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It is really worth considering that this conference used a blind review process[1]. Subsequently, there is zero chance that the reviewer's decisions were influe

It is really worth considering that this conference used a blind review process[1]. Subsequently, there is zero chance that the reviewer's decisions were influenced by racism or sexism. As a society, we need to consider the implications of what is going on here. In what way could this move possibly be said to be anti-racist/anti-sexist? It just isn't. If anything, abandoning your speakers because they are male/white (presumably), is itself bigoted. Consider how it would feel to be bumped from a speaker line up because of your race/gender. [1] https://cfp.githubapp.com/events/electronconf-2017 https://cfp.githubapp.com/events/electronconf-2017

Normal_gaussian 9y ago
Blind review followed by them selecting for diversity. They have an agenda and it hasn't got anything to do with code.
- huffmsa 9y ago
  They realized they blindly selected and enjoyed topics submitted by the undiverse, and this is the discordant backlash. "Oh God, I liked a talk by a white male! Cancel everything."
indy 9y ago
It's an unfortunate sign that you felt the need to use a throwaway account in order to make such a statement.
- thrownaway114 9y ago
  I know. I am genuinely embarrassed not to associate my real name with my public speech. Having calculated the potential cost (and the low-impact of my message), though, it was either speak pseudonymously, or not at all.
yorick 9y ago
However, there's might still be bias in who applies to speak at this kind of conference. They could have done more to reach out and encourage other groups to apply. I'd be interested to see the submission statistics.
- thrownaway114 9y ago
  True. It would be very interesting to see who actually applied.
bluesign 9y ago
It is not totally blind, worse than that it is pro-diversity :) 'Speaker information will be used in any final reviews necessary to break ties and bring a balance to the speaking line-up.'
- thrownaway114 9y ago
  One wonders how they they ended up with an all white group if the '...break ties and bring a balance to the speaking line-up' step had actually been applied?
petercooper 9y ago
Pro-diversity, ex-conference (not this one) organizer here. I can't speak for what GitHub did or didn't do, but a common problem is that there is a huge step before review that you can't skip. You must coach, encourage, and counsel the types of people you want to submit talks! If you don't, don't be surprised if they don't submit because of the treatment or impression they have from other events in the past. Pro-active outreach to underrepresented groups is the way to get better events and a blind review process is no panacea despite many organizers seeming to think it is. It's suggested here that they did blind review and then wanted to tweak for diversity. That's just not how it works. You need the diversity up front in the submissions.

Normal_gaussian 9y ago

Blind review followed by them selecting for diversity. They have an agenda and it hasn't got anything to do with code.

huffmsa 9y ago
They realized they blindly selected and enjoyed topics submitted by the undiverse, and this is the discordant backlash. "Oh God, I liked a talk by a white male! Cancel everything."

indy 9y ago

It's an unfortunate sign that you felt the need to use a throwaway account in order to make such a statement.

thrownaway114 9y ago
I know. I am genuinely embarrassed not to associate my real name with my public speech. Having calculated the potential cost (and the low-impact of my message), though, it was either speak pseudonymously, or not at all.

yorick 9y ago

However, there's might still be bias in who applies to speak at this kind of conference. They could have done more to reach out and encourage other groups to apply. I'd be interested to see the submission statistics.

thrownaway114 9y ago
True. It would be very interesting to see who actually applied.

bluesign 9y ago

It is not totally blind, worse than that it is pro-diversity :) 'Speaker information will be used in any final reviews necessary to break ties and bring a balance to the speaking line-up.'

thrownaway114 9y ago
One wonders how they they ended up with an all white group if the '...break ties and bring a balance to the speaking line-up' step had actually been applied?

petercooper 9y ago

Pro-diversity, ex-conference (not this one) organizer here. I can't speak for what GitHub did or didn't do, but a common problem is that there is a huge step before review that you can't skip. You must coach, encourage, and counsel the types of people you want to submit talks! If you don't, don't be surprised if they don't submit because of the treatment or impression they have from other events in the past. Pro-active outreach to underrepresented groups is the way to get better events and a blind review process is no panacea despite many organizers seeming to think it is. It's suggested here that they did blind review and then wanted to tweak for diversity. That's just not how it works. You need the diversity up front in the submissions.