thanks to #libtechwomen

Yesterday, Travis Good of Make Magazine gave what I thought was a pretty good keynote. He talked about technology, progress, makers, community—it hit all the right spots.
But one thing that crossed my radar, thanks to the wonder that is librarians on Twitter, is that much of his language was gendered:

#litaforum women and children were makers too, back in the day!
— emily Mitchell (@mitchee3) November 8, 2013

Back in the day there were craftswomen too... #litaforum
— Karen Merguerian (@GKMerguerian) November 8, 2013

Nerds can be women too.. #justsaying #litaforum :)
— Cindi Blyberg (@ctblyberg) November 8, 2013

Nerds can also be smart ladies you go to with hard problems :) #litaforum
— LITAForum (@LITAForum) November 8, 2013

I consider myself a pretty sensitive person with respect to these issues. In language as well as action, I try to let things be neutral and fair, evicting unnecessary and damaging assumptions. But I didn't notice the gendered language at all until I saw the tweets calling it out. And more than anything I want to say: I appreciate this. I need the reminder. We all do. It can't stand and it's not going to change unless people are persistent, unless they call put even the most seemingly-innocuous assumptions. Because they're not innocuous. Because we need to say what we mean, not something that's close but shrouded in the biases of our past.
So, thank you, #libtechwomen, and everyone else who fights this fight. We appreciate it and learn from you.