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Comment by fenwick67 | Hacker News Reader

> It appears that someone were a pro-Trump MAGA hat to a software conference is being punished for violating an event Code of Conduct. Unless there is a general ban on hats and clothing with political statements at software events, this is clearly discriminatory.

You don't know (and this letter's author doesn't know) that wearing a MAGA hat was what they considered a violation of the code of conduct.

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Literally the only evidence presented was a polite call for discussion, and a picture of the guy wearing a MAGA hat. Then the org directly responded, saying they reviewed the evidence and found he violated the code of conduct. Regardless of what they may claim or of how much anyone may try to dissemble, the MAGA hat picture was clearly the impetus for the decision.

The whole exchange was public. LF might not have banned Mr. Wood for wearing a MAGA hat (the true reason they banned him was probably to avoid a confrontation with Code of Conduct zealots), but it sure looks like it based on the public tweet exchange.

In fairness, the letter's author seems more concerned about how the complaint was handled in public regardless of what it was about.

> The reasons given in this complaint were his request for an open and civil phone call, and a picture of Mr. Wood wearing a MAGA hat.

It is the only possible conclusion given this information. Is there more?

This is what they said:

> We have reviewed social and videos and determined that the Event Code of Conduct was violated

It could have been "he wore the wrong hat" but it also could have been "we looked and he was harassing people on Twitter".

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