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Bullying, Diversity and Inclusion Parliamentary Update

November 15, 2017

A message from the founder and chairperson, Josh Cohen

​1​ Bullying Awareness, Diversity and Inclusion

At OSDI, as we continue to grow and move forward, we continually evolve and refactor ourselves.  With the passing of the election, we can take a breath and patch ourselves.  Though many in our community are heads down on the election, October was Bullying Awareness Month.  So we can tackle that late.

In that spirit, the first update we’re making is for Diversity and Inclusion.  OSDI is a technical workplace, which typically can be a difficult environment for marginalized communities. As a gay software engineer with a substantive tenure in corporate tech, I’ve felt the discriminatory behavior that leaders from marginalized communities frequently face.  My path origin into the progressive tech space (from corporate) is a desire to address discrimination-based bullying and other circumstances and behaviors that treat people as, or make them feel, like second-class citizens.

 

​1.1​ Awakening

The most significant event that awakened me and shifted my path in this direction was the suicide of my friend Ryan in 2005.  Ryan was a fellow 30-something tech nerd, true to form, decided to publish his suicide letter online. It can be seen as the end of his syslog, which lays out the problem he was unable to solve.

“My experiences in high school left me deeply scarred. I came away from those years feeling fundamentally broken and not good enough. I always thought I could shake those feelings in adulthood, and have learned various techniques to distract myself from them, but they still haunt me. As much as I’ve tried to rid myself of certain feelings I can’t shake the idea that I’m not good enough and that I am unlovable.”

That passage has stuck with me ever since.  It describes the dent left in him from being bullied by people or situations where power was being used in harmful ways. This a common thread in bullying, sexual abuse, discrimination, and rape culture.  These kind of tragic consequences of isolating and exclusionary behavior are examples of the worst-case that happens all too common, not just to marginalized communities, but to anyone subjected to these ills.

​1.2​ Becoming an Upstander

A desire to fix that led to my first step to get involved by going to YearlyKos 06 (which is now Netroots Nation), and doing work LGBT campaigns and learning more about the broader progressive movement. Through those experiences and conversations with people wiser about the movement than me, I found a shared problem where I brought something unique to the table:  Integration.  OSDI is a community driven solution to that problem, but it is a means to an end: Inclusive Communities.

No one should be made to feel like they are unlovable, not good enough, not wanted, or subjected to the exclusionary harms which can lead to such tragic consequences. No one should be able to abuse power to cause those harms or betray core progressive values of fairness, equality, due process, and proportionate justice.

 

​1.3​ Abuses of power in our community

Let’s take examples from rape culture, which I know many others have experienced.  While selling consulting services, a potential customer expressed interest in demos and meetings. However, these were accompanied with increasingly explicit sexual advances, despite direct rejections from me.  It became clear that closing the deal would require putting out.  This person was able to control the sales decision making process which allowed them to extract a sexual toll. Another common example was being subjected to sexual misconduct while in a relationship with a much more powerful person, attempting to confront it, and that being a career limiting move.  In this kind of situation, like lets say with Bill Cosby, leaders in the shared community are incentivized (via reward or fear) to abuse their own power to isolate, ostracise or attack the victim.

One reason I’ve always gravitated to standards work is because standards bodies operate as a democracy, with parliamentary procedures.  This severely constrains personal power, which is a critical component of abuse.  The rules which the organization operates by are decided by democratic vote, and are designed to be fair and protect the weak from the strong.

 

​1.4​ Doing things differently

Let’s say you wish to join OSDI as a member and you fill out the request form.  This is transparent to leadership, and your membership will be decided by a vote of the governance committee based on merit. .Similarly, should you make a proposal for the technical committee, say via github, it will come up on the meeting agenda, and will be decided by vote.  Holding an officer position, does not provide additional voting power, nor can they.control or stifle your ability to interact with other members to argue the merits of your proposal, even if it dissents from the officer’s position..

Standardization work is also a perpetual exercise in conflict resolution.  Since many participants are also competitors, resolving conflicts, which will inevitably happen, in a fair, proportionate and inclusive manner is essential to the integrity of the organization.

The democratic nature of the organization ensures that resolutions to conflicts are not being made by a single person, and the transparency minimizes the opportunity to abuse power for one’s own benefit.

 

​1.5​ Peer to Peer Bullying

While many forms of bullying and exclusion come from the abuse of authority, community members can also be excluded by peers using other bullying or abusive means.

 

​1.6​ Non-Consensual Pornography

In 2010, Tyler Clementi was a freshman at Rutgers university just beginning his exploration into understanding his identity as a gay male. While taking those first steps and engaging in same sex intimacy, his roommate live-streamed the hookup surreptitiously and without his permission.  The result, was a shaming that led Tyler to commit suicide.

Non consensual porn, aka “Revenge Porn”,  can also be a source of power to be abused in the workspace, against women and men.  Intimate relations occur in our workplaces, and in the digital age or Tinder, Grindr and others, the potential for NCP arises.  One party can control and intimidate the other with a threat of shaming them by publishing or sharing intimate images.

 

​1.7​ Behind the Back Gossip

In communities and workplaces, adults do not commonly bully with their fists. The bullying is done via gossip that is done behind the back of the target, or spoken to those in authority while using power to prevent the target from being able to refute or tell their side of the story.  The result can be that the target is isolated without even knowing it, and the damage to their reputation cannot be undone.  

This can also be institutionalized in a conflict resolution process which deprives the target of due process and right to self-defense before punishment is delivered.  Even in a case where the target would ultimately be found innocent, the fact that punishment took place will damage and exclude them in a permanent manner.

 

​1.8​ Isolating Language and Rhetorical Devices

The OSDI workplace is a democracy focused on dialog and technical merit.  In the course of those discussions, isolating language can subjugate the contributions of others.  Use of gender specific language like “bizdev guy” or “nurse lady” can be isolating to people who pursue roles outside of historic gender norms.  Rhetorical devices like feigning surprise “Gosh, I can’t believe someone like you would actually understand something so complicated”,  or subtle -isms like “”It’s so easy my grandmother could do it” can stunt someone’s enthusiasm in a heartbeat.

​1.9​ Looking Ahead

As I mentioned earlier, OSDI is a technical workplace.  It is also a progressive workplace.  

In that spirit, we will attempt to set a positive example in defining code of conduct and conflict resolution procedures that promote inclusivity, education, and democratic decision-making.  We can do our part to make sure that participants in technical progressive spaces aren’t made to feel like they aren’t good enough, don’t belong, aren’t “wanted” or subjected to bullying behavior which can lead to depression, self-abuse, or in the extremely tragic case of Ryan, suicide.

That brings us to the next order of business.

 

​2​ New Officers

​2.1​ VP of Diversity and Inclusion

In our travels, we have come to know a great leader who is passionate about progressive values, inclusivity, learning and conflict resolution. This leader has already shown initiative within progressive tech spaces and we are proud to announce the appointment of Sonya Reynolds as VP of Diversity and Inclusion.

If you are interested in participating, you can contact sonya at diversity@opensupporter.org

 

​2.1.1​ Diversity and Inclusion Committee

In an effort to see these behaviors and solutions documented in a concise and consumable way according to our community driven democratic process, we have created a dedicated committee to focus on this issue, led by Sonya.

In the course of this work, we will be reaching out to other organizations with related domain knowledge, and soliciting ideas from others who have created their own solutions.

Though I’m a gay male and an anti-discrimination and anti-bullying activist, I’m also a pushy Jewish kid from NJ with a big mouth who makes wisecracks, sometimes when I shouldn’t. This is an endeavor we can all learn from, including myself.

You can also submit information and ideas to the committee using this form:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdM4_OXkTcCcbDVGKW3HPILWl5VXknMK_JDGSjfplA008wdqQ/viewform

 

​2.2​ VP of Outreach Tim Holahan, Broadstripes

Tim Holahan, Product Manager at Broadstripes, has been a participant in our technical committee since 2014. He is an active participant in our discussions, taking an interest in topics critical to OSDI’s future beyond his own employer’s perspective.  Tim has decided to step up and has been appointed to VP of Outreach, where he will help coordinate our outreach at conferences and other community events.

You can contact Tim at outreach@opensupporter.org.

 

​2.3​ VP of Liaisons for Volunteer Engineering, Jacob LeGrone, Progcode

Jacob LeGrone hails from the Progressive Coders Network, a volunteer engineering organization descending from Coders4Sanders.  In the aftermath of the 2016 election, progcode has created a vibrant community of developers working on software projects to support the progressive cause.  Its sister group RagTag, which spawned from the volunteer coders for Hillary, has come on the scene as well.  Both of these organizations are doing important work and it is critical that the plethora of tools they build can integrate with other systems that progressive customers use.  Therefore, we realize that the relationship between OSDI and these efforts is so critical that have created an explicit officer position to ensure we stay in sync.  Though his title is a mouthful, Jacob will now be a single contact point for RagTag, progcode and other volunteer engineering organizations at OSDI.

You can contact Jacob at liaisons@opensupporter.org

 

​4​ Officers Incumbent

The following  officers will continue to in their roles

 

VP of Customer Coalition	Russ Rampersad, Director of Product Management | Catalist	customer@opensupporter.org
VP of Logistics	Shai Sachs,Innovation Platform Director | NGP VAN	logistics@opensupporter.org
VP of PR	Adriel Hampton, CEO and Principal Consultant | The Adriel Hampton Group Ltd.	pr@opensupporter.org
Chairperson	Josh Cohen	chair@opensupporter.org

 

​5​ Officers Emeritus

As we move forward, it is important to recognize those who have served terms as officers and the contribution they have made. Though they are passing the officer batons to successors, they continue to participate in OSDI as governance and technical members.  We thank Seth Bannon, Joe McLaughlin,  and Jason Rosenbaum for their service.

 

Before closing, I’d like to call out a unique contribution from Seth Bannon and his critical role in getting OSDI off the ground.

In 2012, I served as the Director of Technology at the Washington United for Marriage campaign, and had begun speaking with partners and vendors we worked with including Amicus. As many of you leaders know, that is an extremely difficult time where you face doubts from others “that will never happen!”, your own insecurities, and folks reluctant to attach their name to what is a mere fantasy in the would-be founder’s eyes.  Things don’t become “real” until you have convinced another respected entity to sign on and join in advocacy.   For OSDI that moment was when Seth Bannon, and the team at Amicus attached their credibility to OSDI.  Seth set a positive example that an ever growing list of leaders have followed.

 

​6​ Thanks!

We look forward to the continued community participation in our new Diversity efforts and beyond and welcome new members.

If you are interested in working with Sonya Reynolds on the Diversity and Inclusion work, feel free to contact her or myself.

Sonya can be reached at diversity@opensupporter.org

 

Josh Cohen

OSDI Chairperson

chair@opensupporter.org

#InteropWithHer: 8 Campaign Season Security Tips from Your Friends at OSDI

August 18, 2016

We came to Philadelphia, we have our nominee, the GOP is in disarray – now is the time for progressive technologists to consolidate gains as we close in on the general election.

Congratulations to Hillary for America and each one of you who helped make Secretary Clinton’s historic nomination possible. Bernie supporters, too, get a shout out for helping create the most progressive platform in the history of the Democratic Party. Let’s make sure new tools we build this cycle are more reusable by having standardized connectors with OSDI.

The next phase of this election is critical – and even more prone to risk. We’ve already had multiple security breaches and hacks threaten our efforts, and as campaigns of all sizes scale up and get into the field, the risk for data loss or sabotage increase. Don’t be that campaign manager who loses a phone without a security pin code and freaks everybody out!

Because we’re stronger together, OSDI members have collected our top field security tips for campaign technologists:

Make IT policy real. All new employees or volunteers who have access to campaign systems like websites, VAN, PDI, Organizer, etc must sign an IT policy form. You can find online templates for security and internet policies from CSO here. ~ Josh Cohen, chair of OSDI

2FA all the things! “2FA” stands for two-factor authentication. It means that when you try to make changes on your campaign Stripe bank account, for example, you’ll get a code by text message that allows you to proceed. You can read all you ever wanted to know about 2FA here at Lifehacker. And do it for all mission critical software. ~ Jason Rosenbaum, CTO at online organizing toolkit Action Network.

Password-protect important documents before sharing them. It’s dead simple to forward an email full of campaign plans. Make it a bit more difficult for the wrong party to pick up your secrets by encrypting and password-protecting documents. Check out the guide for Microsoft products such as Excel spreadsheets here and for Adobe PDFs here. ~ Chris Nichols, president of phone append vendor Accurate Append.

Would you want your mother to read this on the front page of The Times? Recent email dumps have reminded us that if you wouldn’t want it read on the news or going viral on Facebook, don’t say it/write it in an email. That goes for Slack chats, too. ~ Adriel Hampton, CEO at The Adriel Hampton Group

Lock up the keys. Use a tool like Meldium for password sharing within the campaign. ~ Seth Bannon, CEO at digital organizing software provider Amicus; Store passwords securely in a vault like KeePass or Password Safe.  Use your password storage app to generate strong passwords that you don’t have to remember or even see. ~ Mark Paquette, President of nonprofit software provider The Data Bank. Check out LastPass.com as well for password generation and storage ~ Joe McLaughlin, data geek at Citizen Action of New York

Use encryption. Without encryption, usernames, passwords, survey data, voter data etc. travels in plain text. When data travels in plain text, it is easy for anyone in the network to read it. All volunteer sign-up, membership sign-ups must be over a https. Campaign websites must be served over https. Internet Security Research Group now gives free SSL certificates. There is no reason for campaign websites to be available without encryption. In addition, all data flow between the different IT components of the campaign, like website to CRM, CRM to phone dialers, canvassing apps to CRM etc., must flow through an encrypted channel as well. Campaigns should avoid using software that does not provide an encrypted communication channel. ~ Augustus Franklin, founder of telephony provider CallHub

Require PIN codes on all personal devices and laptops: “A member of senior staff drops their phone while shopping for volunteer food at Costco. Their phone does not have a PIN code.  What’s in their email? What lucky supporter of your opposition picks up their phone and wins the jackpot? How many clean pairs of underwear is this worth?” ~ Josh Cohen

Do not share accounts. Only one person should be assigned to any account for any services or databases you use.  If there are multiple users on an account, and one leaves, then the others have to be locked out until a new password is distributed.  If more than one person is on an account, there is no way to tell which user may be responsible for mistakes, breaches, or possibly malicious use of the system. ~ Mark Paquette

Happy campaigning, and be safe out there!

Better Data Integration on the Horizon

October 15, 2014

In case you missed it: Colin Delany of ePolitics and Campaigns & Elections dropped an OSDI teaser into his recent Campaign Insider tech update column:

A common problem in data-heavy campaigning is getting the various platforms to play well together, particularly when it comes to sharing information. It’s frustrating when your volunteer database and donor database are walled off from each other, and neither integrates with the voter file without you having to hand-edit spreadsheets.

Enter the Open Supporter Data Interface (OSDI), a coalition of progressive technology companies and practitioners that’s developing standard data structures and an API to allow campaigns to gather their grassroots, fundraising and other data silos together.

Stay tuned for details about the upcoming version 1 release. Click here to keep in touch with OSDI.

(image: Campaign&Elections)