This is the framing that I resonate with as well. I really appreciate all the conversations as of late on code4lib and I find that the poll on gender and community was incredibly illuminating. I'm currently reading 'Unlocking the clubhouse' and there are large swaths of relevant passages that apply that have to with the setting of model behaviour in a field that might explain the high numbers who don't feel the community that others do (An aside: when you are tempted to tell someone else what to *feel* please re-consider).
One aspect of community is the sense of shared experience. If you are a librarian, you don't have to explain the work that you do at in the same way you have to do when you among non-librarians. That's part of the joy of a community. In code4lib you can joke about text editors or what have you, knowing most folks will get and maybe even laugh at the joke. Again, I want to say that I appreciate the efforts of those who are taking the time to explain where women's experiences are not so shared with men. I've seen what I think is genuine reflection and re-thinking and that gladdens the heart. That being said, comments like this http://serials.infomotions.com/code4lib/archive/2012/201212/3988.htm<http://serials.infomotions.com/code4lib/archive/2012/201212/3988.html>l feel like trolling to me and the lack of response to such comments leaves me disappointed. Having to constantly explains one's self doesn't lend to a sense of community. All that being said, I would hate the code4lib community to lose momentum on the matter of the anti-harassment policy. Sadly, it is much needed. M On Fri, Dec 7, 2012 at 6:17 PM, Bess Sadler <bess.sad...@gmail.com> wrote: > On Dec 7, 2012, at 12:59 PM, Joshua Gomez <jngo...@gwu.edu> wrote: > > > Others have mentioned they fear that a subgroup will only decrease the > > diversity within code4lib by pulling women away from it and into the new > > group. This was my initial concern as well, but when I look at other > kinds > > of women in tech groups I realize that they don't decrease women's > > participation in mainstream groups. In fact they help boost women's > > profiles and skill sets, thus increasing their likelihood of > participating > > in mainstream groups. > > Well said, Joshua. Any separate women in technology groups I've been > involved with (e.g., devchix, grrlswithmodems back in the day) have been > what you describe here. These groups are supplementary, and create a place > to get support if one needs help navigating mainstream (and yes, > male-dominated) communities. > > Bess >
