Whereas a ballot measure currently being voted will most likely pass, and will make removal of Fellows trivially easy; and whereas several white, male, cishet, high-income, developed world, members of the Code of Conduct Working Group have expressed open and direct hostility to me, my opposition to ballot measure 3, to any open discussion of best governance procedures of the PSF; and whereas many of these same people have directly shut down meaningful discussion of governance issues on discuss.python.org, and on various Python mailing lists, I wish to convert my PSF Fellowship to Emeritus status, effective immediately (before I am actually kicked out for polite expression of dissenting opinions).
This request in no way reflects any intention to become less involved in the Python community. I fully intend to continue to write books and articles about Python. To give keynote and technical talks to Python conferences around the world—many specifically promoting diversity and inclusion. To promote the Python programming language among progressive and labor organizations. To perform training in scientific and numeric Python, and in data science/machine learning Python tools. To contribute to open source projects in the Python ecosystem. And especially to promote equality, fairness, and social justice in Python and other communities.
I simply believe that that honor that was formerly attached to becoming a Fellow of the Foundation has been stripped of good will or honor by those intent on exercise of arbitrary self-aggrandizement and grandstanding.
Such is not an appropriate role for me to participate in or endorse.
Thank you!
David Quintyn Mertz, Ph.D.,
15 July 2024