3 ms·
I'm not really sure how I feel about this. I'm white, not a woman, and I've been (almost certainly) a diversity hire. In some ways, someone arbitrarily opening
by kodah 4y ago
I'm not really sure how I feel about this. I'm white, not a woman, and I've been (almost certainly) a diversity hire.
In some ways, someone arbitrarily opening the door for you sheds a lot of load in the short-term. You still need all the grit that a chip on your shoulder gives you in order to succeed in the long run. When you do succeed you'll have to shed that load unless you want to sound like a bitter ass the rest of your life. My point here is, I didn't really need anyone to tell me that I was looked down on (by certain people) for a period of time to know it, and I'm not sure college admissions or jobs that are attracting diversity hires are attracting people who give a shit what you think in the short term.
Your opinion of me will be established long after the initial thought of, "Oh this guy is a diversity hire" has left the space between your ears.
- boppo1 4y agoHow did you wind up a diversity hire?
- kodah 4y agoFormer military. I had been programming prior to being in the military, but after getting out nobody really wanted to hire me. My skills weren't really relevant any more, so I don't blame them. A couple firms ended up giving me a chance in the network and systems space.
- happyopossum 4y agoHiring veterans is completely different from hiring for racial diversity - being former military is a strong signal for many positive qualities that employers look for.
- kodah 4y agoMaybe to some degree, but it's not all that different. The way I look at it, for that job and one other, was that I was underqualified, came with a built-in tax break, and preferential resume review. It's still a form of affirmative action, and its purpose is similar. I'm specifically referring to being a campaign badge class, and to a time period in my career that was when I first got out.