Alcohol is a major theme in tech culture, whether it's bonding with peers near the office keg, letting off steam with afterwork drinks, or meeting industry giants over some conference beers. Unfortunately, tech culture around alcohol often excludes people on the basis of gender, medication, religion, pregnancy, addiction, age, and more. We'll learn some of the basic pitfalls to avoid, and then talk solutions with easy-to-practice ally skills for how to discuss, serve, and approach alcohol in the workplace.
Talk given April 11th 2018 at Zapproved for their Ally Talks series
4. Things this talk is NOT about:
- The Things You Love are Bad
- Alcohol is the Devil’s Blood
- Inclusivity Means Lighting the Booze on Fire
& Throwing It Away
7. You’re at a conference afterparty, and you try to
hand the person next to you a drink from the open
bar. They decline.
Why did they decline? Write down as many
possible reasons as you can in 2 minutes.
19. What’s your religion?
How old are you?
What medications do you take?
Are you pregnant?
Are you an alcoholic?
How safe do you feel?
20. Federal / Oregon Protected Classes -- aka some of the things people in the US
are most likely to discriminate based on (and it is illegal to discriminate based on)
- Race
- Color
- National origin
- Religion
- Sex (including pregnancy,
childbirth, related medical
conditions)
- Disability (physical or mental)
- Age (18 and older) (40 and older)
- Citizenship status
- Genetic information
- Marital status
- Sexual orientation
- Parent with court-imposed
medical support order
- Domestic violence victim status
- Refusal to attend an
employer-sponsored meeting with
the primary purpose of
communicating the employer's
opinion on religious or political
matters
28. Many temporary reasons people don’t drink alcohol
❖ Driving or biking home
❖ Headed to an activity afterwards they
want to be sober for
❖ Not feeling well
❖ Going out for drinks later instead
❖ Working early the next day
❖ Working later in the evening
❖ Hasn’t eaten yet
❖ Don’t feel like drinking right now
People want or need different things from moment to moment.
30. Peer pressure - Personal
“We are all going out for drinks later.” Your peer
makes it clear that drinking alcohol is part of
fitting in with the team.
At an industry event, someone you’re networking
with says “I got you a drink!” expectantly.
An executive congratulates you on a job well
done with a glass of expensive scotch.
31. Peer pressure - Systemic
Your team celebrates a successful release with
champagne.
Important watercooler conversation happens
after work in a bar. You need the context to do
your job well.
“We got a keg in the office!” Every work event
has alcohol; the alternative is the soda fountain.
32.
33. This talk is about letting people make
their own choices
That’s all it is
In order to allow people to make choices
we need to give them options
42. DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Nevermind, I’m fine.
Do you have anything
non-alcoholic?
43. DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Nevermind, I’m fine.
Do you have anything
non-alcoholic?
44. DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Nevermind, I’m fine.
Do you have anything
non-alcoholic? Yes, we have sodas.
45. DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Nevermind, I’m fine.
I’ll have a soda please.
46. DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Nevermind, I’m fine.
I’ll have a soda please.
47. DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Nevermind, I’m fine.
I’ll have a soda please. Here you go.
48. DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Nevermind, I’m fine.
I’ll have a soda please.
49. DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Nevermind, I’m fine.
I’ll have a soda please.
52. Do you have any
non-alcoholic drinks
that are fancy?
Do you have anything
non-alcoholic that’s
not Coke?
Nevermind, I’m fine.
DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Coke
53. Do you have any
non-alcoholic drinks
that are fancy?
Do you have anything
non-alcoholic that’s
not Coke?
Nevermind, I’m fine.
DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Coke
54. Do you have any
non-alcoholic drinks
that are fancy?
Do you have anything
non-alcoholic that’s
not Coke?
Nevermind, I’m fine.
DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Coke
55. Do you have any
non-alcoholic drinks
that are fancy?
Do you have anything
non-alcoholic that’s
not Coke?
Nevermind, I’m fine.
Uh, not really. I have
ginger ale for mixers?
DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Coke
56. Do you have any
non-alcoholic drinks
that are fancy?
Do you have anything
non-alcoholic that’s
not Coke?
Nevermind, I’m fine.
DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Coke
57. Do you have any
non-alcoholic drinks
that are fancy?
Do you have anything
non-alcoholic that’s
not Coke?
Nevermind, I’m fine.
DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Coke
59. Just give me the
ginger ale, thanks.
Do you have cocktail
ingredients?
Nevermind, I’m fine.
DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Coke
Ginger Ale
60. Just give me the
ginger ale, thanks.
Do you have cocktail
ingredients?
Nevermind, I’m fine.
DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Coke
Ginger Ale
61. Just give me the
ginger ale, thanks.
Do you have cocktail
ingredients?
Nevermind, I’m fine.
DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Coke
Ginger Ale
Yes, we do!
62. Can you make me a
mocktail?
Nevermind, I’m fine.DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Coke
Ginger Ale
63. Can you make me a
mocktail?
Nevermind, I’m fine.DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Coke
Ginger Ale
64. Can you make me a
mocktail?
Nevermind, I’m fine.DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Coke
Ginger Ale
Sure, I can figure
something out.
65. Can you make me a
mocktail?
Nevermind, I’m fine.DRINK MENU
Light Beer
Heavy Beer
Belgian Beer
Red Wine
White Whine
Local Beer
Coke
Ginger Ale
67. Let’s make this easier for the next person!
sometimes it really does feel like I’m playing the same game over and over and over...
68. What kind of events are we talking about here?
- Office hosting an after party for a local
conference
- Company holiday party
- Team celebrating a big win
- Departmental hangouts every Friday
From small groups <---> big events
69. 1) Provide an equal number and quality of
alcoholic and non-alcoholic drink options
82. ...We do our best to meet the needs of our community, and while the scope of DrupalCon makes it
impossible to accommodate every single request that comes through the door, we feel very strongly
that offering more drink choices is a no-brainer. That’s why, at the Opening Reception on Monday
night, we will have a number of non-alcoholic options that are equal in value to alcoholic drinks.
Attendees can choose from a variety of delicious craft sodas, or try our tangy alcohol-free cocktail
“Don’t call me Shirley.”
We hope that offering a broader spectrum of nonalcoholic drink choices will help all attendees enjoy
the social events at DrupalCon, and will empower them to make the choices that feel right for them.
After all, it’s not the drink in your hand, but the people you are with that will make the evening fun and
memorable!
- Excerpt from DrupalCon 2015 blog post
https://events.drupal.org/losangeles2015/news/alcohol-drupalcon-social-events-%E2%80%93-making-choice
86. 4) If listed cocktails are being served, list an
equal number of non-alcoholic mocktails.
87. ★ Specialty drink? Make both alc + non-alc versions
★ Small gatherings: Let people spike their own punch
★ List mocktail options clearly on the drink menu
95. Institute, enforce, and promote a Code of
Conduct. Ensure everyone understands what
behaviors are acceptable.
Workplace - Employee conduct guidelines
External event - Code of Conduct
97. So it turns out this isn’t so hard
Personal solutions --
- Don’t pressure people
- Don’t question why they’re not drinking alcohol
- Discourage others from associating ‘culture fit’ with alcohol
Systemic solutions --
- Have options; the absence of choice *is* pressure
- Make those options clear
- Have & enforce a Code of Conduct
99. Is it because alcohol & morality get tangled up in
ways that discourage people from seeking help?
100. ...and that make people imagine that someone
who’s not drinking, is judging them?
101. Is it because alcohol is often used to cover over
sexual assault in tech, blaming the victims and
letting harassers and rapists off the hook?
102. Is it because alcohol is treated as currency, used
as a substitute for monetary compensation for
labor?
103. Is it intertwined with tech’s need to set itself
apart from the stodgy world of business?
104.
105. Oh --- and not serving alcohol at all is a
great option, too.
106. What’s next?
You may not run events, but your actions can have a big impact.
You can shape the practices on your team.
You can help others learn how to be more thoughtful around alcohol.
You can ask if there will be tasty non-alcoholic options.
We’re building this industry’s culture together.
107. How did this talk happen?
Zapproved paid me money to make it! Go Zapproved!
110. Free tools I used to make this talk
To get photos: Flickr, searching by Creative Commons license
To pixelate the photos: http://c64.superdefault.com/
To draw pixel art: https://make8bitart.com/ by @jennschiffer
111. Want to share this talk?
Here’s a handy blog post from way back in 2014 with
most of the salient points called “Alcohol & Inclusivity”
https://blog.valerieaurora.org/2018/03/30/cross-post-alcohol-and-inclusivity-planni
ng-tech-events-with-non-alcoholic-options/
It was originally published in Model View Culture; this link is a repost on Valerie
Aurora’s blog.
112. Read more
More articles on alcohol in tech to check out
Tea and Tech Culture, by Alice Goldfuss
http://blog.alicegoldfuss.com/tea-and-tech-culture/
On Alcohol and Tech Culture, by Ryn Daniels
https://ryn.works/2014/10/28/on-alcohol-and-tech-culture/
The UX of Alcohol Abuse, by Victor Yocco
https://modelviewculture.com/pieces/the-ux-of-alcohol-abuse-reflections-on-a-year-of-sobriety
This is...Teetotaling in Tech, by Jess Vadino
https://medium.com/@jessv/this-is-teetotaling-in-tech-91f7b1b902a0
114. Image credits
All photos listed are from Flickr.com
Desert by Gerben van Heijningen, (CC BY-NC 2.0)
Bacardi Daiquiri by Paul Shen, (CC BY-NC 2.0)
Talking by Klarika Huszar, (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
(overpriced) peppermint tea by poppet with a camera, (CC BY-NC
2.0)
Svyturys Wheat Beer by Mike, (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Wheat by Rafał Malinowski, (CC BY-NC 2.0)
danger sign by Devlon Duthie Follow, (CC BY-NC 2.0)
there's a baby in there! by Mark von Minden, (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Pills by Jay, (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Broken bottle by Long PHAM, (CC BY-NC 2.0)
Youth Classes Gallery by The Crucible, (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Dome by Leo Reynolds, (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Mosque by Hovic, (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Nara Todaiji by Andrew, (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)