Is #MeToo a tipping point for tech? RightsCon panel suggests we’ve got miles to go

At the RightsCon2018 Toronto panel on Women & Silicon Valley last week, leaders in technology, human rights, and government discussed the ongoing struggles for equality and fairness faced by women and people of color. Although they noted the importance of #MeToo as a watershed moment and highlighted a number of practices since put in place to improve disparities, the women didn’t gloss over the significant roadblocks to progress. And they noted that the fight for equality is important far beyond tech.

“We know that diversity in tech is important to innovation…but more importantly in developing solutions to the most important problems of our times,” said Allison Scott, chief research officer at the Kapor Center, which researches diversity in tech. She said that biases in recruitment and hiring have led to fewer women, women of color, and people of color in tech and especially in power positions—a problem that demands an intersectional approach.

Barriers to equality exist on structural, cultural, and individual levels, said Alexa Koenig, executive director of UC Berkeley’s Human Rights Center. She told the story of a law school event with a celebrated — and diminutive — female judge who could barely see over the podium until organizers scrambled to find a box for her to stand on. Introduced by a tall and commanding male law student, the female judge’s position was diminished by architecture designed for and by men.

“I was so struck by the fact that a 2L law student seemed more in command than this extremely accomplished female judge,” Koenig explained, noting that this type of structural disparity exists in tech and human rights arenas.

Koenig also recounted a recent conversation with a colleague who was assembling a workshop panel. When she suggested that they include some women in the space, he responded that he was not willing to compromise on inviting “the best.”

Koenig’s response: “There is a difference between who is best and who is best known. We have to get others to be best known.”

She suggested we also must think through the “good guy problem” in the human rights and tech worlds, where even men who are sympathetic don’t really grasp the underlying power dynamics and don’t take risks to be allies to female colleagues — especially when the issues are no longer theoretical, such as when it’s a good friend who is in the hot seat or when they’re thinking about starting a company and only suggest men as potential cofounders.

Engaging men in this struggle is of utmost importance, said Ursula Wynhoven, representative to the United Nations, International Telecommunication Union. “Inequality and the kinds of behaviors that have provoked the #MeToo movement are fundamentally about power. Who has the power?” she asked.

Wynhoven highlighted the “Male champions of Change for Global Tech” effort to recruit a cadre of male tech leaders to be allies for gender equality. Fifteen companies have been tapped so far to and another 15 will come on board soon, she said.

Brittny Saunders, deputy commissioner for strategic initiatives for the New York City Commission on Human Rights, said that in the wake of #MeToo, her city has hosted hearings on sexual harassment in the workplace, recently expanded the statute of limitations for sexual harassment claims to three years, and held trainings on gender equality.

Global Connectivity Policy Manager for Facebook Carolina Rossini also said that anti-bias training is a key component of her company’s strategy for combatting inequality. She said in the short term Facebook is focused on building a more inclusive work environment and in the longterm on creating a “clear path” for women in tech.

During the Q&A, an audience member explained that she previously worked as an electrical engineer, a field dominated by men, and was continually belittled as an “affirmative action” hire who got the job primarily because she added diversity. She said the same misconceptions exist throughout the tech industry and that the problem is a big one: “I don’t think that deep down people value the diversity.”

Chloe Poynton, co-founder and principal at Article One and the event moderator, concluded the session by asking: If you had a magic wand, what would you do to improve equality in the space?

Panelists said we should invest in businesses started by women, demonstrate women’s economic impact, and teach the next generation about empathy.

To great applause, Koenig added: “Let’s stop protecting the male rock stars and overvaluing their contributions.”