I teach a professional development course to our environmental health science graduate students. It’s a small class — just 53 students — of whom 44 are female. Amongst other things, we address topics like teamwork, workplace culture, career progress, and harassment.

Given the nature of the class, and the fuss over one European Science Agency scientist’s attire this week, it seemed reasonable to ask myself, would I wear this shirt to class?

The answer is no. As a lecturer, I have a responsibility to teach and nurture my students, and not to denigrate, marginalize, discriminate, suppress, or otherwise harm any one of them . Wearing this shirt would send them a clear message that, at best, I care more about myself than my students, and at worst, I despised them. There is no doubt in my mind that some of my students would be marginalized, silenced and disadvantaged through the act of wearing this shirt in class. (I would also be in breach of university policy on acceptable conduct).

I am also chair of my department. In this role I have a responsibility for ensuring over 150 students are given every opportunity to develop their full potential without having to face harassment, prejudice and other barriers because of their gender, sexual orientation, race, color, or any other factor that is immaterial to their ability as a future environmental heath sciences professional.

So would I wear this shirt to work as department chair? Absolutely not.

Why? because the shirt would send a message that the department does not value those it sets out to serve. It would suggest that there is a not-so-secret culture of discouraging females from developing their full professional potential. And it would indicate that the department embraces males that support this culture, and marginalizes those who do not.

In addition to teaching and academic administration, I spend a lot of my time talking to people about science, often in public venues. Would I wear this shirt on any of these occasions?

No. It would be offensive to some people who had no reason to think a science talk would contain such material. It would undermine the feeling of worth and validity of those listening who found the shirt’s content and the culture it represented demeaning. It would send a message that the culture of science is threaded with bigotry. And it would diminish my ability to communicate and engage as a scientist.

Going back to my professional development class, the irony of this shirt is that I could never use it as an example of what not to wear with my students — it’s too inappropriate even for that.

Which begs the question — why did the European Space Agency allow a very similar shirt to be worn at a public and widely broadcast event, where they had no control over who would see it and how it would affect them?

In my roles as teacher, academic administrator and public communicator, I am acutely aware of the responsibilities I have toward the most vulnerable people I connect with. This is why I would not wear that shirt. Maybe that’s just me though.