To Be A Girl Poem by Vincent S. Coster

I do not know what it's like to be a girl
For being a man, I don't face
The real threat that I will be robbed of education
As some girls are

I will not be objectified and told
To lighten up when I spurn unwanted advances
As though the fault was mine

All the while being told how the kitchen sink
Or the bedroom are the only places
I should be- by leering, grinning want-wits

Who will earn more than I do
For doing the same job- despite my often
Doing it better and with more obstacles
At that

Being a man, it is less likely that I will be
Body-shamed for being slightly bigger than
Society lets me be (Though not impossible)

Nor will I be referred to in terms of my age
Or whether I am married or not
When I should be judged on the merit of my
Work- as women athletes are

I do not know what it is like to be subject
To all that
Overlooked and looked down upon at the same time

And all because of the gender I was born
As though something that arbitrary should
Be held against me and hinder my prospects and rights