Gender, sexism, etc
Igal Koshevoy
nearby Ruby conference, as well as some of the enlightening and
disappointing follow-up comments.
I'd be interested in hearing you suggestions, be in public or personal,
about these matters and what I personally can do or we as a larger group
can do to make things better.
Here are the relevant links:
http://www.ultrasaurus.com/sarahblog/2009/04/gender-and-sex-at-gogaruco/
http://dyepot-teapot.com/2009/04/25/dear-fellow-rubyists/
http://dyepot-teapot.com/2009/04/26/so-now-what/
Thank you.
-igal
Bram Pitoyo
the temptation to get instant attention by being brazen is hard to
resist. The subject itself, not the fancy things one wraps around the
subject, should warrant enough interest.
Daniel Johnson
> about these matters and what I personally can do or we as a larger group
> can do to make things better.
The fact that so many people deny that it is even a problem is a
hurdle in itself.
I know a lot of geeky women, and I have heard many sad stories of how
they have been treated in technology, and science.
One friend was in a computer science program, and was repeatedly told
that she would quit, and not recognized for any of the good work that
she did until she finally quit.
Another friend had her software development tools deleted by her
boyfriend because "you'll never use these".
There is easily enough research, and content on this subject to fill a
book, and there is much disagreement about what the right solution is.
I don't know what the solution is. I try to learn how I might be
part of the problem, and adjust my behavior based on that. At some
point I realized that a friend had expressed interest in learning
technology, and asked me, but I hadn't done much to help them. I
asked them if they were still interested, and ended up mentoring them
for a few months. I've mentored a few other women, and it seems to be
rewarding in both directions. I feel like I am making progress, but I
can only do so much. Allison Randal (OSCON chair) told me that she
got where she is today largely as a result of others mentoring her. I
strongly feel that this is at least part of the solution.
Scott Becker
this context, but that's about it. It made both men and women
uncomfortable.
- There are assholes in every profession.
- Someone is always wrong on the internet.
- We have a choice whether or not to listen, or waste cycles on this.
- Time is better spent doing something productive. Someone is writing
the next great software program while everyone else debates this.
- Women have had great success in other male-dominated professions
that exude much more machismo.
- Close the tab. Just close the tab. :)
- Scott
Scott Becker
presentation at GoGaRuCo.
As far as gender inequality goes, I don't think it's a waste of time
to try to make the IT world a more inviting place for women to work,
or to discuss it. It would be great if there were more women in tech,
and I will keep my eyes open for any more insight into how to do that.
-Scott
Igal Koshevoy
pdxruby: http://groups.google.com/group/pdxruby
Daniel Johnson wrote:
> Allison Randal (OSCON chair) told me that she
> got where she is today largely as a result of others mentoring her.
It's worth mentioning that Code-n-Splode is tonight (4/28) at 7pm,
CubeSpace. It's a user group dedicated to bringing together women in
technology.
It's also worth mentioning that many of those heavily involved in Open
Source Bridge have helped create other events, projects and efforts that
have engaged more women and a broader range of the community through
mentoring and leadership opportunities: Calagator, FOSCONs, BarCamps,
Ignites, WhereCamp, etc. I believe these efforts have made a difference.
> One friend was in a computer science program, and was repeatedly told
> that she would quit, and not recognized for any of the good work that
> she did until she finally quit.
Was this sexism or simple hostility? I was told this when taking CS
classes, along with everyone else because there was an aggressive policy
in most schools to eliminate students. For example, my CS161 class
started with maybe 300 students, but there were only about 20 left to
take the final, and this was seen as desirable by the administration.
> Another friend had her software development tools deleted by her
> boyfriend because "you'll never use these".
The boyfriend's behavior was bad. However, I respectfully suggest that
choosing to date such a jerk was also bad.
Scott Becker wrote:
> Women have had great success in other male-dominated professions
> that exude much more machismo.
The words "macho" and "male-dominated" come up a lot in these
discussions. However, programming seems far less "macho" or deliberately
sexist than other professions, and thus should be better off, yet it's
worse. While I accept that these are problems, I can't help but think
that there's got to be something else that's either different or more
specific that's at the core cause of this massive imbalance.
> I will keep my eyes open for any more insight into how to do that.
Thanks!
-igal
Daniel Johnson
>> boyfriend because "you'll never use these".
> The boyfriend's behavior was bad. However, I respectfully suggest that
> choosing to date such a jerk was also bad.
I think he has been told that even if he walked on water he couldn't
get her back.
Igal Koshevoy
-igal
Igal Koshevoy
this Saturday at noon in CubeSpace. I hope this session will provide a
more casual, in person way to discuss this important topic and work
towards a solution. There's been a very positive response from people
throughtout the Ruby and Rails community and specific projects to try
to build on that, so this would be a great opportunity to talk about
moving forward.
-igal
http://calagator.org/events/1250456642
http://barcamp.org/BarCampPortland
http://2009.barcampportland.com/