I will admit that this shocked me.  What she describes is appalling and sadly, I’m sure, not an isolated case.  I was ignorant to the fact that this occurred, that people would be so utterly awful.  I guess it should not have surprised me and that is the problem.  Upon reflection, I tend to ignore this side of our industry.  If I don’t think about it, perhaps it will go away – almost willful ignorance.  That is not the right attitude.  As leaders and as members of a wider community, we must actively root out and remove this behavior.  Evidence of this problem is all around us.  From “booth babes” at conferences (which have, thankfully, come under some criticism) to lewd remarks about women in the office, the signs are there.  The question I must ask myself is, “What will I do about it?”  The beginning of an answer, I believe, is two fold.  

We must challenge this behavior whenever we see it.  Silence is acceptance so don’t be silent.  The frat boy mentality that pervades a percentage of this industry cannot continue.  If you find yourself joining in inappropriate conversation about a coworker, stop.  If you overhear remarks by co-workers, don’t let them stand.  This is a cultural issue and small acts of defiance will begin to change things.

Second, show support for the women in this field.  I will admit that I don’t know what this looks like.  I don’t exactly know how to help, at least in an active sense.  Shedding light on the issue is one way but that feels too passive to me.

I don’t want this post to come off as preachy – I’m not on a soapbox.  I want it to raise awareness and challenge all of us to be better.

Thank you to Jesse Frazelle for not being silent.  Go read her blog https://blog.jessfraz.com/.  She has awesome posts on Docker among other things.