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posted by CoolHand on Monday December 14 2015, @06:49PM   Printer-friendly
from the equality-for-all dept.

Wednesday Google hosted a special edition of their annual "Demo Day" event featuring 11 early-stage startup companies founded by women from eight different countries. More than 450 women from 40 different counties applied for a spot, and the winner of the competition was Bridgit, a fast-growing Canadian company which provides a mobile communications platform for construction teams. Online voters also awarded the "Game Changer" title to KiChing, a startup that's actively addressing Mexico's unique e-commerce challenges. But all of the startups at Wednesday's event were already actively raising series-A funding, and "We aim to help connect them to mentors, access to capital, and shine a spotlight on their efforts," said Mary Grove, the director of Google for Entrepreneurs, addressing the Demo Day audience in San Francisco.


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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 14 2015, @07:14PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 14 2015, @07:14PM (#276260)

    Generally, if a person strongly identifies with a specific gender, they will present as such.

  • (Score: 2, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 14 2015, @07:18PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 14 2015, @07:18PM (#276264)

    Stop raping my safe space, bigot.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 14 2015, @08:12PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 14 2015, @08:12PM (#276295)
    It's not my job to educate you about presentation policing.
    • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 14 2015, @09:10PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 14 2015, @09:10PM (#276333)

      Did not find much when searching for that term, but did come across this:
      Psychology and the Transgendered: Policing the Gender Borders [unf.edu] by Lynn Caroll, Associate Professor/Program Leader University of North Florida), Counselor Education

      As Bornstein (1994) noted:
      There is most certainly a privilege to having a gender. Just ask someone who doesn’t have a gender, or who can’t pass, or who doesn’t pass. When you have a gender, or when you are perceived as having a gender, you don’t get laughed at in the street. You don’t get beat up. You know which public bathroom to use, and when you use it, people don’t stare at you or worse. You know which form to fill out. You know what clothes to wear. You have heroes and role models. You have a past (p. 127).
      ...
      Bornstein, K. (1994). Gender outlaw: On men, women and the rest of us. New York: Random House.

      I guess parent is complaining that I am ignoring those that do not fit into the traditional gender binary. They are not entirely correct, nor wrong. I myself have no strong attachment to the gender corresponding to my biological sex. Can't really say I have really tried to challenge the gender binary though.

      Keep in mind I was feeding a troll, so wanted to keep things simple.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 14 2015, @09:39PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 14 2015, @09:39PM (#276348)

        (((((Bornstein)))))

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 14 2015, @10:56PM

          by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 14 2015, @10:56PM (#276384)

          What?

        • (Score: 1, Offtopic) by kurenai.tsubasa on Monday December 14 2015, @11:14PM

          by kurenai.tsubasa (5227) on Monday December 14 2015, @11:14PM (#276395) Journal

          Eh, I'd say it pretty much meshes with my experience, at least the part that was quoted. Not bragging, but I do pass well as my actual gender (not the one on my papers, but whatever) to the point where many people gender me female even when I'm clearly dressed as male.

          On the other hand, other trans women I know who don't pass well, not that it would matter in a perfect world, well, that's a mixed bag. I have a habit when I notice somebody I'm with is getting the stare treatment to just stare right back at the person doing the staring. That usually gets the message across when they notice I've been staring at them for a few seconds. Otoh, it's kind of awkward when it starts getting to the minute mark. Other times… I get nudged a little closer to getting a concealed carry permit and a decent handgun. Fortunately, it hasn't come to violence. Yet. So far. For me. Examples of that are just a DuckDuckGo search away. This is quite the YMMV territory, and as John Wayne said once, “Out here, due process is a bullet.”

          (To be fair, one victim was murdered in cold blood because she passed too well. Remember, ladies, make sure you give a man you're about to get in bed with “the talk” first! For me, every guy has been cool about it, even if they decided to decline or to give it some more time.)

          Let me put it to you this way. When people ask me what gender I am, they're legitimately, honestly curious. Whatever gender I have, I tend to have one or another!

          Intentionally misgendering a person or misnaming or mis-whatevering a person is quite the risk, and it's often done with bravado and meant to intimidate. It goes two ways. It's very easy for a man to get stripped of his manhood (“you punch like a girl!”) and generally we're ok with that. In fact, if you met a trans man tomorrow, you wouldn't even know it unless the person were presenting as genderfuck, which is presenting using elements of both genders (no, women wearing pants doesn't count unless it's the 19th century—I'd link to a certain photograph by the late Nimoy [rmichelson.com] but it's NSFW; Secret Selves series, title: Aimee¹).

          I'm sure everybody here, myself included, has actually mistakenly gendered someone. It's natural. When we recognize our error, we simply apologize and move on. Not so with a trans woman who has great difficulty passing. Suddenly, we're no longer interested in being polite. Suddenly, we take up a completely bizarre attitude that this time we aren't going to even entertain the notion that there is anything feminine about this person.

          Honestly, from over here, it all looks quite bizarre, but I have another rant (more on topic) along those lines formulated in my mind I need to find a home somewhere else in this discussion.

          ¹ “Aimee — tattoo and body piercing / I like being a girl…no one knows I am a woman, let alone a lesbian. My beard is natural, there is no imbalance.”

          • (Score: 1, Insightful) by kurenai.tsubasa on Monday December 14 2015, @11:21PM

            by kurenai.tsubasa (5227) on Monday December 14 2015, @11:21PM (#276403) Journal

            we simply apologize and move on

            Full disclosure. A cisgendered lesbian was being so unbelievably rude to one of these people I know that he deserved it. Eh, what do you want? I'm only human. Another example is Runaway and AC's habit of intentionally misgendering certain celebrities like (trigger warning!) Chelsea Manning and Brianna Wu, as though they don't deserve to be women and have lost the right to be men.

            Anyway, on to that rant.

            • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 15 2015, @12:30AM

              by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 15 2015, @12:30AM (#276425)

              I think the number of AC's in this thread are causing some confusion (I think I count at least 3).

              I should actually register an account.

              • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 15 2015, @12:39AM

                by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 15 2015, @12:39AM (#276430)

                I should actually register an account.

                No I shouldn't.

                • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 15 2015, @12:47AM

                  by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 15 2015, @12:47AM (#276432)

                  No I shouldn't.

                  On second thought...

                • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 15 2015, @05:14AM

                  by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 15 2015, @05:14AM (#276523)

                  I should actually register an account.

                  No I shouldn't.

                  Yes, maybe I should! It would help with the gender confusion here. I'm Pat.

                  • (Score: 2) by kurenai.tsubasa on Saturday December 19 2015, @05:53PM

                    by kurenai.tsubasa (5227) on Saturday December 19 2015, @05:53PM (#278634) Journal

                    I'm Pat.

                    Lol. Nice to meet you, Pat. Have you decided on a gender yet? They tell me it's a big decision, but I just don't get it. Apparently, they force you into choosing one despite your biology. I knew an intersexed guy/girl once, and she couldn't even.

                    [Comment intentionally aborted before finishing the sentence. She couldn't even, and I agree.]