You know I’m a sucker for a good video. Especially when it’s on the Portland startup scene. And if you ignore the minor chunk that features my ugly mug, this is a pretty damn good take on what’s happening around here. Grab a cup of coffee and take a few minutes to enjoy Startup Cities: Portland, Oregon.
Startup Cities: Portland, OR from Daniel Schwartzbaum on Vimeo.
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When you see gender or racial diversity in a startup video based on Portland, it means the filmmakers went out of their way to find those representatives because it’s slim pickings. Startup PDX is great, but programs that get to young entrepreneurs before they’ve been dissuaded from pursuing a startup career are even more radical (for example, check out Deena Pierott’s project, iUrban Teen). As founders (or software engineers) we can volunteer some energy to these projects so the future of startups in PDX is more diverse.
Lived in PDX for years and loved every minute of it. Met some of the most authentic and awesome people. Recently left for SF mainly for the sun but also because Portland is not at all diverse. Was involved in the tech startup scene…People in PDX *think* they like diversity and are truly liberal but there is not a place you can go to and see more than one non-white person at a time. I think people mean well but without actually being with and around diverse people, there is always discomfort, even if there is an open mind. Portland just needs to be less white. I haven’t watched Whitelandia but looks scary…
It is a nice video. But it’s also one small story that ignores the other not so rosy stories on the ground in this city. Granted, if you are a software engineer or a tech founder, there is work and a supportive community. But how many of us are software engineers or tech founders? To continue with this line of questioning, how many people in Portland are working at less than capacity, either because of lifestyle choice, or because Portland remains a small city (in many ways) with limited opportunities?
[…] Read the full article and watch the video at Silicon Florist […]
P.S. Google suffers from a similar problem http://techcrunch.com/2014/05/28/google-admits-it-hires-too-many-white-dudes/
Agreed. We’re not without our faults. Speaking of… the Startup PDX Challenge is focused on increasing the diversity of our startup scene. And applications are open: http://www.pdc.us/for-businesses/business-programs/startuppdxchallenge.aspx
Dope video. Needs more white dudes though.