Adobo and Avocados: Intersectionality in Tech and Developer Advocacy

Being a woman in tech with South East Asian roots and an immigrant in Europe, it is often difficult to talk about lived experiences with other women. Specific topics don’t resonate with me but might resonate with other women, and vice-versa.

A term that I learned recently is “intersectionality.” Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw coined this term in 1989, but the word only made it to the dictionary in 2015.

Intersectionality refers to the overlap or intersection of various identity factors such as gender, race, class, nationality, ethnicity, etc. When overlapped, this creates a compound effect of unique experiences that can be seen as a disadvantage or an advantage.

In this talk, I want to share my experiences on how I got started in tech, what it’s like for me, as a member of a minority group, to navigate the day-to-day world of the tech industry, and why it’s also important to be represented in other areas, such as developer relations, and understand what adobo and avocados have to do with it.