ajspencer

No one should be defined by the worst thing they've ever done. If someone who made a terrible mistake and paid their debt to society is able to acquire the skills to get the job based on merit despite the circumstances, they probably have an incredible work ethic and a strong desire to continue growing.

This is tragic. Can anyone on HackerNews help them with advocacy or employment opportunities?

As others as alluded to, long term success requires more than deep technical excellence. Winter break could be a great time to learn about another field, get experience talking to others (volunteering maybe), broaden your horizon of thought with books you may not normally read, or, if your passion truly is technology, work on a higher risk project that will likely fail but you could learn a lot from.

Could someone explain to me why this question has gotten so many upvotes? Are bad experiences with developers common?

My impression is that most of the time perceived bad experiences with developers comes from being a bad manager.

I agree. I support the principle behind this legislation, but it seems to set a dangerous precedent for giving the state government the authority to mandate demographics.

I'd venture that this statement also fails in general, not just urban environment. Seems like a very privileged perspective.