The Guardian Slammed For "Misogyny" After Referring To Women As "People Born With Ovaries" In PCOS Article
The Guardian is facing backlash for referring to women as "adults who menstruate" and "people born with ovaries" in an article about PCOS.
People who menstruate, bleeders, uterus havers, birthing people, chest feeders, vagina owners – I'm sick of it all. How did we get to the point where the term "woman" has been demonized?
The Guardian is currently facing backlash for "misogyny" after publishing an article titled "The Invisible Toll of Life with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome." The writer refers to women as the following:
People born with ovaries.
Adults who menstruate.
People.
Respondents.
People of reproductive age.
Eventually, the word "woman" was mentioned in the article thanks to a healthcare professional. Chief of Women's Health at Thomas Jefferson University Katherine Sherif told The Guardian that PCOS "affects more women than diabetes and has profound effects on metabolic health.”
In addition, Sasha Ottey, the executive director of PCOS Challenge, said, “Women, and particularly PCOS patients, endure injustices of medical gaslighting, unnecessary surgeries, inaccurate and harmful medical advice, and ineffective treatments that only compound the mental health burden of the condition itself.”
The response to the article has been intense. Women on X are sharing their frustration with the author's use of "belittling" terms. "They erase women from medicine, whilst bemoaning how women are poorly served by medicine due to being ignored," wrote @Serena_Partrick.
"Infuriating. PCOS affects only women, females, but the Guardian studiously avoids saying so," tweeted @AnnMSinnott.
"My god what have we ushered in here? The INVISIBLE TOLL of life as a biological woman," said @Liberace50. "The fuc*ing irony of this, @theguardian making sure we are less & less visible, the more articles like this are written (almost) omitting the one word that is essential to the story."
An anonymous user chimed in, "Erasing women from medicine. Fun fact: women and men have different symptoms for most conditions that impact both genders. Yet for conditions that impact ONLY WOMEN, such as PCOS, they say people as if there are men with ovaries."
As many women have passionately pointed out, these terms only strip away the essence of womanhood in contexts where it should be at the forefront. When did we lose the courage to simply say "women"? With PCOS disproportionately affecting women’s health and well-being, it's time their voices were acknowledged instead of being diminished.
Subscribe today to get unlimited access to all of Evie’s premium content.