Consider a historical example: doctors. Originally it was an all-male profession. Now it's open to women. Did men benefit from that restriction? Sure. Lower supply would mean higher prices. Cutting out half the potential doctors means that a given amount of talent takes you higher in the professional ranks.
Is that abuse? I'd say no. Is it sexist? Darned tootin'.
Now look at the systemic issues that keep women out of tech. All of those gender-related paper cuts. Did I experience any of those because I was a guy? Nope. Was I at any point encouraged to go into tech because it better fit social stereotypes? Probably. Did it help that my dad was a programmer at a time when the field was even more dude-heavy? Definitely. Has the reduced supply driven up wages and decreased competition at a time of fantastic demand? You bet.
I have benefited from sexism. I don't like that, and aim to stop it.
For reference, I deleted a comment which said, "Personally I believe nobody benefits from abuse, because it is not a zero-sum game." or something very close to that.
For me sexism implies discrimination, and discrimination implies abuse. But it's kind of a side topic, so I'll try to stick to sexism.
The reason I think nobody benefits from sexism is that I don't look at it as simply man vs. woman. The healthiest situation is where a man and woman have a balanced relationship with each other. If a man takes some of the woman's power (by abusing his own), that relationship is weakened. Thus, although he may have more power, he actually loses overall because the cost of his imbalanced relationship with her more than offsets the gain in power. That's all I mean. Extrapolate from this as much as you like, ultimately I believe that relationships are what matter.
Consider a historical example: doctors. Originally it was an all-male profession. Now it's open to women. Did men benefit from that restriction? Sure. Lower supply would mean higher prices. Cutting out half the potential doctors means that a given amount of talent takes you higher in the professional ranks.
Is that abuse? I'd say no. Is it sexist? Darned tootin'.
Now look at the systemic issues that keep women out of tech. All of those gender-related paper cuts. Did I experience any of those because I was a guy? Nope. Was I at any point encouraged to go into tech because it better fit social stereotypes? Probably. Did it help that my dad was a programmer at a time when the field was even more dude-heavy? Definitely. Has the reduced supply driven up wages and decreased competition at a time of fantastic demand? You bet.
I have benefited from sexism. I don't like that, and aim to stop it.