Female attendees of a women in tech conference are outraged after the event was overrun by men identifying as “nonbinary,” according to social media posts online.
The Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing took place from Sept. 26 to 29 in Orlando, Florida. The conference is an opportunity for female and nonbinary attendees to get jobs at major tech firms. (RELATED: School Defends Safety Policy After Purported Transgender Student Apparently Assaults Female Teen)
“We are celebrating the achievements of women and non-binary technologists and motivating them to keep striving and reach even greater heights,” Brenda Darden Wilkerson, president and CEO of AnitaB.org, which puts on the conference, said in a press release.
One attendee posted a video on TikTok claiming that a man had cut in front of her when in line to speak with a recruiter. Another attendee complained on LinkedIn about “cis men” taking jobs meant for women in a “concerning trend that seemed unaddressed by the event organizers.”
Males took over a women in tech career conference by registering as non-binary. pic.twitter.com/CcGByMt4H1
— Ren (@rottengirl) October 3, 2023
“As a woman who has experienced patriarchic dominance in the tech industry, I hoped the convention would provide a fair chance for me to connect with potential employers. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case,” she wrote.
An attendee wrote that the conference didn’t live up to expectations due in part to a “High number of cis-men.”
Another woman said she talked to a security guard who had to kick out men who were “pushing and shoving.”
“It saddens me the see all those cis men attending #GHC23 and misrepresenting their gender,” one conference-goer wrote.
“I am attending this year for the first time it was so overly crowded because of some men identifying themselves as non-binary,” one LinkedIn post read. “If you need to ban take essential steps on it, it was very unpleasant for spending so much time and money where it was marketed as ‘Women and Non-binary’ conference which I was signing up for and all the slots and offer went to ‘some self-identifying men’.”
Anita B has addressed the concerns in a post, acknowledging that there was an “increase in participation of self-identifying males.”
“In regard to calls for AnitaB.org to ban males from attending GHC, Federal Non-Discrimination requirements prohibit any U.S. based organization from discriminating based on gender. Not only must we comply with federal law, we also believe in the power of providing an inclusive space.”
Anita B did not respond to the Daily Caller’s request for comment.