It's interesting to see that the author strongly dislikes the question "So, what’s it like being a black guy in Silicon Valley?" since I could easily see it bei

It's interesting to see that the author strongly dislikes the question "So, what’s it like being a black guy in Silicon Valley?" since I could easily see it being a gesture of wanting to engage from someone who doesn't know how to otherwise engage. You regularly see white people "embarrass" themselves by engaging on this topic in the "wrong" way, even if they have the right intentions, without a clear idea of what to do (e.g. Howard Schulz, Macklemore, etc.) ("White People. Don't talk about racism." "White People. You have to lead the conversation on race.") Given such limited upside and very significant downsides, it's no surprise that the vast majority of white people refuse to engage on the issue, even if they actually do want to contribute positively. I myself follow this rule religiously -- I run a small startup in Silicon Valley, with male and female engineers, all white, Asian, and one Latino. But I'd rather chew on broken glass than ever discuss any "controversial" topic, such as diversity, racism, Black Lives Matter, Donald Trump, immigration, etc. etc. -- I just will not discuss it in any context and in any forum, because there's nothing to gain and too much to lose.