Fight sexual harassment in technology companies with — technology
The voices of victims are growing louder, amplifying from the Hollywood hills to the halls of Congress. Harrowing stories of systemic gender-based discrimination and sexual harassment in the workplace have dominated headlines and social media, raising awareness and encouraging change.
This is especially true for the tech sector.
Countless individuals have come forward and stats are rolling in. A recent study found that 90 percent of women in Silicon Valley have witnessed sexist behavior and 60 percent have experienced sexual harassment firsthand.
For many, including myself, the vast number of firsthand experiences and stats have lifted a heavy weight — you’re not alone, you’re not an outlier, you’re not wrong. There is, as they say, strength in numbers.
But strength in numbers is just the start. Now that there’s greater awareness around gender discrimination and harassment in tech, it’s time for the sector to roll up its sleeves, turn its skills inward and address these issues head-on.
Callisto and NativeVR are two women-led Bay Area tech startups doing exactly this. The founders described their innovative tech at a Women in Tech symposium held Nov. 30 in Santa Clara by the Center for Information Technology in the Interest of Society (CITRIS) and the Banatao Institute.
As a survivor of sexual assault, Jessica Ladd launched Callisto to ensure others didn’t have to face the pain she felt in reporting her incident.
“The process of reporting can be traumatic and intimidating,” she said. “I developed Callisto to meet victims where they are, allowing them to digitally timestamp when the assault occurred, report to authorities and connect with legal services on their own terms, when they’re ready.”
Currently in operation at 12 universities nationwide, Callisto helps victims feel more confident and safe to report their experiences, with reduced fear of reprisal. Ladd is exploring its application in professional industries.
It’s not easy to come forward and report workplace sexual harassment and discrimination, especially if it’s committed by someone who has control over your career, your future. Callisto holds great promise as a tool that can help victims in the tech sector hold their assailants accountable.
James Damore’s “Google Manifesto” struck a nerve for many, confirming that underlying biases perpetuate inequalities and reinforce fears of generations of women in male-dominated sectors — you’re inferior and don’t belong.
Nathalie Mathé, founder and creative director of NativeVR, is trying to uncover these biases by helping female and male colleagues become more aware of gender discrimination in the workplace.
Through its immersive and interactive virtual reality environment, NativeVR’s UTURN offers participants the opportunity to experience a story in a startup through the eyes of two different characters, male and female. The participant can seamlessly move between the male point of view and the female point of view, allowing for greater understanding of each side’s perspective.
“Virtual reality offers a direct experience on a personal level,” says Mathé. “It’s a tool that can help support social change and impact by immersing you into situations that makes you confront your hidden blind spots.”
In order to address gender discrimination, greater awareness and understanding of one’s own blind spots is key. UTURN provides this critical first step, and it’s offering development workshops centered around this VR experience to tech companies.
There is a great deal of work to be done to address gender-based discrimination and harassment in the tech sector. While the current flood of stories and stats are raising awareness, it’s critical that we turn this momentum into actionable change.
It’s time the tech sector applies its considerable creativity, expertise and resources to develop tools to confront and remedy its gender inequality problem.
Brandie M. Nonnecke is a postdoctoral researcher at CITRIS and the Banatao Institute at UC Berkeley. Her research and op-eds are available at nonnecke.com and medium.com/@BNonnecke.
This piece was originally published in Mercury News on Dec. 13.
