When you create a stupid system, don’t be surprised when people exploit it. And that’s exactly what happened over the weekend when a conference for women in tech was swamped by men who registered under the guise of “non-binary.”
The Grace Hopper Celebration is an annual conference and career fair designed to “bring the research and career interests of women in computing to the forefront.” But this year, droves of men descended on the Orlando event with résumés in hand. And some reportedly even cut lines and shoved women out of the way to submit those résumés to potential employers.
Female attendees expressed their frustration on social media.
“These men are acting like zoo animals, sprinting to the booths, and physically hurting some of the attendees,” one person wrote.
A product designer named Lily Li said the men didn’t attend the panels and seminars. Rather, they bolted straight for the job fair. In her TikTok video, she read comments from women who claimed they were bothered, harassed and even hit on by some of the male participants.
“This is a space for women in tech,” another Grace Hopper attendee said. “This is one of those few, limited resources that isn’t for you. It’s for us.”
@designalily Sharing the receipts of what happened at Grace Hopper conference this year. #womenintech #womanintech #gracehopper #womeninstem #techconference ♬ original sound - Lily | Product designer
