Breaking Through the Bro-Culture in Tech
What does it take to break through the bro-culture ceiling in tech? That’s the question women in tech face every day. Only holding about 21% of the tech jobs in 2016, women are severely underrepresented in the tech industry. Why does this imbalance occur? Harassment, sexist societal norms, and gender discrimination are at the root of the problem.
David Bonderman, Travis Kalanick, and Justin Caldbeck. Due to recent events, these names are synonymous with sexism and harassment in tech. This week, six women came forward to expose the gross and unprofessional actions of Justin Caldbeck. Caldbeck, a tech venture capitalist, abused his power by groping and sending lurid texts to women seeking his financial backing. Unsurprisingly, Caldbeck denies these allegations and continues to paint himself as the epitome of professionalism. Even Binary Capital, a company invested in by Caldbeck, states that these claims are false. They go as far as to trivialize the situation by saying Caldbeck only “flirted” with women. Since when is it professional for anyone to abuse their power to flirt or make unwanted advances to other people? This double standard is the root of the problem. Women should be treated with the same respect as any man in the workforce!
Unlike Binary and Caldbeck, Uber has been making strides to fix the problem of sexism facing their company. After…
