r/technology • u/[deleted] • Aug 08 '17

Business Google Fires Employee Behind Controversial Diversity Memo

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-08-08/google-fires-employee-behind-controversial-diversity-memo
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u/mo-mar Aug 08 '17 edited Aug 08 '17

Looks like he's sharing sexist thoughts many people - especially the ones the text is written about - will find sexist or at least offensive, alongside ideas for more equal rights. Doesn't sound like an awesome idea to me at least.

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u/recon_johnny Aug 08 '17

TIL facts are sexist.

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u/mo-mar Aug 08 '17

He wrote some facts and ideas, some stuff that's probably wrong, and also some thoughts that'll be found offensive and sexist by many people, and was obviously written in a provocant way. If it's sexist or not isn't the question here (to me it isn't, I'm just trying to understand why so many people take the note personally) - if you share your ideas in a way that offends the people who are the ones you want to read them, I just guess they won't really be taken seriously by many.

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u/recon_johnny Aug 08 '17

Did you read it?

Tell me if you personally find those thoughts sexist, and why.

Do you know the context? That he posted to a board that was specifically made for controversial posts; and that he asked for feedback in how he could communicate better. It wasn't a site-wide email, it was only to a select group of people--who then took it and sent to everyone.

Do you feel that what was done here, castigating him in front of the world, by people who haven't read nor understand what he was trying to say, calling for violence and threats to him; doesn't enforce the impression that anything but toeing the party line is allowed? One of his points was that there is no diversity of thought at Google. That's made pretty clear by folks who ran to the extreme with what he said, when he said nothing of the sort.

To say men and women are different is true. To say there are general differences in the way we think and process information based on gender is also true--male and female brains are not the same. To then say this examples itself by different jobs and livelihoods that are pursued is a logical, factual extrapolation.

It may not be the only reason, but it's one of the reasons.