NEWS

In the last few weeks there have been several stories about the difficulties that women and minorities face in the tech industry as it relates to opportunities and, most importantly, funding their tech ideas. These stories remind me of my own experiences as a black woman in tech during the recent launch of my social innovation app Donafy.

The Linux Foundation, the nonprofit organization enabling mass innovation through open source, today announced its partnership with Women Who Code to increase diversity in the technology industry and support women who want to attend Linux Foundation events. The partnership includes free and discounted passes to Linux Foundation events for Women Who Code members, as well as an initial donation to the organization to support its greater efforts to support women in technology.

Is it almost reverse logic in some ways to call out ‘women in technology’ as an issue that needs addressing? Surely it should just be people in technology, some of whom are women, right? Speaking as a man married to a female professional software application developer who feels exactly this way, it’s kind of tough not to see women coder initiatives as sexist in their own right.