On Sun, 28 Dec 2008 05:46:59 +0100 "Miriam Ruiz" <little.m...@gmail.com> wrote: > I have two baby nieces now and I would really > like to participate in whichever activities they choose without having > any extra difficulties for being female. I would really want them to > be able to join Debian sometime, and do stuff here the same way they > would do in any other hobby they might have, without having to be > constantly fighting for their own rights or space, without having to > develop a thick skin or be supergirls for just being able to have fun > doing things.
I can relate. As Ariannah mentioned, we educate our children at home. One of the numerous reasons for doing this is that in the public school environment a lot of these obstacles are present in concentrated form. Our choice means we can conserve energy we might have otherwise expended on trying to overcome them and channel it into pursuing the particular interests of each child. So my ten-year-old girl has recently shown an interest in electronics. She started by tearing apart old equipment we had lying around in the basement, and then borrowed her grandpa's electronics kit and started working through the workbook. Nobody is telling her "sorry, we don't have a unit for that this year." She is able to strike off on her own and pursue with a passion that is not stifled in our home any subject she wishes. When I look at the people who make Debian a great organization to work with, that's what I see: a passion for what they do. So in this respect it is compatible with our values for education. Still, something of the schoolyard still plagues us, and I would like Debian to acknowledge the problem and do something to make it better. > I might sound very estereotypical here, but I sincerely believe in the > following. Gandhi said that "There is no way to peace, peace is the > way". This sentence has fully strike me again recently and opened my > eyes to more meanings that were hidden from me before. There's no way > to make anything universal, if universal is not the way. And universal > means all of us, all of them, everyone represented. It's not the > survival of the stronger, it's not a predator's world. If we cannot > find a way to make Debian's development universal, the result will > never be. And I don't my nieces to have to become the "universal > soldier" or to have to let aside their sensitivity, joyfully or > tranquility to be able to enter Debian's development sometime in the > future. That applies to the boys too. I couldn't agree more. > Different ideas perspectives, points of view, sensibilities and so > enriches any project, and boost the creativity, development and > results. There's nothing as wrong and suboptimal as cultural endogamy. > If we want Debian to succeed, we have to make it somehow a > multicultural place in which all the points of view can be shared. > Asertivity should be encouraged, of course, as well as proactivity, > but that doesn't mean that anyone has to fight against dragons to > share their point of view. If we keep doing so, we'll find out to have > a Debian ruled by the ideas of the strongest, not ruled by the best > ideas. I think what people fear when we talk about possibly having a Code of Conduct is that a few people might use it to impose their own views of acceptable behaviours, limiting their freedom of expression. But you have it right when you mention encouragement. As they mature, my girls will grow up to understand that not everyone will agree with them, and some of them are going to say hurtful and even bigoted things to them. What we need is not so much a way of stifling such freedom of expression, but of encouraging people who are, or feel they are the target of such expression. Not for a moment do I believe that we could establish some sort of utopia here where everyone is happy and friendly and never an unkind word would ever be spoken to my precious children. But I do expect that Debian will learn how to respond positively and supportively when its members, male or female, have been hurt. A CoC seems to me to be a good foundation for such support. Supported by such a document, the ideas of the injured will not be lost because they are felt they are not welcome in the project and leave. > Thanks for your support. Really!!! You're most welcome. :) Ben -- ,-. nSLUG http://www.nslug.ns.ca sy...@sanctuary.nslug.ns.ca \`' Debian http://www.debian.org sy...@debian.org ` [ gpg 395C F3A4 35D3 D247 1387 2D9E 5A94 F3CA 0B27 13C8 ] -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to debian-women-requ...@lists.debian.org with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact listmas...@lists.debian.org
