S1:E7 - Voices From DEV Pride

Each June, communities across the world celebrate Pride Month as an important, reflective, and joyful time to recognize both the ongoing adversities and inspiring achievements of LGBTQIA+ people everywhere. DEV has decided to post this episode on June 23rd, because on this day in 1912, English mathematician, computer scientist, logician, cryptanalyst, philosopher, and theoretical biologist, Alan Turing was born. Turing's accomplishments were astounding and groundbreaking during his lifetime and still are today: He invented the device that broke the code for the German Enigma machine, a device for sending coded messages to units of the German forces during WWII. Later, he would also break the Naval Enigma, which had vastly more complicated code than the first. Turing's work had to be conducted so secretly that the importance of what he accomplished — and the degree to which he shortened the war— were vastly overlooked at the time. Turing also happened to be gay. He died at the age of 41, two years after being stripped of his security clearance and charged legally and violently for his sexuality at the hands of the same government he served during the war. Turing was not only an astounding technologist — he remains a symbol of the triumphs of LGBTQIA+ folks in tech in spite of overwhelming persecution. This year, Pride Month is particularly poignant. The United States - and the world - is finally beginning to grapple with the countless deaths faced by Black people due to police brutality, overt racism, and systemic hatred for centuries. In the midst of this pain and important work, we cannot forget the particularly deep and painful impact experienced by the LGBTQIA+ individuals that overlap with these communities. Black and transgender women are particularly oppressed and at risk of being victims of violence. For more data on the disproportionate affect of violence on the transgender and gender non-conforming community in 2020 alone, please read the report in our shownotes titled, “Violence Against the Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming Community in 2020.” Most importantly, you can support Black LGBTQIA+ people with your signatures and money. Discover ways to do so via GLAAD. Please enjoy this collection of recordings collected from the DEV community about their experiences being a LGBTQIA+ developer and what makes them proud.