A Great Read on Allies
A problem that I have recently started to become aware of is sexism in the tech industry. It was quite a rude awakening, I no longer existed in a naive bubble where merit was rewarded above all else. There is no doubt the problem exists. The solution isn’t out of reach but it is hard. Very hard.
As a very privileged white male I knew enough not to dive in suggestion solutions. I’ve been listening to a lot of great people. Experts in this area that can offer a lot more than myself.
So you want to be an ally
Julie Pagano has written a great post on how to get started as an ally. That is, someone not in the oppressed minority that wants to see an end to the oppression.
Please read it. Go a head. I’ll wait.
That link again: http://juliepagano.com/blog/2014/05/10/so-you-want-to-be-an-ally/
Listening
To be honest I don’t have much more to add. I think listening and being uncomfortable is a great start. You never learn anything in an echo chamber. If someone’s comments on sexism start to make you uncomfortable maybe you should reflect on why that is. You might learn something.
How do you listen? Julie provides a list of people to follow on Twitter as well as a large list of resources. I haven’t checked them all out yet but some of them are great.