Toxic People in Tech & Open Source (Dirk and Swap)
Who?
Github: dirkhh
Why?
This contributor shares second-hand reasoning behind their peers leaving open source communities in an episode of Dirk and Swap (Discussions on Open Source). These peers were autistic and as a result struggled even more from community hostility, which they cited to be the most significant reason these contributors disengaged.
“Sometimes they don’t know how to deal with people because technology is where they find the solace; so sometimes they are also misunderstood because they just openly shared their feelings and behavior at the same time the culture itself sometimes becomes so toxic” (10:06)
Although not explicitly stated, they also implied that health issues (more specifically autism) caused these contributors to be more overwhelmed by the toxicity within their open source communities.
For reference: