{"id":3539,"date":"2021-05-26T17:04:34","date_gmt":"2021-05-26T21:04:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chrisgrundemann.com\/?p=3539"},"modified":"2021-07-08T11:05:02","modified_gmt":"2021-07-08T15:05:02","slug":"say-no-to-misogyny-be-an-ally","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chrisgrundemann.com\/index.php\/2021\/say-no-to-misogyny-be-an-ally\/","title":{"rendered":"Just Say No, to Misogyny: How and Why to Be an Ally"},"content":{"rendered":"

Women working in technology face harassment on a daily basis. As men, we are responsible to police our own behavior to put an end to this. From the gender gap to gender bias to full on sexual harassment and rape, this is a very real and very large problem. The only way to solve it is by being aware, being vigilant, and being downright decent to each other. This post is a look at the problem as I see it, and a sketch of how to solve it \u2013 man to man.<\/p>\n

Gender in Tech<\/h1>\n

One of my favorite, and most overused quotes is William Gibson<\/a>\u2019s statement that the future is already here, it\u2019s just not evenly distributed. While I believe he was referring specifically to the accessibility of technology based on wealth and location, I find that it also applies to social advancements. Case in point: While some communities are focused on advancing equality, diversity, and inclusion of smaller and smaller groups of minorities \u2013 as they should \u2013 many others are still struggling with very basic gaps between two of the most fundamental groups of humans: Men and Women.<\/p>\n

The American Association of University Women (AAUW) has been doing some wonderful work in this area, including compiling statistics that highlight what they call The STEM Gap<\/a>: \u201cWomen make up only 28% of the workforce in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), and men vastly outnumber women majoring in most STEM fields in college.\u201d What\u2019s even more disturbing to me, is that while the gender gap in many STEM fields has been slowly narrowing over the past 50+ years, the percentage of women in \u2018computer and mathematical occupations\u2019 (what I\u2019ll call \u2018technology\u2019 in this post) was actually a point lower in 2013 compared to 1960.<\/p>\n

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That chart is from a great AAUW report titled Solving the Equation – The Variables for Women\u2019s Success in Engineering and Computing<\/a>. If you are an educator or employer within the tech industry, you should find time to read it in its entirety.<\/p>\n

It Gets Worse<\/h1>\n

A three to one gap in representation is bad enough. It means that many girls are being robbed of the opportunity to thrive in a career they would love. That many boys may be pushed into a career they don\u2019t. And it means that organizations, institutions, and society at large are missing out on a more open and diverse perspective on some of our most important topics and projects. But it\u2019s worse than that. In addition to the gender gap in the tech industry, there is bias at play too.<\/p>\n

Bias is everywhere, and so far humans have proven incapable of avoiding it. But there are different flavors and intensities of bias. A 2020 article from Western Governors University<\/a> (WGU) points out that gender bias exists in many fields \u2013 often against men. \u201cThis can happen in nursing, education, childcare, communications industries, and more.\u201d But these biases usually amount to \u201cstereotypes and sexist comments about their work.\u201d And while that sucks, it\u2019s nothing compared to what women in tech face on a daily basis. Here are some examples from that article:<\/p>\n