[Gendergap] reducing the gender gap - work that could help

[Frances Kissling]

I've been off line and just catching up on the entries, so some of this is
in response to older posts.

 

I've never been on the pornography pages of Wikipedia or any of the ones
cited as offensive. The topics are not ones I research or write about.
Seeing them on this list, has no effect on my interest in the parts of
Wikipedia that are important to my work and have no effect on my interest in
improving articles or writing articles that would better represent women's
perspectives and women themselves.  I don't like what I saw; find some it
childish and some of it malicious. Just like life. I think there are some
women whose views and experience are in life would lead them away from
Wikipedia because of those articles; but there are many women in the world
and not everything is everyone's cup of tea. 

 

If the Wikimedia Foundation wants to get more women editing, the answer is
hard work and an investment of money and a willingness to preference efforts
to convince women to edit. This preference is not about exclusivity or
affirmative action, it is what we all do when we want to change something.
Put energy, time and money into that aspect of things.

1, assign staff or hire staff to reach out to women; they will do research,
develop lists, write materials that point out the benefits to women and
women's issues of editing.

2. consult with women experts, heads of women's professional and advocacy
organizations about how to reach women editors.

3. Develop a training program and send Ambassadors to women oriented
meetings, groups etc and help people who are interested get started

4. To deal with the perception or reality that there are behaviors among
editors that are off putting to women ( and probably to men); develop tips
for women about how to be resilient in the face of that in the context of
Wikipedia culture

 

I have no idea what effect the various technology stuff have on editors of
any gender and think until more women are recruited and convinced it is in
their interest to edit and can tell us if the technology is a barrier, it id
of less concern. This is an organizing job not an IT thing.

 

This list is useful, but this is not rocket science. It is just hard work
the foundation needs to do and that work can ultimately be evaluated. 

 

Frances Kissling, visiting scholar

Center for Bioethics, UPenn

202 368 3954

 

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