Eastercon and diversity

[nanila]

lapswood was kind enough to send me a few photos he took at Eastercon last month. I thought this one made a nice illustration of some points that were made about PoCs and the (lack of) diversity at science fiction conventions.

This is from the panel I was on. Myself, the gentleman next to me and the man on the opposite end from me are all working scientists. The other man is the moderator - I'm not sure whether or not he is a scientist.



When I look at this picture, the first thing that pops into my head is the Sesame Street song: "One of these things is not like the others/One of these things just doesn't belong."

Visually, the thing that doesn't belong is me. And that makes me sad. What does it make you think?

Comments

[capri]

I'll admit we don't have many Filipinos, but we have lots of Japanese, Koreans, Thais, Indians and especially Chinese.

Aha, this is a thing even in Asia. Non-Indian brown-skinned people (like me) are nowhere to be found in the upper echelons of science/higher education/management/etc., and we're not the people people think about when they see the word "Asian."

[nanila]

Yes. Those of us from less recognisable Asian groups are still pretty marginalised.

All the Filipino girls in my university chemistry classes - except one, who was also interested in research - were nursing students.

[capri]

There is a part of me that does a little dance whenever I meet a fellow Singaporean in London who is neither Chinese nor Indian.

I have encountered (literally) hundreds of S'poreans here. That little dance has been done precisely twice.