I have been riding the New York City Subway system since the 1960’s and on my own since the 1970’s. I had been known, from time to time, to offer my seat to the elderly and pregnant. I later found out the dangers of wrongly assuming someone being pregnant.
By the mid 1980’s I started to notice how few women gave up their seats to the elderly and pregnant. If they did, they mostly gave their seats to elderly women and not so many elderly men. When these women gave up their seats, they did it with anger that nobody gave their seat before they did. In fact, since the 1980’s I have only counted 3 women giving up their seats for an elderly man.
Now, when I do give up my seat, I only give it to elderly men and once in a while, I’ll give my seat to men that look like they had a hard day.