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I got the same impression from the article, actually. As a minority in CS, I find it offensive that people just want to toss us in there to add "diversity." I h
by ceras 14y ago
I got the same impression from the article, actually. As a minority in CS, I find it offensive that people just want to toss us in there to add "diversity." I have no reason to think the event's organizers were being sexist or racist (and I don't suspect it), but if they deliberately set out to find women or Hispanics to speak and set a quota for it like the author suggested I would certainly find that offensive. Just my two cents.
Edit: Just want to clarify that I think diversity in this field is a huge problem, and I care a lot about it, but the author's tone (he was immediately critical of organizers who may be innocent) and suggestion did not sit well with me.
- arrrg 14y agoWhere does the author make that suggestion? I see no accusation of sexism or racism. I’m sorry, but an all-male lineup really is not so great. It may not be literally ‘inexcusable’, but it’s pretty damn close. When you then get a hostile response that doesn’t even attempt to excuse (maybe there is a valid excuse of some sort), then that behavior is literally inexcusable. Yes, I do expect conference organizers to put extra effort into making sure the lineup is at least somewhat balanced. Just not being actively sexist (by, say, denying qualified female speakers) is most certainly not enough. When an all-male lineup is the result of their normal process then I do expect organizers to go the extra mile, looking for qualified female speakers. That’s all, and it’s really not that much to expect. I expect no one to relax their criteria for selection, but I do expect people to search harder. I think that’s very much needed.