Our community has largely been defined by not-poor straight white men over the years, but it’s growing more diverse every day as kids get excited about technology and adults realize our industry is fast-growing and valuable. Diversity does not end at gender or sexuality or race; people with a wide variety of life experiences and opinions have joined the community. This is a wonderful thing, but it also means that there will be a wider range of reactions and more potential for miscommunication. In other words, we have many more opportunities to decide whether we 1) belittle and ostracize people for being different from us or 2) react with empathy, patience, and kindness.

Dear Fellow Geeks: WTF? – Making the World Suck Less

Alexis Ohanian, founder of Reddit, on racism and sexism in online, geek communities.


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