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I am an Uber survivor

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Re: I am an Uber survivor

#391

Post by morvita »

late2part wrote: post #60

Seems to me there are 4 issues here: 1. Racism. Not okay. Fire him. 2. Sexist behavior Not okay. Warn and then fire him. 3. Working people hard That's okay. I was made to work hard. Long days no breaks hard deadlines. That's the world we live in. 4. How this affected her I'm sorry she went through this and it's not okay. How she chooses to feel and deal with this are under her control. She shouldn't have perpetuated…

1,2. Why is racism considered a fireable offense, but sexism they should get a warning first? Either give them a warning on both or fire on both.

3. I think many would argue that we shouldn't have to live in a world where long days with no breaks is the accepted standard. I've worked that way, 10 hour days, 6-7 days a week, it's not sustainable and leads to burnout, poor quality work, and grumpy employees.

Re: I am an Uber survivor

#392

Post by jakobegger »

diebir wrote: post #354

Without getting into any details this: "Once in a group chat, team members referred to a new Asian American recruit as slanty eye joe" seems very strange to me. The Uber tech org is like 80%+ foreign born, this makes pretty much zero sense. Disclaimer: I work for Uber.

Racism isn't limited to locals. Foreign born people can be just as racist as everyone else. For example, it's suprisingly common to hear immigrants complain that there is too much immigration now.

Re: I am an Uber survivor

#393

Post by asymmetric »

azrazalea wrote: post #268
asymmetric wrote: post #247

This is terrible, and one more reason to despise Uber, but I find the usage of the word "survivor" out of place in this context, at least in my understanding of its meaning. I know this is not the main point to take home from this situation, and I also know I'll be attacked from making it, but I felt it was important nonetheless.

It is far from unheard of for someone to kill themselves in these situations. Also, still working in the industry could be considered surviving and someone who left the industry due to this treatment could be considered someone who didn't survive. So i'd say survivor fits perfectly.

Committing suicide over something like this seems a bit extreme. Don't want to trivialize her suffering, or the gravity of what happened, but infantilizing people also doesn't help in making them stronger.

Of course it's not up to me to decide when committing suicide makes sense (does it ever?), but this is the issue I see with the word "survivor": it seems to want to portray what happened in terms of a life threatening situation. As far as I can tell, it wasn't.

Now, back to the main issue, i.e. sexual harassment at Uber.

Re: I am an Uber survivor

#394

Post by mememachine »

kristofferR wrote: post #368
xpac wrote: post #314

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"If I behave like an asshole, and nobody calls me an asshole, I'm actually not an asshole." Yeah, makes perfect sense.

It makes sense if you regard humans as easily manipulatable/malleable emotional beings instead of rational beings. Just a tiny fraction of people are able to look at their "output" in a way that isn't being almost completely shaped by their "input". If all their inputs says that their behavior is okay, they'll regard it as okay.

Im not sure how you got to this from my comment, but ok.

Re: I am an Uber survivor

#395

Post by stale2002 »

sydd wrote: post #365
deanCommie wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why would someone read this whole post, and the main takeway they get from it - enough to post a hackernews comment - is to question the poster's claims of interest in anonymity. (And - let's be honest - therefore trying to discredit her whole story one chip at a time). People like you are the problem.

Its not discrediting, its asking for proof. There are some very harsh accusations here. And if there is one thing that I learned about the Internet, that its full with trolls. Just look at some Reddit dramas on what lengths people will go to troll others.

The proof is all the other women who are going to come forward.

The individual cases don't matter, because that can always be pushed off with "bad apple" arguments.

What matters is the trend. And there is DEFINITELY a trend. Every female Uber engineer will tell you that.

Re: I am an Uber survivor

#396

Post by foldr »

yummyfajitas wrote: post #339
cyberpunk wrote: post #318

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No. I don't. I meant that in the context of the overall experiences in women in tech, not women at uber or anything more specific than that. Let me try to rephrase.. Would you be shocked that this sort of thing goes on? I would not. My only point was that the bigger problem is exactly THAT lack of surprise, and not the legitimacy of the post; and that's what we should be talking about. I don't trust anything about th…

I would be shocked that a bunch of high-IQ, high-conscientiousness individuals would repeatedly engage in dangerous activities with a high probability of getting caught, and in such easily provable ways. Putting on my evil villain hat for a moment, if I want to harass women it won't be at my workplace. It won't be at my favorite bar in Pune where I get laid regularly. I'll take the bus to Mumbai, head to some bar in…

>I would be shocked that a bunch of high-IQ, high-conscientiousness individuals would repeatedly engage in dangerous activities with a high probability of getting caught

There's a long history of precisely such individuals doing precisely this sort of thing.

And in any case, there is not a high probability of getting caught, for reasons that your comment illustrates. Women who make these claims are not believed.

Re: I am an Uber survivor

#397

Post by mememachine »

st3v3r wrote: post #322
mememachine wrote: post #254

>I wonder (doubt) if they've ever been abused. It's hard for someone who has been abused to come forward, let alone stand up to an abuser. If they dont stand up for themselves on any level, then they simply arent being abused i dont believe. If you cant express your own discomfort, its not anyone but your fault youre uncomfortable. This is a hard truth. (copied from my other comment in this thread) I'll give you a cl…

"If they dont stand up for themselves on any level, then they simply arent being abused" This is, hands down, the worst take ever.

Care to explain? If your "explanation" is just dramatic grandstanding, ill be disappointed.

Re: I am an Uber survivor

#398

Post by bigiain »

sounds wrote: post #186
reledi wrote: post #134

Amy, many people believe your story. But based on the flags this story is getting, many don't, at least not yet. Is there any way you can verify the authenticity of your story without losing your anonymity to the public? For example, would Susan be able to verify you as an ex-employee?

Amy, I believe your story because it is a second independent set of events that closely parallels Susan's story. You do not need to suffer more indignity by "being outed." Best of luck!

I also believe your story Amy, and strongly suggest you think _very_ carefully before providing any sort pf "proof" to people who demand it, and view those people with intense suspicion.

And reledi? Grow up man - give up on your "not all men" attitude - trying desperately to preserve your own dignity by failing to acknowledge that our industry treats women in ways with should shame all men, and that your "Holy Grail" tech employers like Uber are at the worst end of the bell curve - quite clearly run by reprehensible human beings from the top down - which filters all the way down the org chart. #deleteuber

Re: I am an Uber survivor

#399

Post by arkitaip »

diebir wrote: post #354

Without getting into any details this: "Once in a group chat, team members referred to a new Asian American recruit as slanty eye joe" seems very strange to me. The Uber tech org is like 80%+ foreign born, this makes pretty much zero sense. Disclaimer: I work for Uber.

Yes, because casual racism by individuals makes sense.

Re: I am an Uber survivor

#400

Post by stale2002 »

kristofferR wrote: post #375
reledi wrote: post #134

Amy, many people believe your story. But based on the flags this story is getting, many don't, at least not yet. Is there any way you can verify the authenticity of your story without losing your anonymity to the public? For example, would Susan be able to verify you as an ex-employee?

Many people hate Uber. Maybe Amy wrote this. Maybe a taxi driver wrote this. I have no idea, and to pretend otherwise is to fool myself in order to confirm my preconceived notions.

Maybe you should follow the trend.

One person coming forward is not evidence. Evidence is when every single Uber engineer that I talk to, backs up these claims.

Don't focus on this one case. Focus on all the other women who are going to come forward in the next couple weeks.

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