Steve and I were seated at a table with a handful of other pastors and ministry leaders. He and I were co-leaders of a campus ministry, and had essentially the same amount of experience and authority. This fact was apparently lost on the men in our company. Over and over again, my husband was acknowledged while I was not. One male pastor asked Steve for advice with regards to serving college students. I, on the other hand, was completely ignored and discounted, even though I was sitting right there. Was it because I was a woman? Was it because I was Asian? Whatever the reason, it seemed clear that my white husband was taken far more seriously than me. And whatever the reason, it did not feel good. It was disempowering, dismissive, and belittling.
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