@mrseeker It's not that simple.

Women need women-only spaces sometimes because the men in that kind of events make them feel uncomfortable and make them impossible to take part on the event.

In the future yes: gender equality.
At the moment gender equality does not exist yet. Women only events try to make them start to take part and feel comfortable enough in the future.

@brunpi Because it's very difficult to know if men who attend the event are idiots or just *normal* men.
Woman-only spaces are a way to ensure NOBODY is going to harass women for being women.

I agree with you but this is a practical solution to a complex problem. It's not a long-term solution.

In the case of my courses, men don't need a programming course because it's easy for them to access that world.
Women's case is different.

Get my point? :D

@ekaitz_zarraga Well I get it. My concern is that it can be taken as an aggression against men in general, like "We do not want men that are all idiots"

@Naouak @ekaitz_zarraga
To answer your first question, it's more like leveling the playing field. Many women avoid videogame events because of the toxic masculinity they encounter there, making those events de facto men-only.

Regarding courses in programming, math,... Women are less likely to engage in such courses, and when they do, they most likely receive less attention from the instructor than men and self-censor more. (1/2)

@Naouak @ekaitz_zarraga
De ta description, tu sembles francophone, donc je me permets d'utiliser le français. Il y a une littérature fournie sur ces sujets, mais voila déjà quelques pistes concernant l'impact des stéréotypes de genre dans l'enseignement et l'orientation vers des métiers en informatique ou en sciences.

https://frama.link/P_ahGHjP
https://frama.link/r0yTHAEZ
https://frama.link/0V1bGGgb

Voir aussi tous les travaux concernant la menace du stéréotype.

@Moutmout @Naouak Exactly, that's the point.

@ekaitz_zarraga @Naouak
As such, women-only courses in male-dominated fields enable women to access the same opportunities as men.

Finally, whether or not a whole population (here men in general) is or not responsible for the behavior of a part (subset of men exhibiting toxic behavior) is irrelevant, given that this whole population have an advantage another population does not. (2/2)

(I'll post references if it's of any interest to you, but it'll take more time)

@Naouak
1st: yes, it's a discriminating response but it's idea is different. This is not a long term solution, it's a transition to a more leveled society.

2nd: It is dangerous to consider that but there's no real choice. What would you do? make a test to all the men to check if they are idiots or not? That's complicated.

3rd: For example, a men-only sewing course makes sense. Because it's seen as a women thing.

And last: it's not a political thing I think. I just want to help.

:D

@Naouak Great questions btw.

I hope I explained myself clearly (sometimes i have problems with the language).

:D

@Naouak @ekaitz_zarraga
1. Really? Is the état d'urgence comparable to a woman-only programming course? Really?

All sarcasm aside, creating a woman-only programming course does not deprive men of their freedom, nor does it prevent men from learning about programming. However, it does give women an opportunity they might not have otherwise.

What kind of alternative solution would you suggest? Maintaining the status quo does not seem to be an option to me.

@Naouak @ekaitz_zarraga
A women-only course means men won't have the opportunity to take that specific course. However, it does not deprive men the opportunity of learning programming skills, since they can fully benefit from the many programming courses that are out there. The issue here is NOT "should we prevent men from taking programming courses"

About inverted sexism (in more than 500 characters): https://youtu.be/RjX-LajG2EQ

Regarding état d'urgence, point taken.

@Naouak @ekaitz_zarraga
Let me say that again

The existence of one programming course in which men cannot take part does not prevent men from learning all they can about programming.

The non-existence of a programming course in which men cannot take part does prevent women from learning all they can about programming

@Naouak @ekaitz_zarraga
In a way, I'm arguing that this is not a case of discrimination, positive or negative, though I do agree that having to organize woman-only events or classes is far from ideal.

Do you have any alternative ideas to help solve the problem of violence against women in gaming conventions, programming courses or other instances?

@Naouak @ekaitz_zarraga
Not all violence is reprehensible by law. Consider for instance symbolic power as defined by Bourdieu.

I recommend reading (in French)
https://remuernotremerde.poivron.org/uploads/2014/12/12-suggestions-mis-en-page.pdf

and

http://basseintensite.internetdown.org/IMG/pdf/privilegeblancmasculin.pdf

@Naouak Sorry there's a problem with the federation and I never get your responses.

There are many man which are nurses and it's not something that embarrass them or make them suffer from harassment so it's not a closer example.

I agree that this mustn't be a non temporary solution but I dream with a world where separated spaces of any gender, sexual orientation, religion or whatever are not considered bad. I'm not offended by churches even if they are not made for *me*.

@Naouak Women need some help with this. We can disagree on the method but not in the problem.

We need more women in tech. I'm giving my time to change than and when I reach my goal I'll stop doing that.

:)