forbidden word: women and underrepresented

Underrepresented groups in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in the United States include women^[1] and some minorities. In the United States, women made up 50% of the college-educated workers in 2010, but only 28% of the science and engineering workers. Other underrepresented groups in science and engineering included African Americans, Native Americans, Alaskan Natives, and Hispanics, who collectively formed 26% of the population, but accounted for only 10% of the science and engineering workers.^[2] This 2015 study found that women make up just 26% of the computing workforce and 12% of the engineering workforce; African American, Hispanic, and Native American women are especially underrepresented in these industries. (McBride & McBride, 2018).

Underrepresented groups in computing, a subset of the STEM fields, include Hispanics, and African-Americans. In the United States in 2015, Hispanics were 15% of the population and African-Americans were 13%, but their representation in the workforces of major tech companies in technical positions typically runs less than 5% and 3%, respectively.^[3] Similarly, women, providing approximately 50% of the general population, typically comprise less than 20% of the technology and leadership positions in the major technology companies.^[3] When it comes to the engineering and computing workforce, which accounts for more than 80% of STEM jobs, women remain dramatically underrepresented, as documented in the American Association of University Women’s (AAUW) recent research report Solving the Equation: The Variables for Women’s Success in Engineering and Computing (McBride & McBride, 2018). Women were underrepresented as external seminar program speakers and on decision-making committees for faculty promotions, institutional strategy, and graduate student appointment or recruitment. In addition, most institutions did not have policies that promote gender diversity on committees or to encourage women-friendly workplaces. (Beeler, et al., 2019). Women in STEM are more likely to be assigned jobs where there is less recognition compared to men. Surveys show that women spent more hours per week teaching and fewer hours conducting research than men. This meant women had little opportunity for promotions.

In Japan, the ratio of participation of women in the STEM field is very low. According to the survey in 2013, while almost all countries in OECD have about 20% to 40% of women researchers, Japan has 14.6%, which is a relatively low ratio.^[4] The ratio of women researchers is the lowest among countries in OECD in every area, including the industry, government, and universities, especially in the industrial areas, where only 8.1% of researchers are women.^[4] Although the ratio is slightly increasing, the speed of this increase is relatively low compared to the other countries.^[4]

In Canada, the Employment Equity Act labels four designated groups: Women, Aboriginal Peoples (now an obsolete term), Persons with Disabilities and Members of Visible Minorities (who are not Aboriginal, non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour).^[5]

from — Wikipedia contributors. (2025l, November 9). Underrepresented group. Wikipedia. 

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example sentences: women and underrepresented

Women, and specifically women of color, are underrepresented in clinical trials, limiting biological understanding and contributing to health inequities and social injustice. Analyses of barriers to inclusion suggest practical interventions that together create a roadmap of specific and actionable steps to increase diverse representation in research and sustainable change.
from — NIH: National Library of Medicine — Bierer, B. E., Meloney, L. G., Ahmed, H. R., & White, S. A. (2022). Advancing the inclusion of underrepresented women in clinical research. Cell Reports Medicine, 3(4), 100553.

Currently, large swaths of the U.S. population, and those that often face the greatest health challenges, are less able to benefit from these discoveries because they are not adequately represented in clinical research studies. While progress has been made with representation of white women in clinical trials and clinical research, there has been little progress in the last three decades to increase participation of racial and ethnic minority population groups. This underrepresentation is compounding health disparities, with serious consequences for underrepresented groups and for the nation.
from — Improving the Representation of Women and Underrepresented Minorities in Clinical Trials and Research. (2022). National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Retrieved November 15, 2025

Research has shown that women in the U.S. workforce earn less than men and face challenges in advancing their careers. For example, in 2022, GAO reported that women were underrepresented in management positions. GAO was asked to further assess disparities for women in the U.S. workforce, including women’s representation and pay by industry.
from — Women in the Workforce:: Underrepresentation in Management Positions Persists, and the Gender Pay Gap Varies by Industry and Demographics. (2023, March 14). U.S. Government Accountability Office. Retrieved November 15, 2025

Women’s equal participation and leadership in political and public life are essential to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. However, data show that women are underrepresented at all levels of decision-making worldwide and that achieving gender parity in political life is far off.
from — Facts and figures: Women’s leadership and political participation | UN Women – Headquarters. (2025, September 15). UN Women – Headquarters. 

The study found that high rates of sexual harassment, cyber incivility and negative workplace climate disproportionately target marginalized individuals, including women, those whose race or ethnicity has been underrepresented in medicine, and members of the LGBTQ+ community, and these experiences were associated with poorer mental health.
from — Study finds women, underrepresented groups experience higher rates of workplace mistreatment in academic medicine | Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University. (2023, June 6). Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University. 

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November 15th, 2025
Hudson Valley

This is one of the words/ phrases you can’t say in the new Trump Regime. See a comprehensive list at the Forbidden Words Project.

image: knocker © Holly Troy 11.2025

Our list is most assuredly incomplete. The New York Times published a list of words flagged by federal agencies to ban, limit, or avoid. Additional terms were reported by Politico, Reuters, The Washington Post, Propublica, Science, Gizmodo, 404 Media, Popular Information, Politico’s E&E News and the nonprofit news outlet More Perfect Union. These have been aggregated into a single list, below, which also reflects guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Defense, Department of Energy, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Food and Drug Administration, NASA, the National Cancer Institute, the National Security Agency, the National Science Foundation, and the White House itself.

from — Ltolin. (2025, October 3). Federal Government’s Growing Banned Words List Is Chilling Act of Censorship. PEN America.