Why Aren’t There More Black People In Tech |

[@ForTheGoodOfHumanity]

I’m a black woman. That literally started a tech bootcamp almost 3 weeks ago and just recently landed my 1st Tech job at one of the biggest software companies. I’m 34, with a customer service background. No tech background AT ALL! I am so grateful to be a part of the ONLY 2.3% of black women in the tech space! No gatekeeping here! I am literally telling everyone I know to get into tech, while also providing them with the resources that got me here! Thank you for this! Our people need this information!

[@natashabutler356]

Congratulations in landing a tech job! I'm interested in getting into tech and would like to know what tech bootcamp did you attend?

[@ForTheGoodOfHumanity]

@@natashabutler356 CourseCareers careers bootcamp.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

@@natashabutler356 Be careful. These aren't real jobs or careers. There is no bootcamp path into tech.

[@natashabutler356]

@@seventhcompactor1505 Thank you.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

@@natashabutler356 If you really want a career, learn a SAP or Oracle or Salesforce module. And, learn some project management. It's not hard

[@anyazendyajoy3388]

I'm a black man that's been trying to break in for a year and a half now, still never landed a job after getting my CS degree back in may last year.... 1000s of job applications, 100s of interviews, countless rejections in final interviews. Its depressing watching everyone I knew in college go on to get jobs, live happy lives while I isolate myself in my parent's old house

[@jeremyepps5477]

This hits home and i been programming for 2 years now in DC so I came to the conclusion to work for myself.

[@realtalkjames2408]

We have to

[@kurisu3000]

The whole world dislike black men

[@PrinceZakariyya]

Have you foound a job?

[@Bicyclechris]

Stick with it, also if you are in the DC area, see what you can get into in the Northern Virginia area. All of the big tech companies that have government contracts are in the Reston Virginia area, and if you can or have a security clearance you will be highly sought after in these tech companies.

[@blkchicago]

why can't we as black techs start our own company or business and help other black businesses ?

[@blkchicago]

Coding is your SUPER POWER, and your business could be advertisement for marketing 🤓black businesses. Afro American websites, Clothes for Avatar's, Afro animation etc.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

Why ? Because 90% of you can't pass algebra

[@Ivylaismusic]

@@seventhcompactor1505 😂😂😂

[@blkchicago]

@@seventhcompactor1505 find the ones who can

[@seventhcompactor1505]

@@blkchicago why ? There are thousands and thousands of Asian students who are obtaining the required skills

[@JarrettLucas]

Great video bother. I work in tech as well. At a company of about 400 people and offices spread out in 4 different states, I’m the only back male that works there. And there’s only one black woman as well. She works in one of the other offices in a different state, so our paths never cross. Crazy!!

[@GeekyAfros]

I don’t think it’s many of us taking tech I’m a woman I’m black and I’m in tech I will never see many of me in this field…..I’m rare but I know other black women it’s far and few…and I am currently an LPN who decided to go to school for my bachelors in software development/data analytics I did the thing to make my mom proud and family proud but now I’m doing what I’ve always wanted to do be a computer programmer as their title was back in the 80’s….hey bro love the content and keep up the good work! 👏🏾👏🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾

[@kikikareema5912]

I see a lot more black people learning to code and cybersecurity.

[@lafemme8]

Right I'm a black woman programmer who went to college for it in 2000. There just weren't many of us interested in the field. I went to a hbcu for both undergrad and grad school and those were one of the smallest sizes for the majors. Our community, from my experience, didn't talk about it or push that on us. For me it was to be a teacher, nurse, "business" person. So from all of that and lack of general interest is what I think the main issue is.

[@kellis3342]

girl i felt this~!!!! im 30, female, black, and i have not seen anyone like me in my 10 years in the IT industry

[@seventhcompactor1505]

@@kellis3342 How many south asian women do you see ?

[@hungariannerd8445]

I am one of the 3 white people in my office. There is 1 black American guy, 1 Korean girl, and over 1000 east indians. I'm often seeing companies overwhelmed with Indians. I love indians, they are amazing people, but, it just seems like every company will hire 1 white guy, 1 black guy, 1 asian guy, 1 latino, 1 lgbt they/them and then 100+ indians just so they can meet the diversity quota.

[@doseofdevy]

I think there's a huge lack of exposure in the black community when it comes to careers in tech. Going to school in low income neighborhoods means that more often than not, you're not going to have a computer science class or really anything adjacent. I honestly got lucky to experience writing code that early in life

[@seventhcompactor1505]

So tyrone and Shaniqua don't be learnin no code ?

[@user-bl4im5tu1v]

There's not a lot of black people in tech because one, tech companies don't want to hire black people and two, there are very few black owned tech companies in the US. There's a push for more black people in tech because it's been called out so the government and organizations have been increasing incentives to hire black people. Do you want to work for someone who has to be forced or getting a diversity check to hire you? Absolutely not, if we want to help get other black people in tech, we as in Black Americans need to create our own tech jobs. I've been in tech for nearly 10 years and it's the worst feeling to be somewhere you're not unwelcomed or wanted trust me. If you get in tech learn as much as you can and replicate it in our community. This is why I'm so passionate about starting my own tech company so people of color don't have to feel that way.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

There aren't many blacks to hire. Go look at any STEM program at a top 50 university....it's almost all asian

[@jefestar]

amen

[@CMV314]

It's because of black culture.

[@dinformation2242]

​@CMV314, your reply is the reason why I started my tech company. Thank you for proving my point.

[@CMV314]

@@dinformation2242 I didn't prove your point at all. You just don't understand it. You fail to mention the primary cause: culture. When so many kids aspire to be rappers, football or basketball players, yet ignore tech. But of course, it's always the fault of white people and never our own, right?

[@GAPOWERade]

I work in tech. I’m black. I had a director today ask me if I knew how to share calendars in outlook 🥴 ma’am if outlook is tripping me up, all hope is lost

[@TheeRebel]

Smfh

[@Eugene.Berezin]

1) Because the lack of knowledge and inequities. 2) Often times Black people are being interviewed way harshly in comparison to other candidates. 3) Companies do not care to actually search for Black talent.

[@DaLastMonster]

I heard about the interviewing difficulty for blacks. I can’t confirm it, but if true, that sucks. I only had experienced a few technical interviews so I can’t really speak much on it.

[@MrSivram28]

@@DaLastMonster They speak to you like a criminal and interrogate you. It's difficult being black

[@daxterperson831]

Hopefully this will change with Microsoft having such a large presence in Atlanta. You have Spelman, Morehouse, Georgia State, and Georgia Tech, schools that you can draw black tech talent from.

[@Dice]

Thank you so much for sharing your opinions and experiences!

[@RonBruce]

When I was a child, my passion for science and technology sparked a desire to become a scientist. However, I distinctly recall abandoning that dream at the young age of 12 simply because I had never seen anyone who looked like me in those fields. Reflecting on this experience, it becomes evident that the lack of representation plays a significant role in the under-representation of black individuals in the tech industry.

[@CMV314]

There are very few Black men in tech because there's very little interest. Studies have shown that Black kids want to be rappers or sports stars when then they grow up. Not all, of course.

[@Brandon-tz5pn]

That was one of his points. Culture influence the youth. That just one reason though.

[@mxvii_thegreat9672]

I'm a Software Engineer, I feel this is the least racist field I've worked in. However, when I did face discrimination, racism it was mostly white men. Not all white men, in fact, not even most. It usually was other co-workers on my level, jealousy, competition, and passive aggressiveness. It was usually never the CEOs or someone high up to where they aren't "competing" with me. Sometimes a manager who was bias in my work, but since I usually keep track of projects I do that's somewhat difficult. There's multiple jobs so I don't feel tied down to companies or teams like this, I'll just go elsewhere. I try to avoid working with these groups of people. A side from that I haven't had to many issues with racism. I think one issue a few years at a company trying to hire. I haven't had any racism working with Indians, Asians, or other black people. I worked fairly well with Indians and they have a similar thought process to me as an individual and I'm a black man. There were some languages barriers with working with some Asians as some accents were strong, but not really racism. But I have came across some white male individuals who felt entitled to a certain job because their white. I literally had heard this come out there mouth. Again, not all but this is just my experience.

[@LeCrowTV]

Being a bi-racial tech worker I can count on my left pinky how many other friends of color I grew up with who where very strongly interested in STEM. Sports was pushed so heavily in my community it was almost a joke for me to not be interested in them given my size and athletic ability. Grew up not feeling represented by my community and now I feel like a outlier in an industry that doesn't represent with me.

[@GeekyAfros]

Yes!! I love that you know the truth they don’t push that in our community for that to be a cool occupation it’s sports or theymedical field and they reason the push for the medical field is because not too many want to do that work they’re giving us stuff where we physically will wear ourselves down but it’s up to us in this field to educate especially knowing 2035 they’re definitely going to need tech skills way more than these other jobs..they’re going to need someone to run these bots coming up

[@seventhcompactor1505]

@@GeekyAfros "they don't push that in our community". 1. There is no 'they'. The only 'they' are your parents. 2. There is no 'community'. When you have a broke society full of baby mamas, no 'community' can arise.

[@Mark-wb8dv]

Bi racial....half caste

[@RodderickPrinceParker]

I just got fired from my tech sales job. I always feel like I can do more; but, I couldn’t help but feel like white real estate investors didn’t want me as their point of contact. Once I went off camera, it helped; but was already too late. On to the next. This shit don’t stop.

[@Delliofreight]

Quick question I’m in the process of trying to find one and I’ve done well over 100 applications and nobody has gotten back to me

[@RodderickPrinceParker]

@@Delliofreight are you on LinkedIn? Are you going to sales networking events? Thursday night sales is a good one. How’s your resume?

[@seventhcompactor1505]

Cut back on the ebonics, and focus on more good grammar and humor

[@a1yo]

@@seventhcompactor1505 That crap doesn't matter...you nonblacks use ebonics on the job in a teasing manner all the time...foh

[@NatTurner328]

@@seventhcompactor1505You’ll all burn as the planet gets hotter.

[@geraldbenson4114]

Just wanna say it's really good to be in the beginning throws of self-teaching and see people who look like you providing perspective.....it honestly reassures me that it's possible and normal to finally pursue an interest that was kinda sort of looked down on in certain ways by the culture. Love your channel, you have a calling. Stay blessed bro.

[@andrewe1407]

I am very much not in the industry yet I just started college and I definitely count how many black people are in my classes and usually it caps out at 1, me.

[@alxzndrmusic5971]

They don’t think we know what we’re talking about, I’m in Audio Engineering and I notice so many micro agressions

[@ronsavvy9866]

Because a lot of us hear tech and think of coding only and there are other positions in tech that don't require coding

[@TheeRebel]

Who will share that info though?! Not enough folks like this kid… 🤦🏾‍♂️

[@chillinwitwinchell7385]

Great vid Larry… I love how you shed light on an issue most people are ignorant about

[@Sa.Ka2323]

I'm a black person in tech it just suck and feels uncomfortable 😂

[@whathuh6965]

Convincing a racist heart not to be a racist heart is somewhat futile. Racist culture is a thing, but I admire your bravery for speaking on this topic nonetheless. It's just sad that society doesn't always receive that racism exists in the tech-world.

[@John-wu4rc]

Even though you don't upload as often i always rush to watch your videos. They are always nice to watch, insightful and entertaining.

[@dummycodes]

Thank you John I appreciate that!

[@jdub7171]

I've been the black sheep on several IT teams I've worked on. Hella irritating the vibe I get from all the Bob's and Ken's.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

You didn't work in IT. If you did, there aren't any bob's and kens'. It's Sameer's and Mahesh's.

[@Reason_over_Dogma]

For me, my family said it doesn't make money and it's only for white people that there's no diversity and i wouldn't get far ahead. I did IT. I'm doing more than okay.

[@kidultcollectibles]

I think owners are more comfortable around people that look and act like them. Plus they don't like competition.

[@sheldonhollis5258]

Nepotism is a huge part. Think about it. Whites and Asians (Indians and Chinese) dominate these tech companies, so they are going to hire their own before anybody else.

[@laradara7175]

True

[@grmmth3]

I look for black employees in every company i go into

[@seventhcompactor1505]

how do you know who is 'black' ?

[@grmmth3]

@@seventhcompactor1505 the same way i know who is caucasian

[@seventhcompactor1505]

@@grmmth3 You don't know who is caucasian

[@calvint678]

People help others like them. Think Walmart in the UK, so many Indian people. A few grind their way up and bring their crew with them. Doesn't happen enough in black culture :( nobody looks like me in these tech "about us" pages

[@Aniar_bkwds]

Agreed

[@seventhcompactor1505]

Blacks fail to build Trust in their own communities. This goes back to sub saharan Africa. Blacks remained as fractured tribes, even warring and raiding one another. They never build large social and political communities. They never had 'Trust'

[@camsbff8620]

I am a black woman who started in tech in 1980 in the Navy. Continued as civilian in 1990, retired as a govt public service a analyst few years ago. In a 40 yr career in tech my experienced went from being the only black person to the only black female in technical cert courses. I retired from public service as the 1st and only black woman in a Networking dept implementing MANs n Campus LANs. If your experience is being hired as the "token" person of color I'm dismayed this continues. I ❤ tech but eventually adjusted my way of thinking about my field. We're hired to tick boxes, have more formal education and experience than most our peers but are expected to continue to provide solutions others get credit for achieving way too often. Young man, I'd hoped this would've changed by your generation. I hope you help to continue to put further cracks in that ceiling! BSCS CCNP

[@jakeleone8944]

Unfortunately, in tech, there is a huge bias in hiring. That bias is that friends tend to hire friends. So the hiring reflects this. Companies with a large quantity from one group say European decent, or Indian decent, tend to hire from their own race. It is racist, it might not stem from a horrifically wrong/stereotyped perception of other groups. It might just be people are afraid (of losing their job) and so build up a cadre of friends around them to protect them. I just finished an interview, with a major tech company. I did not get hired. But a few of the interviewers were just adamant that the job was not something I would want to do. Yet, that is exactly what I have been doing for 23 years and at high pressure in startups. It just boils down to biases. I am older, I am of European decent, and the interviewers were predominantly Indian. They probably have unemployed friends they would like to bring in. It just boils down to that. I expect with these layoffs, and subsequent rehiring, white involvement in tech will fall some, east asian participation might remain stable. South asian participation will increase. Only when there is a huge number of unfilled jobs, and a clear need to fill those jobs, and very few people who can fill them will companies open up as workers at the companies feel comfortable and don't mind the competition. Surprizingly, interview requirements will also drop. Companies might also decide that replatforming a person (say from standard dev to an AI position or Security position) this could happen. Yes there is massive discrimination in tech. And you can see in in DOJ vs Facebook 2020, 2600+ cases of discrimination against highly qualified local applicants. Auditing should be required of any tech company that uses our visa systems. They really need to be forced to examine their hiring practices, literally for benefit of the company and not the hiring manager building a fiefdom (which happened at Facebook), but it happens everywhere in tech.

[@DaLastMonster]

No black people in tech is probably due to the fact that it isn’t something that is heavily pushed in our community. I am still iffy about this due to the fact that this may have been true when I first went to college 2013/2014, but I feel like a general recent push for tech should have created some type of exposure. I didn’t know anything about tech in high school besides the robotics club we had there. That same robotics club was looked at as nerdy. I started to learn about CS in my 3rd year of college from a non-black person. By time I found out about CS, it was a little too late to do a full on major switch.

[@TheMkfan123]

We literally have the exact same story. Except I got sick around my third year in college, and found out about CS shortly after. Prior to that, I had no idea what CS actually was.

[@SimGunther]

Plus if it is pushed on the community, sometimes they're in a setting that doesn't set themselves up for success because they weren't adequately prepared from other course work. Plenty of school systems in Baltimore where that's the case. I pity anyone being in those supposedly rich cities that have horrific public schools!

[@DaLastMonster]

@@TheMkfan123 Nice! Hopefully you are getting a shot at the tech industry if that is your true calling. I graduated from college with my criminal justice degree and worked in the legal profession for a bit. After paying off my loans, I went after a second degree this time in CS. I still have some classes left but I got an internship lined up. It is an interesting field and hopefully more black people come to find out about it. I was always into stuff that might come off as nerdy, so hopefully CS doesn’t deter people that aren’t into the typical stuff people in CS might be into.

[@DaLastMonster]

@@SimGunther I feel like my math classes weren’t that great growing up. Khan Academy is an amazing resource and I wish I knew about it when I was younger. One thing I love about this generation is the fact you can supplement your learning through online resources. Unfortunately, classes can’t be relied on for adequate learning. CS will require ongoing learning and as such, one should get used to turning to online resources. It is a shame that in person classes can set students up for failure though.

[@TheMkfan123]

Daquan Patterson I hope so too. Thank you!! 🙏🏾🙏🏾

[@aniankh]

KEEP UP THE GREAT Work!!!

[@JEBJOSH]

hey man. hope you're good. was thinking about you few days ago and boom an upload

[@dummycodes]

Aha doing great now, gonna be uploading way more this year

[@JEBJOSH]

@@dummycodes good to hear brother

[@3IsStronger]

@@dummycodes still my boyfriend. 🥰 I'm in cyber and wondering how many asses I will be kissing to get where I want to be as a CISO 😎

[@perezident14]

I’m happy you voice your opinions / observations. I’m happy to work on a primarily minority team, but this industry has a LOOOONG way to go.

[@MrSivram28]

The resolution to this needs to start with black people. There are blacks in managerial positions purposefully rejecting black candidates do to their own prejudices and insecurities. Blacks just have it bad. Indians, Whites, Asians and our own black people refuse to give us a chance. The only resolution is to start creating our own companies and hiring ourselves.

[@MrSivram28]

@Bal Rex You're the blacks im talking about. sellouts

[@Papa_Nokk]

Glad to see you back bro. There is bias and always will be bias against us. Only we can make the change ourselves. Im an engineer in the semiconductor industry and i hardly see any black folks. The answer is simple, we just need more of our people interested in STEM. It all starts with representation, those of us in the spaces need to dedicate free time to exposing the next generation. Its why i volunteer for minority outreach programs and work on projects.

[@Papa_Nokk]

@Ash Hegde Unfortunately there is subtle bias. Objectively yes you are right, i am aware of affirmative action or meeting quotas. Undeniably, finding a job is not purely based off merit, hence why privileged folks get jobs just bc they know people. Affirmative actions offsets this privilege to make opportunity more equitable for everyone.

[@Papa_Nokk]

@Ash Hegde Im aware of everything you are saying its not news to me. We share different values. This will go no where.

[@bosscomitchell]

I have to say it great to see u backnmy dude, regardless of the content. I would check to see if you were back uploading every now and then. Glad ur ok

[@Monray87]

yes, but also you need to check the amount of black people that's pursuing a career in tech as well, i feel like there needs to be more mentorships where black kids are shown how to code.

[@shaneblackwoodGodbless]

Litterally anytime we have a joint project with overseas companies im the only black guy in the chat

[@seventhcompactor1505]

No Indian Americans ? Or Indians from India ? if so, there's plenty of color

[@lianadotjpeg]

@@seventhcompactor1505 He didn't say Indian. He said Black. You're comparing apples to oranges.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

@@lianadotjpeg There are no projects in 'tech' that lack Indians. It just doesn't happen in the English speaking world. Tech is brown.

[@lianadotjpeg]

@@seventhcompactor1505 Again, he didn't say Brown--he said Black. There's a difference. I'm sure that a person of Indian descent would happily inform you about the discrepancies between being South Asian and Black American.

[@dariusthurman8835]

1. Enrollment in CS degrees or the hard STEM engineering is low for black people in general. 2. Hood sounding names

[@Reason_over_Dogma]

Darius would be considered "hood" to a white supremacist.

[@chosenlieutenant3978]

Just came across your channel and this video is amazing. Thank you for speaking on this topic

[@pldash33]

I saw your video the first time you asked this question, glad you made a new one. I'm black and speaking as one, a lot of the underprivileged blacks are never told that it's possible. That's the way it was for me growing up, and all my friends. We're more told to just work as long as we don't sell drugs (that kinda gives you tunnel-vision to just be a worker). So blacks focus mainly, on just gettin that job, but not that there is way more to life and money. Like you see it in movies. to get out of the hood you gotta be a rapper or an athlete. I heard you're story about how you got into tech, when you said all those what if's, that was correct because others fall on the other side of the what if's where nothing went good lol. But we have a chance to change if we teach the younger generation early. I'm 37 and started coding 6 months ago, I sold 2 websites and plan to sell more. Hopefully, as time goes on I can show other young black kids (and hopefully you as well) that we are all good enough to reach a higher level.

[@Poodahfuqshxtup]

Trying to pivot into tech sales with experience in face-to-face consultative sales and telesales (inbound, outbound, B2C and B2B), still waiting for the opportunity for an interview 😩

[@ballroomdru]

Background. It isn’t pushed in almost any black community except immigrants and even then it’s doctor, lawyer, or engineer, choose one. Computer science isn’t even a thought.

[@Bicyclechris]

You’re pretty spot on. I work at one of these companies and most of the folks in leadership are white or Indian. It’s not surprising to see entire teams with nothing but Indian or white people. Same goes for culture bias. I’ve seen managers come over from Amazon, and hire a bunch of people to fill there new team from Amazon. Tech is very much a gate keeping profession, especially for people of color. The virtue signaling is strong, but the amount of people of color our company hires remains low.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

So sounds like there's no bias. How come whites allow Indians to succeed so well ?

[@seventhcompactor1505]

Indian Americans are 'people of color'. Do you not grasp that ?

[@Bicyclechris]

@@seventhcompactor1505 I agree, They are indeed, but in the eyes of the company I work for, they are not considered “diverse” in the US. Only people who identify as black and hispanic are. Ultimately what I think doesn’t really matter, because I cannot influence HR to rewrite their policies,

[@Bicyclechris]

@@seventhcompactor1505 I never said there wasn’t. There is bias everywhere unfortunately.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

@@Bicyclechris Then, the notion of 'diversity' has to get more diverse. Because right now, it means nothing

[@monikamoon14]

Seeing the people who look like you succeeding on KZbin gives you the will to believe you can get there! Work in an IT Helpdesk , aiming for Data analyst and Cloud since UX didn't result in a job. Freelance might be worthwhile later on .

[@0Camus0]

Hm as a Mexican working in tech in the US I am not quite sure about racism... 80% of people are either Indian or Chinese, and sometimes Indians only hire Indians, there are leven lawsuits about it. Now, a lot of Mexicans in the US, but they don't work in tech, at all, and I don't think is racism, is just that a lot of people rather pursue different careers. When we interview people, most are Indian, maybe a white but it's rare, so, not sure. I can think about being expensive to get a degree in CS, that's the only real explanation that I can find and yes, racism is something that contributed to that, but indirectly.

[@kylegotluck]

Thank you for this video. Potential tech prospect

[@MikosMiko]

I work in a marketing tech company, and less than half of 1 percent of the workforce is black. About 80% are white, the remainder are Asian (Indian, Chinese, Korean, etc). I think it’s a combination of factors, with the most prominent one being: (a) racism - these employers tend to look down on blacks and the hiring teams will almost never consider a black person for a leadership role. You could be 10 times more qualified and experienced than your white/Asian counterparts, you will very likely not get considered. And if you happen to somehow make it into these companies as a qualified person, you will likely get bullied/harassed/ostracized/have subordinates be insubordinate, have your work unfairly critiqued, list goes on. If you’re lucky you will have a good advocate/mentor that’s not racist who helps you out, but those cases are few and far between so what happens is a lot of minorities leave their jobs looking for greener pastures which they may not find as the grass is not always greener on the other side. Asians can be quite racist as well! With all that being said, we also can’t forget factors like competition and envy. Competitive blacks can also make things hard for other blacks, and very few blacks who make it into leadership roles look out for other blacks, sad bad true🤷🏾 Racism sucks, corporate life is a rat race, but that’s life. Great video!

[@seventhcompactor1505]

How is there racism if near a quarter of the employees are Indian, Korean, Chinese ?

[@seventhcompactor1505]

Find the black candidate that is '10x more qualified'. Where is that unicorn ?

[@MikosMiko]

@@seventhcompactor1505 is your assumption that a company having roughly a quarter of employees as Asian mean it can’t be racist, if less than half of 1% is black?

[@lianadotjpeg]

@@MikosMiko Yes; that's their assumption. Because they're a racist bigot who came here to troll. Their sense of entitlement is pathetic.

[@BigOhBro]

@@MikosMiko You have described my experience completely, though you are getting discredited for your hyperbole (e.g., 10x more qualified). To your point, it is practically impossible for a statistic like 1% representation to exists for a major population of people (13%) without some process causing this number to be so low. That process is likely discrimination and bias in the employment and promotion process and the process that should provide equal opportunity. Ageism exacerbates this issue as the accepted "-ism" so it only gets more difficult being old and black in tech.

[@XSkysaiX]

The people need you again. You’re truly inspiring thank you 🙏🏿

[@natgenesis5038]

we think in order to be in tech ,we must be smart .

[@JJSmalls]

I grew up surrounded by drugs, crime, and homelessness. The odds are stacked against those that don't have a stable household, but more afterschool programs would be nice moving forward. That helped me cope back when I was a kid. But it's a real grind, and we can't hold ourselves back due to our past and sum it up as a "black vs. white" thing. Get help, get counseling, achieve greatness. Give back.

[@demsticks4771]

Your white

[@seventhcompactor1505]

Tell the broke women in the area to close their legs. There is no solution for reckless procreation

[@seventhcompactor1505]

Blame your parents for popping out kids they couldn't afford.

[@actingbarber]

Well spoken

[@yaskarun1387]

I’m a Ux designer trying to get my start, I have a great portfolio and resume but I never get a call back. I honestly think there is some bias because I have applied to over 40 positions without getting an interview offer

[@seventhcompactor1505]

Triple check your resume. It's full of mistakes.

[@vnxn10]

Pray 🙏 it works 💯💯

[@you_only_have_4000_weeks]

Resume

[@leemcnutt9825]

I have 4 certificates in I.T and I applied for like 6 jobs and still get denied and I'm very discouraged

[@seventhcompactor1505]

Certificates mean nothing. Do you have a bachelor's degree that isn't suspect ?

[@lianadotjpeg]

@@seventhcompactor1505 Shut up.

[@Developer888]

dam degree dont mean nothing when your a black man

[@johndong4754]

Ive applied for a few thousand positions and have not been accepted to a single one

[@NatTurner328]

@@seventhcompactor1505” Certificates mean nothing” said the troglodyte who doesn’t even know a tech worker. Suck it.

[@eyemissmyunclecharles7185]

I would say the IT field has much more black people in it. I work remote help desk for a major hospital in NYC and most of my coworkers are black, including at least 5 black women off the top of my head that I can think of and my supervisor is a black man.

[@imanigordon6803]

That’s super rare

[@seventhcompactor1505]

Help desk isn't IT. It's admin

[@hclovely-mp9xw]

I’m in tech and the only black woman. My role is in cybersecurity. But I don’t implement or do any of the actual tech work. From my experience tech is great to get into and something more black people should get into. However, I got to be honest. It has been rough and I feel excluded at work a lot but I’ve learned to create my own space and zone out with my music so it no longer bothers me as much. Unfortunately, I do feel that the feeling of exclusion and being the other makes a lot of blacks not want to stay in tech or even consider it. As we are rare. But this can also be a benefit in the hiring process. As a lot of companies want that.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

So instead of learning and growing, you choose to hide and listen to music. Hmm.

[@hclovely-mp9xw]

@@seventhcompactor1505 Interesting.. not at all. I’m learning and growing. I just choose to handle things differently and no longer let the toxicity affect me. Listening to music is a stress reliever and I’m evolving.

[@kidultcollectibles]

they don't competition.

[@Robertv1984]

Coder and Proud! I am one of a few black developers in my department.

[@elsavelaz]

So what should we do if we feel there are things that happen that show that stuff is not fair , if you work for an at will state? Do you spend time finding someone to looking into it? Is there like an attorney that specializes in representing marginalized groups, or how does a person even begin figuring out effort to look for help? Yes Aaron brokovich for it done , but it’s not exactly the same … just wondering , is there a lawyer out there that can help make quick decisions like “yeah pursue that, here’s who can back you up , now focus on finding your next gig cuz we know you don’t have daddy big pockets to let you slide while you make it selling chocolate.”

[@elsavelaz]

And I’m not saying like “take them to the cleaners,” I’m saying like correct more companies more harshly more quickly for much less because it’s ridiculous as AI is becoming a thing, we still have to make sure this is crystal clear that it’s still a thing

[@ronaldcollins9618]

Great topic!!

[@MestreDentistaGUC]

I'm so glad I found your channel 😊

[@karnez05]

Ah my boy back,,, it’s simple we live in America, I’m literally the only black person on my job site

[@borisn.1346]

Another question for you: What is the mix of black people in STEM at your local 4y college? Now, what is the the mix of black people in Physical education majors? Can we stop this victimhood mentality? Nobody owes me / you anything. We are the only community that complains instead of taking action at the individual and group level. Keep complaining, it'll work out someday... smh

[@dummycodes]

It’s like you didn’t watch the video or properly comprehend . You just heard racism and assumed that’s the only thing. No black person wants to be hired just bc they are black. And to your NBA point, the NBA is filled with black people because they have been pushed from a Young age to pursue basketball. Some form the age of 5. Pushed like that because many of their parents see it as the only way to make it out. Where as white families see it as a side activity. Also compared to “other” sports the barrier for entry is cheaper, than football, hockey, ice skating etc. there are still a very noticeable solid number of skilled NBA players who are white. But the numbers aren’t as high bc again how their families view sports in each group is completely different. I keep repeating everything isn’t black and white when it comes to issues. You can address why something is the way it is and how it got there and not just say people are whining and they need to work harder. We all get that and everyone is working harder but let’s not act like there aren’t many barriers in their way. Both of what you and I are saying can be right at the same time. There is no need to ignore the actual long term affects racism has had on black communities just for the sake of a blanket statement argument. ( no hate tho, I don’t want me tone to be lost over the internet) appreciate your for commenting your perspective and discussing

[@borisn.1346]

@@dummycodes You're gonna play the comprehension card huh? No one pushes black people into anything. We just have 2 very different world views my guy. I accept the cards that are dealt to me and focus only on the things I control - my attitude + my effort. I choose to take agency in my outcomes. Does racism exist? Of course! But it is not by any means the most significant factor in the multivariate equation of outcomes. Again, let's keep crying about racism instead of building our own businesses and building our skills to better our communities - that has worked well so far.

[@mikolots]

*"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the CONTENT of their character."* People or companies still don't comprehend this quote. The content of skill inside of you, should have nothing to do with how you look.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

I have a dream where broke uneducated fools don't pop out 4 children

[@seventhcompactor1505]

Skill has nothing to do with looks. Asians are dominating in tech. It isn't because of looks.

[@lianadotjpeg]

@@seventhcompactor1505 Shut up.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

@@lianadotjpeg No

[@seventhcompactor1505]

@@lianadotjpeg Close your legs

[@kirill4531]

Can I apply to US jobs from overseas, as a contractor? Do you know something about this?

[@BlaireDavidson-rb3mn]

power/ an effort to create a larger gap between the rich and the poor. The powerful and the oppressed. Period. Like we don't know these tired tricks. ugh

[@seventhcompactor1505]

Yet Asians are dominating. How ?

[@lianadotjpeg]

@@seventhcompactor1505 Asians are constantly schmoozed by White Americans and told that they're model minorities. This isn't even considering that Asians in America have never had to endure the same struggles that Black Americans were forced to, thus creating generations of unfair circumstances for Black Americans that held them back socially. Though both are minority groups, there's a huge difference between Asians coming to America and Black Americans.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

@@lianadotjpeg No two groups or three groups endure 'the same struggle'. That's a weird concept to even measure. How do we measure 'struggle' ? Asians were 3rd class citizens, even after the 14th amendment. Blacks also didn't help the asian causes much, during the years of 'asian exclusion leagues'. Regardless of the past, Asians in the past 40 years have dominated. Their kids are more educated than caucasians. They earn more on average. They live longer. They don't have single parent cultures. They don't let their kids dance and worry about hair and nails. And their women don't bang deadbeats. Mimic it.

[@lianadotjpeg]

@@seventhcompactor1505 If you don't understand the impact that being enslaved, legally deemed subhuman, legally forbidden from learning how to read/write, and facing mass levels of execution and discrimination has on an entire race of people, generationally, you're not competent enough to offer serious input about this subject. Work on being less ignorant and more culturally aware. You're not being a very good representative of your (supposedly) intellectually superior race right now.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

@@lianadotjpeg How can one not understand that ? Most all of us come from slavery. It was a global institution, and still haunts the globe. Your insanity is that you think what people suffered in the US nation, is so so so distinct from what other populations suffered. Do you think blacks in Brazil are faring better ? Do you think former servitude population is just black Americans ? You all are so unique ? You employ a melodramatic language, because you really don't know much about 17th-19th century history.

[@svwhett1]

There needs to be a Black person to start his/her OWN business. one door closes does not mean it is the end.

[@4agewise120]

You can use a better microphone. The sound is low.

[@anthonyvargas7564]

Quantum Computation and data analysis, 3d Printing expert, Audio production and engineering, mechanical engineering, homeless *dab*

[@polikesa]

And another question brother I am a blek being, if I joined the software engineering work will I need to cut my hair? Due to coworkers looking down upon? My hair is a big afro that I rarely comb does it matter how my hair is?

[@JaZZYJeFF215]

truly is just a handful of black people in tech

[@kweli05]

I think this has to do with your area. I'm in Atlanta, been in tech since the mid 90s and there is NOT a shortage of Black people in tech here. If Black people are 13% of the population, you have to consider that.

[@dummycodes]

Ofcourse Atlanta is definitely an outlier in this convo if we are looking at city to city. Or state to state. But in terms of the entire industry in the US. The numbers are wayyy low.

[@kweli05]

@@dummycodes That's kind of what I mean. By being only 13% of the overall US population, expecting Black people to be even (as low as) 20% of tech may be unreasonable.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

@@kweli05 Yet, Indian Americans are 1% of the population, and nearly 40% of Tech

[@kweli05]

@@seventhcompactor1505 Good point. Lots of Indians where I work. It’s more 3PL though, instead of full time employees. In my company, and more specifically the organization, Black people represent almost 50% of the employees, including leadership. So as I said, for Black people it could be location specific. If you’re in Northern California of course the numbers would be extremely low.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

@@kweli05 Name a relevant black technology lead firm. Name just one

[@actingbarber]

systemic racism

[@Neobarnabas]

It's a damn shame honestly.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

Is it ? Why ?

[@TFDusk]

The bigger reason you touched on in my opinion more black people are not in tech is mainly due to econimic and cultural issues around the black community. For black people, our idols are mainly in entertainment or are in sports, it is extremely rare to see in general in our communities people that have actually made a career for themselves in tech to be able to look for questions in relation to it unless you purposely seek it out. I've heard from many black people they do not think themselves as capable of doing not just coding, but topics around stem as a whole, even the phrase "I'm to dumb to understand math", which is a common reason why a lot of people do not even seek it out. Software engineering is also seen as generally a nerdy thing, I remember back in 2013 people checking my blackness due to my interest in computers, and being well educated in mathmatics. If the culture around us shames black people for being software engineers at a young age, does not provide us the tools to be able to even learn about tech in our schools or even basic computers when chromebooks exist for literally a few hunred dollars, then we can't foster the interest needed for people to actually wnat to jump into tech. Racism in companies exists, but thats a natural side effect of not having a diverse set of people within those comapnies. I remember a soap dispeser that was lauched out to the public that literally couldn't register skin that was too dark, because the QA team didn't forsee that scenario, quite literally having a black person in the room would've probably saved the product. I don't think intentionally most people are trying ot be racist, but the network that you are going to have is probably going to be people that are similar to you. Companies do cringe stuff of DEI and changing their logos to rainbow colors because communities will throw an outrage if they don't do this. It isn't removing internalized biases, it's just a survival mechanism that any company will do in the publci face. If the public was more racist, then companies would simply follow that trend. The way to get more black people in tech in my opinion is to provide the tools necessary for people to learn about it at earlier stages in life. I didn't even know what a computer science degree was until I actually hit and researched colleges, but I knew for a fact that I wanted to do something in computers because thats where most of my enjoyment as a youth was in through playing online games. Even though I didn't go do video game developemtn as my first role, I still loved doing programming as a whole because it was everything that I personally enjoyed doing that I knew I would be well marketed for.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

Every black kid has to be taught to put away the rap, and learn what y=mx+b means

[@Developer888]

nah thats not true, black folks just listen to that music but most of us want a good paying iob or business, the facts are they are boxing us out of the money

[@FabioTheGreat]

Diversity is about diversification… of backlash

[@Walking_China]

What roles can black people play in tech companies？

[@psikeyhackr6914]

ROFLMBAO I won a National Merit Scholarship in 1970. I went to college for electrical engineering. Other Black kids in high school made sarcastic remarks, "You're a scholar and a gentleman." But two of them paid me to take their SATs. I'm sorry, but watching basketball and football is boring. I soldered together my first computer in 1978 after I was hired by IBM. I offered to pay some neices and nephews to read some science fiction books I selected. They refused! Black Man's Burden (1961) by Mack Reynolds It is free on the Internet.

[@psikeyhackr6914]

I do wonder if some don't want to hire people who can't or won't speak reasonably proper American English.

[@fonziefonzarelli8049]

I've been working as a Software Developer for the past 5 years. The majority of the people I've worked with have been either Asian or Indian. This isn't a Black/White thing. You're not a victim, get over it.

[@michaelgyan7174]

No I do email marketing.

[@xRowx]

Its very much a gatekeeping culture. Masters degree in Computer Engineering and getting jobs worth my education and experience is tougher than finding Tupac. Dont get me wrong I get interviews for 6 figure jobs but the final boss (aka white, Asian, or Indian manager) opinion usually says no for lack of experience that you can ONLY get by previously working for that said job. Keep pushing tho ✊🏾

[@godsjxwlry]

Its sad, because this video will be relevant until we see a difference, 1 year later still the same thing, Ive heard stories on how people disclosed information about race just to get an interview smh

[@rwatler]

Because we invented everything. And they it. But will never admit it.

[@ayanrosey8597]

0:48 😂😂😂

[@nyainaharrison5604]

I think it's even worse in game industry

[@sakhile_nkomo]

"Shout out to black people"

[@AdrielDamoneTv]

Bro, I’m in the Bay and I code 👨🏽‍💻 Let’s link!

[@maliksingleton7880]

Do you truly think a black guy can get a fair shot in the tech world?

[@josephthecreator]

@@maliksingleton7880 why wouldn't a "black guy"? I'm a Software Engineer. I came up on the rough part of town. Grew up in the south. Broken home, single mom and we were poor. No one went to college or talked about technology growing up. Had no idea it was a viable option/way to earn a living. Of course you have a fair shot. As long as you put in the work and develop the SKILLS....you have a fair shot at anything. I believe in you.

[@borisn.1346]

Let's me ask you this then: why is it okay to turn on an NBA game and mostly see black people? Is it racism as well? Should we do something about it too?

[@Developer888]

thats skill based and height based dummie there just isnt alot of tall Asian men and indian men that actually want to be in the nba, tech don't require height or athletics, why are you people so stupid

[@mattofella]

While I do think racism is an issue….black culture is a bigger issue… where I’m from “Baltimore” most black people don’t even know that working in tech is an option.

[@dummycodes]

how do you think that came to be. racism definitely has had an absurd ripple effect on black people, opportunities, and how they go about raising their families.

[@mattofella]

Yes, it does…but as a black person at some point there’s a thing called personal responsibility. You would be a great example…the best thing is for people like you and me to become successful in this space. To make it acceptable for others that look like us.

[@dummycodes]

@@mattofella I used to think like that but then I realized how absolutely lucky I am to even be raised and surrounded by people who push me. That motivating factor to push through. Human psychology is not so black and white. Big believer in its not your fault what happen to you but its up to you to do something about it. But wayy to many factors effects how both you and I go through life and how we approach our struggles. That's why I try catch myself when judging how some one is carrying out their life. For some its as easy as do something about it. Then others its not, some have responsablities to take case of family and dont even have time to think about themselves. Anyways I ramble but you get my point hopefully loll. Anyways ahve a good day my guyy

[@seventhcompactor1505]

@@dummycodes It isn't racism. Stop making excuses. It's black culture. Baby mamas and thugs everywhere

[@polikesa]

💯💯💯

[@user-re1ip1mu9h]

Come join snipers you get lifetime protection and we stand on biz

[@1hiphoppop]

Children do what they see

[@mr.mystiks9968]

Bro ur just promoting dice 😂

[@kimeli]

are there no black tech companies out there that can hire black people?

[@seventhcompactor1505]

Hahaha... "black tech company' sounds like 'asian NBA team'

[@keithwisdom1663]

No blaks in pwi. And its ok. All hite corps they dont thing its a problem 😊

[@riskz3963]

I think there is a lack of black people in tech because of the stereotypes but i do see more and more black people like us putting our foot in the door. I honestly feel like it is partially our fault also because of the culture like you mentioned it's just unfortunately natural for the culture to think that things like tech are just not for us. It's just the way some of us grew up but hopefully this can change I love the tech community even if sometimes i feel like I am an outcast or if i don't belong, I am determined to show others that WE BELONG.

[@seventhcompactor1505]

The issue are test scores, not stereotypes

[@davidkhvedelidze6536]

why does it matter? what really matters is performance and not how many black people are in a company. Users really care about how good a company performs and how it really benefits them and not how many black people or women are in a company.

[@brucethawhorn2455]

The same mfs that started slavery said a similar thing

[@airtyme]

Stop complaining about black not getting in to jobs, black people are well represented. Please look at Asians and population. Black and white are pretty much on the same level. The real minorities are Asians sounth Asians and asians

[@guyfawkes9252]

No they're not, look up the statistics and you'll see that black americans are consistently underrepresented in Tech. The East Asians and South Asians you see generally are from affluent and well-educated families, the elite of their own respective societies selected by the Immigration system, they have more advantages over people who experienced Jim Crow and Slavery.