures. I guess in my situation I was lucky.
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