Today, I imagine a world. A world wherein, during my monthly company-wide meeting, the CEO goes over the new hire stats as she smiles proudly, boasting that we've hired 4 new men, bringing our total organization's workforce to 26% male, up from 18% last year. And we all pat ourselves on the back.

Where our CTO talks about how, as a company, we value hiring anyone who identifies as a man into our growing tech department. She knows the value of men in tech, and we should too.

A world where my team's tech lead discusses potential hires with me for our Project Manager position, telling me that she likes to give male candidates special consideration, as it's so hard (but valuable!) to get men in tech. I, a man, listen demurely, knowing that I am here but for the graciousness of some similarly-progressive-minded female tech lead.

This is, of course, the world I live in. Except I am a woman, and the CEO is male, the CTO is male, the tech lead is male. The initiatives are well-meaning, I know, and I fully support them. I dream of working in a company where women are not a minority. But instead I get to have my all male team tell me how excited they are for the new female hire, speaking of her like an other, like I am not a female myself. All the while the unspoken implication lingering in the air - that merit is not a primary factor in hiring women, that we are here only by the graciousness of progressive males.

I long for a world where men don't hire women with one hand while patting themselves on the back with the other. Or better yet, a world where men aren't the only ones doing the hiring.