Behaviour
that countless divers have already given up on this squeeze. She doesn’t care that she’s trespassing on state property. She doesn’t even worry that if she has a bad day, her body won’t be recovered. She just presses on, exploring in a vacuum, moving ahead because nobody has stopped her. She’s made choices that few would make. The risks are her own, and perhaps, taken in the ‘invincibility of youth’. But despite taking risks some might call insane, she hits pay dirt and reveals another 8,500 feet (2,591m) of the mysterious conduits inside Mother Earth. Is it prudent? The community will undoubtedly judge her actions as either heroic or psychotic. Although reliable technology and tools have increased the range of modern cave divers, some things will never change. Wes Skiles’ unlikely protégé will agree that, “Nothing can beat the moment you unwind a reel into completely uncharted territory.” In writing about Agnes, I was
observing a shift in technical diving. Although it may have resulted in her untimely death, there were things that were coming to the surface that I felt were really positive. Younger divers seemed to be more gender blind. There was a welcome growing
26 Magazine
perception that women explorers were not less capable than men. There was no reason to sit in the bleachers when you could take the bull by the horns and blaze a trail. A writer asked, “Does anyone feel Agnes (an attractive female) was treated differently or encouraged differently than if a young male would have been doing the same level of dives at the same age/ experience level?” A pioneering cave diver
responded, indicating that Milowka had truly reached gender equality, “The sad fact of life is, Agnes died because she was out to prove she could do anything men could do. Well, she did, she died trying to prove something, like a lot of guys have done in the past.” In the end, we need to be open-
minded in our understanding of sexism. Men have ruled the planet for the past five million years. Feminism is not trying to rewrite history, but instead chart a course for a more equitable future. The
Feminism is not trying to rewrite history, but instead chart a course for a more equitable future
Divemaster Jo proves feminine
can convey strong and capable
mainstream women’s movement seeks to acknowledge the real differences between men and women while balancing power equitably. Women’s rights activists ask us to use feminist nomenclature that supports that cause. To this end, our community
can embrace some simple social manners: Try to view all your fellow
divers without pre-judging their capabilities. Quite simply, avoid making assumptions. Don’t conclude that women are tag- alongs. Err on the side of positivity. Assume all divers are capable, equal members of the dive team until personal observation tells you otherwise. Avoid offensive comments and sexual remarks about your fellow divers. Whether you have made an off-colour remark in person or on social media, remember that we all live in an increasingly pubic world. Anything you say will likely come back to you at some time in life. Above all, don’t be afraid to call
out bad behavior. It might provide an educational opportunity for some and empowerment for others. Co-author of my book, Women Underwater, Renee Power, shared
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