As one of the very first women techs at IBM, the first in my office, the first any of IBM’s customers had ever heard about much less seen, and one of the few who ever got promoted into managing mainframe accounts, what I saw is so different than what my co-workers understood. Men who were not bigots - who did not care what nationality, color or gender someone was as long as they could do the job — consistently failed to recognize all but the most blatant bigotry experienced by the women and non-white men working with us. Once I pointed something out and explained why it was discriminatory — only then did they clearly see what the issues were.

I could write a small book on things that happened. For now, I want to say that personally I was treated and paid 100% equally by management, co-workers and all but a rare old-timer among my peers. 99% of customers were curious, surprised or shocked with the #1 question being “can women do this”? The 1% of outright bigots were the exception — not the norm — and fortunately (for me — but not for others) — they weren’t in the offices I worked in. Other women and minorities especially in the south or on the east coast had far greater challenges to overcome than I did.

But to my foolish basic instructor who had the nerve to ask me who I was sleeping with to get the answers because I kept acing his tests — a man convinced that only white males could repair computer equipment — a man who considered all non-white males and women equally incapable — I’d like to say I feel sorry for you and for anyone who took classes from you. We (our entire class collectively — the first class he had to teach that was not all white and male) made upper management aware of his issues and he never got promoted into management (thankfully). Decades later he was still in education, teaching a class for specialists I almost asked to attend. When I found out he was teaching it, I elected not to request it. No woman ever had to that date. Maybe none ever did.