This document summarizes Leslie Hawthorn's presentation on checking privilege and overcoming biases. It discusses how underrepresented groups face harassment and discrimination in tech. It also explains that diverse teams increase financial performance. The presentation provides experiments for listeners to understand other perspectives better and check their own biases, such as changing speech habits, listening without commenting, speaking up for others, and accepting criticism humbly. The goal is to improve communication with everyone.
5. Our Story So Far…
Under Represented Groups in Tech
• Women are 25x more likely to be
harassed online than men
• Women are more likely to be
interrupted
• Women make up 20% or less of tech
workforce at major companies
• The numbers for most people of
color are much, much worse
• Transgendered people receive
disproportionate & violent
harassment both on & off the job
• The list goes on ….
7. Our System Defaults &
Their Discontents
Bias & discrimination are inherent in our social systems,
making them hard to detect & even harder to combat.
8. Examining Our Defaults
“I can be fooled by
anyone who looks like
Mark Zuckerberg.”
- Paul Graham, Y Combinator, on
whom he’ll choose for Venture
Capital investment
10. Why We Cling to Our Biases
• Biases are part of
how we define
ourselves
• We benefit from our
biases
• We’re uncomfortable
that we have these
biases at all
12. Overcoming Bias
Experiment 1: Change Your Speech Defaults
Hi, guys.
That’s gay!
You throw like a girl.
You’re crazy!
What a retarded idea.
This code is lame.
13. • Use social media to understand other perspectives
• Listen != retweet, +1, reposting, commenting, providing advice
• #NotAllMen is not a useful addition to a conversation
Overcoming Bias
Experiment 2: *Listen* to People Who are Not Like You
14. Your next empathy building
mission….
Change your online avatars &
profile pics to depict you as:
• a woman
• a man of color
• a woman of color
• a person of size
Overcoming Bias
Experiment 3: Change Your Online Persona
15. • Recenter discussions on
people whose points have
been dismissed, then restated
• Bring the conversation back to
individuals who were
interrupted or ignored
• Point out individuals’ mistakes
with respect
Overcoming Bias
Experiment 4: Speak Up for Others
16. Provide sincere apologies when you make a mistake.
Overcoming Bias
Experiment 5: Ask for Help & Accept It Humbly
20. Measure Your Actions
• Count how often you
• have the floor in meetings
and discussions
• interrupt other people
• dismiss ideas without
working them through with
the other person
• Use the results of these
measurements to change your
behaviors.
22. Questions &
Knowledge Sharing Time
Thank you for attending!
Leslie Hawthorn
Director of Developer Relations
leslie.hawthorn@elasticsearch.com
@lhawthorn
23. The Legal Bits
• This presentation is licensed Creative Commons
Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0): https://
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Please reuse, remix and share widely!
• The images used in this presentation are
copyright their respective owners and used with
permission under a Creative Commons license.
24. Photo Credits
• Creation / Leaf in Hand: http://www.flickr.com/photos/smanography/2299171379/
• Foundation: http://www.flickr.com/photos/city-amsterdam/12101321055
• Justice: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ensh/6204837462/
• Harassment / Hand: http://www.flickr.com/photos/keoni101/5132652314/
• Money: http://www.flickr.com/photos/epsos/8463683689
• Bandaid: http://www.flickr.com/photos/stephanie_in_love/5434424913/
• Young man in a hoodie: http://www.flickr.com/photos/100013566@N03/12853691273/
• Young women in orchestra: https://www.flickr.com/photos/marcomartinscosta/418200303/
• Static cling kitten: http://www.flickr.com/photos/31333486@N00/1802425453/
• Empathy: http://www.flickr.com/photos/rosenfeldmedia/15925430129/
• Speech bubble: http://www.flickr.com/photos/oddsock/2979328682/
• Social media: http://www.flickr.com/photos/smemon/9894304255/
• Avatar: http://www.flickr.com/photos/31333486@N00/2037593361
• Megaphone: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hazzat/5412540184/
• Humility: http://www.flickr.com/photos/indymetro/13310400055
• Can and String ‘Telephone’: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wiertz/13195153284
• Listening is an act of love sign: http://www.flickr.com/photos/oneworldgallery/2245563352/
• Assume: http://www.flickr.com/photos/x1brett/3949835761/
• Broken bulb: http://www.flickr.com/photos/uaeincredible/1458303830/
• Bridge: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kpaulus/14574838075/