“How The Meritocracy Myth Affects Women In Technology”

“One of the most prevalent defenses against claims of gender bias and sexism in the tech industry is that Silicon Valley is a meritocracy, where the smartest, most skilled engineers and the best ideas rise to the top. Following this logic, the people with the most merit just happen to be almost all white men.”
http://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsidered/2014/02/06/272646267/how-the-meritocracy-myth-affects-women-in-technology

Why I find the meritocracy myth so upsetting — I don’t totally understand how a person can believe in meritocracy without implicitly holding racist and sexist assumptions (or not being a particularly introspective person)