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Dear IETF-ers, tonight I had a very interesting conversation with some lovely people that shocked me. What I have been told, is that it is well known that there are some participants at the IETF that do behave less than professionally when it comes to harassment - especially toward women. I am sorry to use strong language, but this is an issue that I
have been exposed to in the past and that I find COMPLETELY
UNACCEPTABLE. I do not know what the policy is at the IETF, but I
think there should be ZERO tolerance for such behavior. And if you
are one the people that think this community will tolerate your
behavior maybe because you are a well-known figure in the
Industry, be sure of one thing: I will fight to make sure that (a)
your behavior is publicly exposed, and (b) you get shamed and
BANNED from IETF. The behavior, I think, should also be reported
to the HR department of the organization that sent that individual
for further actions. I was appalled when I learned that such behavior has happened in this community. As a man and a believer in the community, I am ashamed that such individuals are still allowed to attend IETFs. I would urge women AND MEN that have been targeted or that know
of such behavior to come forward - so that the community will
know. I wonder why there is the tendency to hide these type of
things - transparency and support is paramount to eradicate this
awful behavior. Sometimes I hear "Oh, I can handle those
individuals." - please think about who can not and might be the
next target: how would you feel if something happens because you
did not think about this ? I know it is not easy, but reporting
the issue is really important. I hope that this e-mail will have some effect - in my heart I
could not stay silent and not bring the issue at the attention of
the whole community... I feel, like many here, that the IETF is
and should be a leading community: this means not only
technically, but morally. I did not know that this problem even existed at the IETF, and I urge the leadership to be more vocal about it - we need to make sure that people are vigilant and, if something like this happens, strong and resolute actions are taken: I would NOT expect anything less. Let me rephrase: NOBODY should expect anything less. And now I have so many questions in my head:
I know I am a man, but not all men (despite what it seems) are
bad - unfortunately, some of the good ones are also blind to the
problem as this is something that they would not think it is
possible. If you are one of those, like I was, wake up! If you
know anything or have seen anything, please speak out. Be bold,
and make sure this does not happen. This is my personal position and views. Please reply privately. --
Best Regards,
Massimiliano Pala, Ph.D.
OpenCA Labs Director  |
