Tell HN: DEI initiatives undermine the self esteem of PoC within a company
(Black man here)<p>Two things can be true at once.<p>I have built great things. I can stand on my own. My merits are great. I do not want to be the token employee that is trotted around for Diversity Points (tm). I do not like the diversity porn that a lot of these DEI groups get off on.<p>That being said, I do recognize that I have benefited from these groups (at least at their most genuine). There are groups that are aimed at cultivating black people in tech. Prior to this, in the earlier internet age, you had to cut your teeth on IRC and forums. That was where technical people were in the computer tech space.<p>Do you know VIRULENTLY anti-black (or woman, or gay) these communities were? I can&#x27;t begin to describe it. That is totally off-putting to someone who has the ability succeed but does not want to deal with the hate. There&#x27;s also the fact that most (read: all) of the computing pioneers are white. I respect all of those people, but it does help to have someone to look up to. I&#x27;m positive that Satya and Sundar are great motivators for indian kids to look up to (as they should be).<p>These DEI initiatives aren&#x27;t perfect in any way, but the goal is to give the affected groups the foundations to succeed. To put people in the affected communities out front as role models. I accept the annoyances for the sake of good and progress.<p>EDIT: In the below thread are many people who personally identify as omnipresent IRC Gods, so my experience must have happened in an alternate universe. My bad.