Sticks & Stones: Microaggressions & Inclusiveness

You've heard about diversity problems in tech, right? We know the problem exists at every point in the process: education, internship opportunities, hiring. We don't talk much about what happens to the people we do work with.

As documentarians, we spend time thinking about the best words to use for our products, tutorials, manuals. We know that words matter. "Microaggressions" are the small indignities that people of color, non-cis-gendered folks, women, and others experience on a daily basis. Microaggressions at work tell us, over and over, that we don't really belong in that workplace. So let's talk about the words we use with our coworkers. Let's talk about how we can all make inclusion a daily practice at work, not just a hiring problem.

See notes at https://cutebit.de/blog/writethedocs-2017-sticks-and-stones-microaggressions-and-inclusive-language-at-work/

Transcript

1. Sticks & Stones Microaggressions & Inclusiveness
2. Hello! Find me on... twitter: @cory_will instagram: @cory_will email: cwilliamsoncardneau@gmail.com I AM CORY WILLIAMSON-CARDNEAU
3. PRINCIPLES
4. Workplace diversity is valuable.
5. This value depends on our ability to be open about differences.
6. Our words have power.
7. DIVERSITY
9. I was raised by two mothers I have bipolar disorder My boyfriend is a refugee I support my unemployed parents
10. female engineer
11. female engineer built an Arduino smart watch Jewish dog lover has ADHD hates writing documentation studied art history believes in God
12. INCLUSION
16. I’m full of important stuff.
17. FeelGreat ™ This is a fictional organization.
18. Marcus Hiro Jessica
19. Marcus Hiro
20. Marcus Hiro
22. Marcus Hiro Jesse
24. Marcus Hiro
25. Marcus Hiro
27. Marcus Hiro Jesse
28. Marcus
30. Workplace diversity is valuable.
31. Our words (and our silences) have power.
32. Building Inclusivity in Response to Microaggressions
33. Definitions
34. MICROAGGRESSION a brief, everyday exchange that sends a denigrating message to members of a marginalized group generally happens below the level of awareness of well-intentioned members of the dominant culture Derald Wing Sue
35. UNCONSCIOUS BIAS beliefs about members of a social and identity group that we develop outside our conscious awareness often incompatible with our conscious values can affect our behavior and treatment of people in ways that we don’t notice
37. That’s a racist microaggression!
38. Responding to Callouts A Style Guide
39. Responding Badly
40. I’m sorry if that wasn’t okay.
41. I’m sorry that you were offended.
42. You know I didn’t mean it like that.
43. I didn’t mean to.
44. Better Responses
45. I’m sorry.
46. I can see how what I said wasn’t okay.
47. Wow. You’re right. I messed up.
48. I understand why that term makes you feel weird. What would you prefer that I call you?
49. I'll try to be more intentional in the future. Patterns are hard to break, so feel free to remind me if I forget.
50. Ignorance
51. I don’t understand why that is hurtful, but I’d like to understand more.
53. Gratitude
54. Thank you for giving me this feedback. I know that’s a vulnerable position because people can be defensive.
55. I want to do better and I appreciate your help.
56. Use Your Own Words
57. Demonstrate empathy Acknowledge your ignorance Validate
58. O. M. G. I’m so stupid.
59. Addressing Microaggressions
60. Jessica is the best female developer at FeelGreat! Heh. Yeah...
61. Actually, I’m the best developer at FeelGreat.
62. Hiro Jesse
63. Noticing Microaggressions
64. MICROAGGRESSION generally happens below the level of awareness of well-intentioned members of the dominant culture
66. Examine your surroundings Diversify your media Interrogate your biases
67. Call-Outs & Call-Ins
68. CALL-OUTS Happen in public Include everyone who is listening, not just the person you’re calling out Can be embarrassing and easily cause defensiveness
69. CALL-INS Happen in private, or among a small, close group Don’t include people who heard the original comment Allow a more intimate, vulnerable conversation with less defensiveness
70. ERROR I’m sure it was unintentional, but the text you entered is a little racist. Learn more about racism.
71. CHOOSING Tailor your message to the context Choose just the right amount of information Consider using both call-ins and call-outs
72. Empathy, Again
77. Why Me?
79. Diversity & Inclusion in Docs
80. Accessibility Problems
82. Accessibility Improvements
83. Include descriptive alternative text for images.
84. Make links understandable out of context.
85. Include transcripts for video and audio media.
86. Representation
87. Jessica Editing Your FeelGreat Profile _______________ _______________ _______________ ___________
88. Cattica Editing Your FeelGreat Profile _______________ _______________ _______________ ___________
90. Malala Editing Your FeelGreat Profile _______________ _______________ _______________ ___________
91. Wrap Up
92. Uncomfortable
93. Uncomfortable misunderstood embarrassed ashamed excluded rejected frustrated scared hopeless self-conscious alone
94. INCLUSIVE LANGUAGE language that avoids the use of certain expressions or words that might be considered to exclude particular groups
95. Learning comes from failure.
96. Vulnerability is uncomfortable.
97. Acknowledging bias is uncomfortable.
98. Documentarians are pedantic.* * This is a generalization.
99. Be pedantic with a cause.
100. THANKS! You can find me at: @cory_will cwilliamsoncardneau@gmail.com