The lens on diversity in tech couldn’t be more focused at this moment in our collective history. We want to give a voice to those underrepresented in the tech industry — including minorities, women, LGBT, veterans, disabled and people entering into tech as a second career — as we explore how we got here and how we move the industry forward to be truly reflective of today’s society. To do that, we’re starting a publication #iamtech— for you, for everyone interested in this topic — to talk about what it means to you.
#iamtech's first story is written by employee C.Moulee. C. Moulee is a gay man living in Chennai, India who, despite the country's criminalization of homosexuality, is helping to lead an effort in the tech industry there – one that he describes as “Making One Cubicle Safe at a Time” – to spread awareness and acceptance of LGBT people.
"In late 2013, India’s highest court suddenly turned me and millions of other gays into criminals – once more. It was a devastating blow. But I knew we didn’t have the luxury of grieving. It was clear that we would need to seek protection in our workplaces and our communities since we wouldn’t have it under the law."
– C Moulee
The #iamtech publication will profile many of the diverse faces of our employees and partners. But most importantly, it’s not limited to them. We want to hear from you. We encourage you to share your story.
Please join us as a reader by visiting #iamtech periodically, as a contributor by sharing your stories and insights, or as an advocate by encouraging others throughout your network to read our publication.
Through #iamtech we want to create an engaging forum where readers can come to truly understand what it’s like to be an underrepresented individual in the tech industry — and inspire and elevate solutions to help push our industry forward to a more diverse future.
{Please visit Medium to read our first #iamtech article}
Ruha Devanesan is Symantec's Manager, Global Diversity and Inclusion