Right now we're in something of a Nerd Renaissance where things like sci-fi, fantasy, comic books, video games, and so on are finally getting mainstream acceptance and exposure.
Now in my opinion this is fantastic! Nerds have always been picked on and dismissed, so it's great that we no longer have to hide away our comics and 20-sided dice lest we be discovered for the geeks we are. We can finally let our nerd flags fly.
But as more and more people are willingly taking on the label "nerd," there has also been an incredibly hypocritical backlash within the community against people who are arbitrarily designated as not nerdy enough. Unfortunately, a lot of this vitriol has been directed against women, and I can't count the number of times I've seen the ostensibly liberal, open-minded nerd community turn into knuckle-dragging morons the second a woman dares to say, "Hey, I like games and comics too!"
Okay, I get that many male nerds are introverted and often lacking in social graces, but there is no excuse to shun women as attention-seeking fakers just because they admit to liking anime or RPGs or anything else. Guess what, GIRLS LIKE THINGS TOO. And as difficult as your school life of noogies and getting shoved into lockers was, chances are that nerd girls had it so much worse than you.
The worst part for me is the fact that the nerd community is generally pretty progressive and liberal in areas such as marriage equality, election reform, economic responsibility, and so on. Why is it that some nerds can go from railing against homophobia to making "Make me a sandwich, bitch" jokes in the same post?
The definition of the term "nerd" has broadened significantly in the last few years, something that a few furiously pedantic jerks are resisting with everything they've got. I would consider myself a huge nerd (as would basically anyone who knows me), but even I sometimes get called out for not being nerdy enough in certain ways. You know what, I hate math. Hate it. And chess too. And Starcraft (though I do have a man-crush on Sean "Day[9]" Plott). So what?
If a woman says she's a nerd, then she's a nerd. There are no gatekeepers of the subculture. There's no standardized test. The only thing really that sets us apart form non-nerds is our obsessive quest for knowledge in our area of interest. Yes, even sports can be nerdy if you get super into statistics and trivia.
I think the world needs more nerd girls. Swap out doll houses with chemistry sets and nerf guns. Watch Star Wars with your daughter. Invite girls to your tabletop game nights. Be inclusive!
And good lord, if I ever see that "How guys take pictures vs how girls take pictures" image on Reddit or anywhere else again, my head is going to explode.
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