Let’s say we’re in agreement on some level but using different terminology. Ok, I say respect, you say civility. I agree, as you wrote, “a certain amount of civility should be given to everyone.” In my experience as a woman, men often fail to be civil to me, not only in obvious encounters like public spaces when I am commuting or somewhere like a music venue (yes, you can argue that intoxication can affect a man’s level of civility, but that doesn’t negate his responsibility to be civil), but in online forums such as this. I think you personally are showing me civility and trying to engage in honest conversation/debate, and for that I applaud and appreciate you. At the same time, I encourage you to be mindful of the ways in which women systematically face aggressions and micro-aggressions from men and from society at large. If I changed my title to “Why Do I Need to Demand Civility as a Woman?,” would you still find it problematic? Because I do often find I also need to demand basic civility as well.

The onus is on all of us to be more conscious and conscientious of how we treat and behave toward other people.