Since I’ve had several people ask… no, I’m not at Wiscon, and I never have been, despite the length of time I’ve lived in Madison. It’s not out of the question that I will someday go, but in all honesty, it’s not high on my must-do list.
I am a feminist and a geek, I grant you; I would seem to be Wiscon’s ideal demographic. And I quite gave up on other SF/F cons after the Harlan Ellison debacle; they’re by geek guys, for geek guys, and I refuse to give that style of social atmosphere credence any more, nor is it my responsibility (or, frankly, desire) to reform it.
But Wiscon is for the serious feminist geeks, the ones who engage with the intersection of feminism (as well as other -isms) and geekdom on a daily basis. Me, I’m just an idle eye-roller. I read some of the right blogs and work on being attuned to representation issues and occasionally try to mess with others’ heads when that seems like a fruitful thing to do…
… and that’s it. I’m just a dilettante. Wiscon isn’t for me. That’s just not my crowd. It’s not like they’re having any trouble with attendance, either; Wiscon sells out months in advance. So I’d only be taking up space that could go to someone who’s better at all this than I am—which, admittedly, isn’t hard.
So, no, I’m not at Wiscon. I wave happily at those who are, though.
