In case you didn’t know, my technology will be intersectional or it will be BULLSHIT

I mentioned this on twitter late last night and again today, but I want to repeat it here for those who missed it.

If the message you took from my posts is that we should treat women special, please understand that you got it wrong. We should be making everyone feel welcome in tech. The experiences I described are just my personal examples of areas where we may be falling short.

The experiences I described are largely about being a woman in the tech industry because I am a woman - that’s my lived experience. I cannot speak directly to the experiences of people who are black or transgender or disabled or hispanic or gay or any other number of underrepresented groups that have it just as hard, if not dramatically harder, than people like me. It’s not right for me to try to appropriate their experiences, but many of them are dying from 1000 paper cuts too. They have their own stories to tell, and you should listen to them too.

I’m not ok with a movement that pushes forward to claim a place for women in tech while leaving other people behind. That’s just moving the goal post, and it’s not sufficient. This isn’t about building a better position for myself (and others like me), it’s about pushing for a better community for everyone. Anything short of that feels like selfish bullshit.

I received a lot of kind words in response to my posts, and I appreciated every one of them. You are good people, and you clearly care. Please share your own stories - I will support you in doing so. I want to hear a multitude of voices, and I don’t want them all to sound like mine.

I welcome you to join me in screaming the only catchphrase that I can seem to muster these days. MY TECHNOLOGY WILL BE INTERSECTIONAL OR IT WILL BE BULLSHIT!!!