[Noisebridge-discuss] I got groped at noisebridge at hackmeet

[VonGuard]

Wow. Really Noisebridge? I am so utterly disappointed in everything
about this email and the reaction to it that I am appalled and ashamed
that I was every associated with the space to begin with.

I sat down in front of the assembled membership 2 years ago and was
almost in tears explaining why this sort of shit had to be taken
seriously, and why Noisebridge could NOT tollerate this typoe of
sexist behavior in the space. It was a fight to get ya'll to recognize
it then. I see now my efforts were pointless.

I apologize to you Susan for the awful behavior of people in the space
and on this list. You're very right in not ever wanting to come back.
Noisebridge has changed. Noisebridge is pure shit now.

This reminds me of Reddit, where rapists are protected and normal
people or accusers are ostracized. Good job people, you fucked up
Noisebridge with your privileged male-ness.




On Sat, Oct 20, 2012 at 7:19 PM, Susan Werner <heinousbutch at gmail.com> wrote:
> I went to hackmeet today, tried to join in a few conversations, and got told
> to fuck off because I don't already know people. As I was crying and talking
> to someone on the Internet about how these kinds of events are intentionally
> hostile to people who don't already have significant social connections, some
> guy walks by me, and rubs his hand on my right breast, and calmly walks on as
> if nothing happened.
>
> I got groped while I was crying at noisebridge, during an event with lots of
> people at it, and nobody did anything. Nobody spoke a word to me. Nobody
> offered any kind of help whatsoever, and lots of people walked by me, as I was
> there for about half an hour after that happened.
>
> I'm done with noisebridge, done with its community which enables sexual
> assault, done with events which are intentionally hostile to newcomers, done
> with all the bullshit about it being an "anarchist space" where nothing can be
> said about entitled jerks who make the space hostile for others.
>
> Until someone works on the whole "hostility to newcomers" bit of hacker
> culture, harassment will be endemic. As long as newcomers are seen as people to
> be excluded and hazed, no amount of non-harassment policies or codes of conduct
> will do anything substantial.
>
> Kicking out the people who grope isn't enough and won't cause systemic change.
> Change the culture which encourages treating newcomers and outsiders like shit,
> and ignores anything anyone does to newcomers, don't just kick out people who
> further this sort of culture.
>
> Have fun with your hackerspaces and your shitty-ass subculture based on
> exclusion and abuse. I don't even need to talk to people like y'all and I'm not
> going to spend a moment of extra time with a bunch of people who can't even
> look at me after I get groped in front of fifteen people.
>
> I have a key to noisebridge. If anyone wants it, let me know.
>
> --
> Susan
>
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