AfroTech 2019
I initially planned to sleep in this weekend. I’m traditionally afraid of spending large amounts of money and I’ve been fighting this bad habit of chilling at home over the weekends in my PJs so this commitment was pretty major. I’m also extremely shy/introverted. You might not get that impression from seeing me online or meeting me in person, but it’s true. I have this tendency to avoid social interactions, which I constantly combat. So again, it underscores the significance of my commitment to attend AfroTech this year. I wanted to put it off until next year, or find something unnecessarily important and prioritize it. I am so glad I made a different choice.
If you’re black and you’re in tech or even curious about tech then you owe it to yourself to attend one of these events. Do what you can, beg/borrow/bribe your way there. The experience is unlike any other tech conference. You don’t want to miss out on the sessions. You don’t want to short-change yourself the opportunity to network and connect with folks, and you won’t believe your eyes when you get there.
Over seven thousand people showed up this year. Let’s talk about that number because I could end my writing on that sentence alone. When was the last time you’ve seen ever seven thousand of anything in one place? Seven thousand+ servings of fried eggs? Seven thousand+ rolls of toilet paper?? Seven thousand+ little boxes of tic-tacs??? Over seven thousand people from all over came together this weekend in the name of black tech excellence.
Everyone would have a unique experience, and attending any conference is all about what you make out of it. You have to take the good with the bad so I’m going to explain how my experience went.
Beginning with the good, the event started with a kickoff in the main ballroom. The MC walked through the crowd interviewing guests. He pulled one lady from Africa and gave her 20 seconds to summarize her oxtail recipe. Homegirl dropped the ingredients and my mouth was watering well before the first 15 seconds expired.
Then there was the bad, the obvious issues which were related to the swell of participants. Long lines (which would be familiar to anyone who has attended a WWDC or similar conference), limited access to certain sessions and activities, almost non-existent network connectivity and expensive food which takes hours to arrive. These issues would make even the most die-hard conference attendee want to leave, but hold on. I said earlier, “attending any conference is all about what you make out of it.” I made up my mind to be empathetic to the event organizers having organized events of my own in the past. I just rolled with the irritations. After all, how can you accommodate what is likely the population of a small city in one concentrated central area? These organizers did their thing and I’m STILL surprised the earth didn’t cave under the mass of people.
Moving beyond the population pains, I got to the significance of what was actually happening before my very eyes! I saw my people thriving in ways that had been hidden for most of my career. Through my entire career I can count, almost on one hand, the amount of black people I’ve actually encountered in tech. Things improved slightly when I moved to the bay area, but I still don’t need to remove my shoes to count.
I saw and had discussions with some of the most amazing people each with unique back stories that all had a similarly themed origin. If I had a nickel (prepare for cliché) for every person there who had a “I never knew there were black folk in tech” beginning I could probably make my next two car payments… without setting up auto-pay. Let that sink in.
Going to different sessions were more opportunities to network and learn from each other. I sat next to a guy who was working on nano-tech to fight breast cancer! These are little micro-machines that attach themselves to cancer cells. They then do the Street Fighter II Chun-Li kick until the cancer cell hollers, “eeeyyyahhhh” all echoey. He happened to be so fascinated by my Tonka-toy robot I brought along that I was embarrassed! I spoke with designers, and hardware engineers and electrical engineers and doctors. This is all before the speaker even takes the stage. The amount of raw talent and passion from everyone in the room was mind-blowing. It helps to carry along a robot so that you feel like you fit in.
While the event was attended primarily by black people there were some white people, hispanic, and other ethnicities. Waiting in line for food, I spoke to one white guy with an interesting story. He said he also attended a woman’s conference prior. He explained how he likes to attend conferences where *he* is the minority because it gives him a unique perspective. While he spoke I wondered why all white people wouldn’t trip and fall into whatever magical mayonnaise that resulted in this man’s “flawless-victory” attitude.
Then there were the speakers. Every session I attended ended with a standing ovation for the presenter. That‘s not just a measure of talent it also speaks to the level of support we all have for one another. There was a common theme throughout most sessions which centered on three major issues; lack of diversity, its impact on A.I., and biases. Each speaker presented with their own unique style and brought different perspectives to the room. Most topics touched on this obvious pink elephant in the board room of all major tech companies.
I really need to spotlight the black women speakers that I heard. They were outright phenomenal! Never, have I ever seen people present with as much passion, insight, and completeness. I should have been taking notes. The fellas were also amazing, but the women really did their thing. (I’m not hating, and I think my lack of sleep impacted my appreciation for some of the sessions.) The two talks that stuck out the most were the presentation by Dr. Nashlie Sephus on A.I. and discussion on automation by Brianna McCullough. definitely suggest you watch/follow/pay-attention to these amazing women
Inside the ballroom area there were plenty of vendor tables from most of the widely recognized companies and stations with swag, and recruiters offering opportunities. The vendors I spoke to were transparent about hiring bias as well as what I call the major problem in tech recruiting. (I’ll speak more on that in a follow-up article.) I didn’t spend too much time at the vendor tables as I am spoken for and merrily employed.
As I wandered clumsily between events and stations I was constantly bumping into people I knew from online only. It was my not-so-secret mission to grab each one for a photo op however my amazement at the whole experience distracted me on at least two occasions. I walked right up to these people, each who I deeply admire, with casual conversation while masquerading my anxieties behind my overly-joking antics. My recently purchased Galaxy Active2 watch was secretly ratting on me as I never disabled the heart monitor display. “Hey, what going on?”, I would mouth while the heart-shaped icon on my wrist glowed bright red pushing over 80bpm. I only realized how obvious this must have been on the drive home, but what can I say? I’m the kinda guy who always wears his heart on his sleeve.
The after-parties which occurred before, after and during all of the sessions and breakouts are amazing. The music was bumping, people danced in the streets and there was just an overall sense of family present the whole time. It is like “the cookout” played through a Jmeter load-test config and replicated on hundreds of hosts. A Java-programming-based load testing tool is the best and only way to describe what had seriously been played out in several areas of Oakland simultaneously. Imagine the sent of barbecue cooking with the sound of reggae, and hip-hop, complimented by a kick-back setting.
I attended one after-party which drew me out of my comfort zone into a position of “get down” on Friday night. Because I have two almost-grown kids and I’m literally pushing my mid-forties with a broom the size and shape of Ned Flander’s mustache, I sometimes feel too out of touch to party. I had the help of some dope people to pull me out of that shell and literally onto the dance floor where I awkwardly demonstrated why I probably should stay behind the equipment table at any party where I can detangle cables and diagnose connectivity problems. “Yes, I do believe this mono plug is incorrectly connected into a stereo jack and that cable is partly frayed costing a bit of fidelity loss.” I danced, then stumbled, then did something that could loosely be described as either dance, or swim. I didn’t care. People didn’t care.
You should definitely be prepared going into one of these tech conferences. All of the usual rules apply. Order business cards. Book your hotel in advance. Check the agenda days prior. Plan your route. Bring backup batteries for your devices. Arrive early. Download the accompanying app. Brush your teeth. Book your hotel in advance. Don’t stay out too late or drink too much. Look both ways before asking a question. Anticipate heavy traffic on the way to and during the conference. Book your hotel in advance. Communicate rendezvous locations to friends in advance. I was surprised how the LinkedIn QR code scanning feature is used by almost everyone for sharing contact info.
In summary, you just need to get there. If next year’s event is anywhere remotely similar to this year’s event then it’s worth every dime you can dig out of your couch. Tell a friend and bring a friend. Get your company to sponsor, if possible. I may try my hand at speaking at the next one assuming they’ll accept my CFP.
