[tbrownaw]

The problem is, "one of the reasons I attend hackathons is to [distract other people from hacking]".

Really, turning it into a gender/oppression/whatever issue obscures the problem -- other attendees are present for a well-known purpose, and you're there not just for some other purpose (which wouldn't necessarily be that big a deal, ex. sponsors/recruiters) but to interfere with their achieving that purpose.

[jey]

I agree that it's a problem if someone is there just to cause a distraction and not there for the hackathon itself. However, when I attend a hackathon, it's because I'm legitimately interested in hacking on X and in meeting other people interested in X. (If I only wanted to efficiently write code and not meet cool people, I'd just do it at my own desk!)