Questions about the mimbo explosion at Flashbelt
A man at a Flashbelt session included some racy content in his preso. Different accounts can be found here (more offensive), and here (less offensive). Most of the people in the room were men, and many laughed. Some of the women there–as well as the conference organizer–were first to complain that the content was unprofessional and objectified women.
So the Flash community has a controversy on its hands, just as the Rails community did a month or two ago. Was it wrong? I dunno. Here are some related questions that might help you decide:
If the room held only men, would a presentation like this be wrong? That is, is the harm here how men’s worst impulses are being reinforced?
If the room held mostly women, would it be wrong? Did the upset women’s discomfort stem mainly from the fact that they feel professionally precarious? If they didn’t feel precarious, would they still be upset?
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