This is the framing that I resonate with as well.

I really appreciate all the conversations as of late on code4lib and I find
that the poll on gender and community was incredibly illuminating. I'm
currently reading 'Unlocking the clubhouse' and there are large swaths
of relevant passages that apply that have to with the setting of model
behaviour in a field that might explain the high numbers who don't feel the
community that others do (An aside: when you are tempted to tell someone
else what to *feel* please re-consider).

One aspect of community is the sense of shared experience. If you are a
librarian, you don't have to explain the work that you do at in the same
way you have to do when you among non-librarians. That's part of the joy of
a community. In code4lib you can joke about text editors or what have you,
knowing most folks will get and maybe even laugh at the joke. Again, I want
to say that I appreciate the efforts of those who are taking the time to
explain where women's experiences are not so shared with men. I've seen
what I think is genuine reflection and re-thinking and that gladdens the
heart. That being said, comments like this
http://serials.infomotions.com/code4lib/archive/2012/201212/3988.htm<http://serials.infomotions.com/code4lib/archive/2012/201212/3988.html>l
 feel
like trolling to me and the lack of response to such comments leaves me
disappointed. Having to constantly explains one's self doesn't lend to a
sense of community.

All that being said, I would hate the code4lib community to lose momentum
on the matter of the anti-harassment policy. Sadly, it is much needed.

M

On Fri, Dec 7, 2012 at 6:17 PM, Bess Sadler <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> On Dec 7, 2012, at 12:59 PM, Joshua Gomez <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> > Others have mentioned they fear that a subgroup will only decrease the
> > diversity within code4lib by pulling women away from it and into the new
> > group.  This was my initial concern as well, but when I look at other
> kinds
> > of women in tech groups I realize that they don't decrease women's
> > participation in mainstream groups. In fact they help boost women's
> > profiles and skill sets, thus increasing their likelihood of
> participating
> > in mainstream groups.
>
> Well said, Joshua. Any separate women in technology groups I've been
> involved with (e.g., devchix, grrlswithmodems back in the day) have been
> what you describe here. These groups are supplementary, and create a place
> to get support if one needs help navigating mainstream (and yes,
> male-dominated) communities.
>
> Bess
>