Gay and transgenr engeers nverged on a technology nference aimed at LGBT folks hosted on the Facebook mp last weekend. Here’s why many Silin Valley pani are takg this group serly.
Contents:
- WHERE ARE ALL THE GAY SOFTWARE ENGEERS?
- QUEER & NERDY: WHY YOUR STARTUP SHOULD HIRE A GAY VELOPER
- MR. JT GAY
- WHY GAY ENGEERS MAKE THE ENGEERG INDTRY A BETTER PLACE
WHERE ARE ALL THE GAY SOFTWARE ENGEERS?
Tech pani are creasgly acceptg of gays and lbians * all engineers are gay *
In the Uned Stat, there is the Natnal Organizatn of Gay and Lbian Scientists and Technil Profsnals (NOGLSTP), NuclearPri, 500 Queer Scientists, LGBT STEM, and oSTEM. Meyer is days, engeers and the anizatns that employ them may accept the need to diversify the profsn terms of race, genr, relign, and physil abili, but sexual orientatn remas a prickly topic�wns the recent ntroversy over gay marriage the U.
QUEER & NERDY: WHY YOUR STARTUP SHOULD HIRE A GAY VELOPER
* all engineers are gay *
He rells male classmat engeerg school jokg about gays ont of him, obliv to his sexual orientatn.
MR. JT GAY
Jt Gay is the Deputy Engeer and Chief, Programs and Project Management Divisn, USACE Los Angel District., * all engineers are gay *
Thgs might be tougher for gay men engeerg, a profsn that is tradnally "whe, male, and nservative, " Meyer says, bee "gay [men] are stereotypilly nsired feme and weak and more to artsy stuff. C., advocy anizatn for the gay, lbian, bisexual, and transgenr (GLBT) muny, attus are shiftg.
WHY GAY ENGEERS MAKE THE ENGEERG INDTRY A BETTER PLACE
" Many high-tech employers, for example, now clu gays and lbians their diversy 's still room for improvement, though.
In the HRC x, most of the tech employers that offer benefs to gays (such as health-re verage for domtic partners) still don't clu transgenred dividuals their equal-employment polici. Workplace, as society, gays and lbians are not yet regnized as a group that serv benefs and legal protectn.
"It is still legal 36 stat to fire employe who are gay, " says Daryl Herrschaft, puty director of HRC's WorkNet, a program that provis up-to-date rmatn on workplace polici and laws throughout the Uned Stat. " Even though she hadn't seen overt discrimatn, she didn't tell -workers she was a lbian, bee she didn't feel that most people were aware of, and fortable wh, gay and lbian today are much more acceptg of the GLBT muny, Icenogle says. "Icenogle is now chair of Lucent's GLBT support group, where gay employe n raise workplace issu of tert to them.