Tuesday, January 9, 2018

Why I'm suing Google

I'm "the other plaintiff" on the famous Damore lawsuit against Google. Since there is some curiosity about the case, I thought I'd write this note to give people a little information about me and about my reasons for going forward with the lawsuit.
 
First, I don't hate Google, and I certainly don't hate the people who work there. The large bulk of Googlers are wonderful people — smart, kind, and wanting to do the right thing. I wouldn't want this suit to give people a bad opinion of Googlers, but, honestly, they brought this on themselves for tolerating the hatred, racism and misandry of a small but vocal and organized subgroup who want to use Google as a vehicle of social change rather than as a vehicle of delivering excellent service and products to their customers.
 
I was disappointed at the lack of support I received from the good people at Google when I came under attack. In fact, I was attacked largely for coming to the defense of others. I hoped my example would set a precedent, and others would join me in standing up for kindness, tolerance, and just getting along despite differences, but no. Although I am disappointed, I do understand why people stood silent while their colleague was treated unfairly. Everyone is afraid of the hate group that dominates the discussion at Google. No one wants to jeopardize their job or career prospects to defend someone they don't know.
 
I understand, and that is why we need lawsuits like this — to make the consequences of going along with the illegal behavior of the hate groups worse than the consequences of challenging them. Courage from better incentives. I believe a lot of Googlers and others in Silicon Valley will secretly welcome this lawsuit as a vehicle for giving them the support they need to speak out when they see something wrong. At least, that is my hope.