American Airlines & Women

I still feel like this must be a joke, but it appears all too real: American Airlines has a special web page for female travelers, including a PINK, dumbed-down flight search box. It also has handy pointers to articles on safety and security, because we women are so scared to travel. They include safety tips like "Write down where you park"and "If you need directions, ask other women or couples."

Why is our society so keen on keeping people scared? Especially women. When a woman was attacked recently in a local park, during the daytime, the local news suggested women should not go there alone. Don't go to a public park for a walk, in the middle of the day. Yeah, women shouldn't go anywhere alone, really. Who will protect our women! Our poor, defenseless women! Where are the safety tips for men? I guess they don't need to write down where they parked, because men are really into cars and everything so I'm sure they'll have no trouble remembering.

Don't forget the fashion tips AA includes. Here's a great one: "Always bring a little black dress to wear with those heels. Fold it in thirds, roll it as tightly as you can, and place it in the smallest Ziploc bag you can. You may not wear it this trip, or the next, but one of these days, you'll be sitting next to that Japanese violinist who just happens to have an extra ticket to her sold-out performance one evening, and you will need it. Now go out and see the world, ladies."

I wrote an email to AA letting them know my thoughts. If you would like to as well, email them at wehearyou@aa.com.

Edited on 4/20 to add: They have removed the pink search box. Gee, thanks.