"The" reason? Certainly not. There are far fewer girls getting exposed to tech early in their education. Far fewer girls see tech in general as a viable career

"The" reason? Certainly not. There are far fewer girls getting exposed to tech early in their education. Far fewer girls see tech in general as a viable career path. "A" reason? Absolutely. Other commenters have have linked to specific incidents where female tech employees have left jobs and even left the industry as a result of they way there were treated. I don't say this to downplay your position - which I understand to be that there are in fact other factors driving the gender ratio is tech. I assert without reservation that treatment of women in our industry is not the primary factor causing the imbalance. In my opinion, the social conversation within our community is toxic to both sides. I try very hard not to become involved in it. That said, my own political views lead me to see individuals as individuals first and foremost, to treat others in a way that encourages cooperation, and to engage with my peers in voluntary and mutually beneficial ways. In almost every way that I've been able to objectively nail down, I am a feminist. I just don't share some of the viewpoints of the particular variant that is vocal in our community. That's fine. I've worked both online and in person with many people whose beliefs in this matter differ from mine. Human beings are perfectly capable of identifying areas of common interest and working together to improve both of their positions, however incompatible their desires end states happen to be. I try to share my own values by working with young people and encouraging them to see tech as a valuable and valid career path - and as a passion that's worth pursuing regardless of their profession. There are many people who don't see it that way, for reasons that vary depending on their background. My sincere belief is that a world where every young person sees tech as an option is superior to today's world, where a large portion of children and young adults see it as inaccessible or unworthy of their attention. You don't have to self-identify as a feminist (or anything else) to share that belief :)