Sharon Machlis

What happens when you mandate masks at a conference now that most people no longer wear them but medically vulnerable people are still at risk because #CovidIsNotOver? In the case of #PyConUS, the conference sells out.

Why a masking policy? “Many of us and our fellow community members can’t attend without health and safety guidelines in place. We want PyCon US to be an event that everyone feels safe attending,” organizers explained.

Well done @pycon https://fosstodon.org/@pycon/112445571644276379

PyCon US (@[email protected])

⚠️ UPDATE⚠️ : #PyConUS 2024 is SOLD OUT. We had an unexpected spike in registrations just before opening the event today, and we've had to close sales of new conference passes. Some Tutorials are still available, prepaid voucher codes will still work, and if you didn't snag a ticket, online passes are still available at us.pycon.org. (Contact [email protected] if you need help.) We're thrilled to welcome over 2700 attendees to PyCon US this week! http://us.pycon.org

Fosstodon
May 18, 2024 at 1:56pmWeb
Show threadMarcos DioneMay 18, 2024

@smach @pycon ufff, for a second or two I thought it was the second or third meaning of "sells out":

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/sell_out

sell out - Wiktionary, the free dictionary

Wiktionary
Show threadSharon MachlisMay 18, 2024
@mdione @pycon Yikes no definitely not that! “Incredibly successful and in-demand” meaning. Hadn’t thought about the other one, I was so excited to see an event requiring masks be so popular.
Show threadMarcos DioneMay 18, 2024

@smach @pycon I think I only heard of 'sold out' (no more places available) as an adjective: 'pycon is sold out'; while 'selling out' (betray) as a verb: "Pycon is selling out". But I'm not native, so my interaction with those tenses and meaning might be biased.

Also, this is probably the first time I hear about a conference selling out, but mostly because I never went to one that required paying for the entrance.

Show threadSharon MachlisMay 18, 2024
@mdione Even if a conference is free, there will be a maximum possible attendance due to room capacities and fire regulations.
Show threadCiferMay 18, 2024
@mdione @smach @pycon Ha, same!
Show threadEdward L PlattMay 18, 2024
@smach @pycon I'm intentionally prioritizing #PyConUS over academic conferences (which have generally given up on public health) because I am both high risk and a caretaker of high risk people.
Show threadTim Ward ⭐🇪🇺🔶 #FBPEMay 18, 2024
@smach @pycon Trouble is ... people have to get there somehow. And the US is a big place. And I have yet to hear of any airline offering a believable guarantee of a zero covid journey (including airports and transfers).
Show threadSharon MachlisMay 18, 2024
@TimWardCam Travel is a separate problem. People have to decide how comfortable they are with that if they need to fly. But the late spike in PyCon in-person registrations leads me to believe many of those attendees may not be flying to the conference, but are local or within driving distance. Unless there were a lot of last-minute cheap flights available.
Show threadEsther Payne May 18, 2024

@TimWardCam @smach @pycon Indeed, it's why it would be nice for UK and EU conference organisers to consider a public health policy.

Which realistically needs our more prominent FLOSS folks to consider seriously asking for public health policies and if there aren't any not attending and saying why.

But a more likely thing is the rest of us politely asking for these policies and if an event has a code of conduct as well.

Slim pickings.

https://dotart.blog/cobbles/foss-conferences-and-covid

FOSS conferences and COVID

Originally Published 20230124 When I was a teenager oh so long ago, I would walk with my father down to the shops in the City Centre. I...

cobbles
Show threadSharon MachlisMay 18, 2024
@onepict @TimWardCam I'm so sorry how Long Covid has affected you. One of my closest friends has a horrible case of Long Covid. She can't risk another case of Covid either. (I'm not particularly interested in risking long-term organ damage for no good reason, and "I don't feel like wearing a mask" doesn't seem like a good reason if I'm in a crowded indoor space. )
Show threadEsther Payne May 18, 2024

@smach Thank you.

It is why conferences like Pycon and Bsdcan give me some hope.

Show threadbetonglenMay 18, 2024

@smach @pycon

thank you for doing the right thing and in solidarity with people at risk and those who don't have apparent risks but may become at risk or develop long covid after infection.

#Grateful #covidisnotover #MasksWork

Show threadmarcus 😷🧂May 18, 2024
@smach @pycon that is incredibly awesome. Wish more conferences would do that. Thanks @pycon!!!
Greetings from Europe!
Show threadkechpajaMay 18, 2024
@smach @pycon Yay being the only person wearing any kind of mask at the (non-tech) conference I'm currently at.
Show threadJargogglesMay 18, 2024

@kechpaja @smach @pycon
I had to go to a work conference a couple months ago and I was one of maybe a couple people who wore a mask.

Apparently, a lot of people ended up being sick afterwards - not me.

Show threadNicolaMay 18, 2024
@smach @pycon I'd be a little concerned that a lot of pythonistas will be planning on arguing the toss over it when they turn up on the day.
Show threadChris FerdinandiMay 18, 2024
@smach @pycon OMG this just fills my heart. I’ve been so frustrated by the number of conferences, particularly those that are supposed to be about accessibility, that do not require masking or provide a safe space for their most vulnerable attendees.
Show threadSharon MachlisMay 18, 2024
@cferdinandi @pycon The number of people who
1) are medically vulnerable and need others to mask around them +
2) live with such people +
3) would rather not to get Covid for no good reason and see masks as a small price to pay for a large reduction in risk
. . . is larger than a lot of people think.
I make masking decisions based on indoor ventilation - yes, I carry my CO2 monitor around - combined with Covid wastewater levels. But separately I'd be happy to mask at an event to help others.
Show threadChris WoodMay 18, 2024
@smach @cferdinandi @pycon number 3 sums up my exact reasons for wearing a mask in indoor spaces. That’s so succinctly put.
Show threadChris FerdinandiMay 18, 2024
@chriswood @smach @pycon Right? I don't get all of the hand-wringing over wearing them.
Show threadChris WoodMay 18, 2024
@cferdinandi @smach @pycon I used to feel self-conscious about being the only person wearing a mask in shops or public transport. But I talked to friends about it, and they said whenever they see someone wearing a mask, they think “oh that’s smart, I should do that too.” Plus me and my partner have barely been sick this year, which is wonderful.
Show threadChris FerdinandiMay 19, 2024
@chriswood @smach @pycon being the only one very much sucks. Perk of being neurodivergent, though, is that I’m used to being the odd one out and don’t care anymore.
Show threadAngelaMay 19, 2024
@cferdinandi @chriswood @smach @pycon very much this. AuDHD, tall for a woman and my hair constantly changes colour. Adding a mask in public honestly hasn't noticeably changed the level of staring
Show threadChris WoodMay 19, 2024
@seawall @cferdinandi @smach @pycon really nice to meet likeminded people. Thanks for sharing your experiences.
Show threadChris FerdinandiMay 19, 2024
@seawall @chriswood @smach @pycon I didn’t realize back in high school how much a street of punk music would prepare me for adulthood.
Show threadSharon MachlisMay 19, 2024
@chriswood @cferdinandi I will likely wear masks on planes going forward, regardless of Covid levels, except when eating or drinking. Why not reduce my risk of getting even a bad cold right before arriving at a place I've spent a lot of money to see and I may never get to enjoy again? It's not like sitting on a plane is so much fun without a mask but oh so terrible if I have one on. I've had bad colds on vacations, and I'd rather not.
Show threadCourt Cantrell does not complyMay 18, 2024
@smach @pycon Beautiful. 😊👍🤘🖖
Show threadKevin Karhan May 18, 2024

@smach @pycon THAT'S how it should be done and why I'll not attend #republica #C3 or #CCCamp in the foreseeable future.

@republica @CCC @[email protected] take notes!

Show threadCamille Winds DownMay 18, 2024
@smach
This is not me arguing against this, but what is the definition of "over" and will the masking policy be in place until that is achieved?
@pycon
Show threadStrypeyMay 19, 2024

@smach
> What happens when you mandate masks at a conference

1) It creates a lot of avoidable waste, as most people reach for disposable masks that aren't really effective in reducing transmission. See;

https://mastodon.nzoss.nz/@strypey/112464830184021821

2) It excludes neurodivergent people with sensory sensitivities, or subjects us to dirty looks or interruptions from mask zealots if we get exemptions

3) It makes the conference about as respectful of personal choice as making women wear burqa would

Great job @pycon

Strypey (@[email protected])

@[email protected] > just released this excellent 3 page flyer for healthcare on the Airborne Paradigm Shift of disease Note the comments about the disposable surgical masks most people still masking up are using; "Does NOT reliably protect against inhaling the smallest airborne particles and is NOT considered respiratory protection. Leakage occurs around the edge of the mask." The same applies to cloth masks.

Mastodon - NZOSS
Show threadStrypeyMay 19, 2024
The disposable mask is the tinfoil hat of the left.
Show threadDr David ClementsMay 19, 2024
@smach @pycon Thus is something all conference and convention organisers need to see
Show threadChris JohnsonMay 19, 2024
@smach @pycon Wow!
Show threadPaul KemnerMay 19, 2024

@smach @pycon

Penguicon had a mask mandate this April. There were some complaints, but most attendees were fine with it.

Show threadMike JohnsonMay 20, 2024

@smach @pycon

Last year I wore masks to protect the vulnerable.

This year, shockingly it's my family at risk if I bring home any kind of illness. Life changes fast.

Thanks for all the masks ❤️

Show threadRuby JonesMay 20, 2024
@smach @pycon THANK you.
Show threadNicolás AlvarezMay 24, 2024

@pycon @smach Thank you for this.

Yesterday I was watching videos of the OpenStreetMap conference in 2014 and I got sad, because I saw one of the organizers in the video, even asking a question after a talk. She died of covid in 2020 (before any vaccines were available) 😢

Show threadSharon MachlisMay 24, 2024
@nicolas17 So sorry 😢