“Hepeating”—You’ve Probably Experienced This Unique Kind Of Sexism

Hepeating—it may sound like just another annoying made-up word, but it’s actually a pretty significant occurrence. The problem is that often times in places like work environments, a woman will state an idea, it will be ignored, then a man will state the same idea and garner a round of applause. It’s totally unfair yet wildly common but it needs to stop.

1. A woman suggests an idea and it’s ignored. You’re in a work meeting and you have a fantastic idea. You share this idea with all of your coworkers as well as management and it falls on deaf ears. No one pays attention to what you just said and the conversation moves along without you. You’re left wondering what the heck happened and why. You don’t say anything more because you’re feeling discouraged. It also leaves you not wanting to speak up when you have future ideas.
2. A guy repeats the same idea and it’s applauded. You’re left wondering what the heck is wrong with people when you hear your idea stated… out of a dude’s mouth. Not only did he just steal your idea, but he’s actually listened to when he claims it as his own. You’re there thinking, “WTF just happened?” Or, perhaps you’re rolling your eyes because you’re familiar with the fact that this is hepeating.
3. Nicole Gugliucci and her friends coined the term. Nicole and her friends coined this term in her tweet: “My friends coined a word: hepeated. For when a woman suggests an idea and it’s ignored, but then a guy says same thing and everyone loves it. Usage: ‘Ugh, I got hepeated in that meeting again.’ Or, ‘He totally hepeated me!’” As of now it’s been retweeted almost 70k times and liked over 200k times. It’s quite a popular tweet. Nicole’s an astronomer and professor.
4. It’s a new word to join the feminist lexicon. As Merriam-Webster Dictionary describes: feminism is “the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities.” It’s no wonder that this word fits right in. There are some seriously fabulous words in the feminist lexicon. Some examples are manspreading, patriarchy, heteronormativity, and intersectional feminism. Hepeating is joining the mix.
5. So many women have experienced hepeating. Ask any woman and I’m sure she’s experienced it. Hepeating’s very similar to mansplaining which we’ve all probably experienced. As an article on Mashable said: “It feels like a move to undermine and discredit the intellectual property of women in the workplace.” It totally leaves us feeling like we have no voice. We hate that this is happening and just want it to get better.
6. Hepeating has been happening for a long time. Women being ignored and having their ideas stolen by men is not a new phenomenon. It’s been happening for decades and maybe even centuries. An article in the Daily Caller said: “Female researchers like Rosalind Franklin, who studied DNA, were often ignored and not given recognition for their achievements.” Women have been dealing with this crap for too long.
7. Welcome to patriarchy. The definition of patriarchy, according to Dictionary.com, is: “a social system in which power is held by men, through cultural norms and customs that favor men and withhold opportunity from women.” Unfortunately we live in a society where this is a daily reality. Hepeating just fits neatly under the umbrella of consequences from living in a patriarchal society. Down with the patriarchy!
8. This happens to men of color and LGTQIA+ as well.Nicole, the woman who put out the term “hepeating,” tweeted: “So many folks deny that this happens. And yet so much evidence and research shows it happens to women AND black and brown men and women.” It’s an unfortunate reality that men of color deal with this struggle, too. Queer people can be invisible in the workplace, too, making them more susceptible to be hepeated.
9. To combat this, women must elevate other women. One of the best things women can do is repeat what another woman said if the idea wasn’t heard. This is a great way to give credit to the appropriate source and make her idea known. Women need to work together as a team to ensure they aren’t being hepeated.
10. We need men to also elevate women. This is not just a job for women. Men absolutely need to step up to elevate women’s voices. It could be as simple as saying something like “Sarah had a great idea. Do you want to repeat what you said?” Or, they could even go as far as to say to another male “Hey, don’t hepeat her.” Regardless of their tactics, going out of their way to make women’s voices heard would make a huge difference.