Texas School Removes ‘Act Like A Lady’ Quote After Claims It’s Sexist

A Houston school removed a quote encouraging its young women to act ladylike after allegations that the phrase is sexist and shames women.

“It’s perpetuating horrible gender stereotypes, shaming women, and relinquishing boys of all responsibility,” a Houston area resident, Lisa Beckman, tweeted Friday. “It’s sexist, misogynistic, and discriminatory! I’m horrified,” she added.

This is the wall at Gregory-Lincoln Middle School in Houston ISD.
It’s perpetuating horrible gender stereotypes, shaming women, and relinquishing boys of all responsibility. It’s sexist, mysogonistic, and discriminatory!

I’m horrified. @shannonrwatts #MeToo #HISD pic.twitter.com/UqjaDlI0ys

— lbeckman (@lbeckman) August 17, 2018

Beckman tweeted that she snapped the photo while attending teacher training at Houston’s Gregory-Lincoln Education Center.

The quote can be attributed to the “Mayflower Madam,” properly known as Sydney Biddle Barrows, who owned an escort service in New York City, according to Fox News.

“To me it meant that girls need to take responsibility, not only for their own actions, but for whatever the boys to us as well and I just didn’t feel like that was an image of the equality and self-determination that, we as a district or myself as a mother, want to portray,” said a Gregory-Lincoln teacher who asked to remain anonymous, Fox reported. (RELATED: Vanderbilt Professor Says Math Education Is Sexist)

The photo had been retweeted over 1,000 times and liked over 2,000 times by 6:45 p.m. Friday, prompting the school district to request the school remove the quote. The photo now has more than 9,000 retweets and over 23,000 likes.

“The quote does not align with HISD values, and it will be taken down,” the school said in a statement addressing the quote’s removal, according to the Houston Public Media.