"But at the Boston conference, great strides were made to have a strong female presence. Almost 40% of attendees at Boston were female, almost 40% of speakers (

"But at the Boston conference, great strides were made to have a strong female presence. Almost 40% of attendees at Boston were female, almost 40% of speakers (at the time these numbers were VERY high)," That's not gender equality though, that's positive discrimination. I think conferences should try to get the best speakers available regardless of their gender. "She didn’t get the developer in question fired" She is clearly partly responsive for the company's reaction to the "incident". "How it Could Have Gone" The best alternative future is of course clear: act like an adult in a conference. If you think an overheard joke about "dongles" is not to your liking, then too bad. It's rude trying to control other people.