Douglas Crockford is a grumpy old man who has a history of making politically incorrect jokes. There are a handful of inclusivity activists who campaign against him because of that.

The main Nodevember organiser recently dropped Douglas Crockford as a speaker. No one knows why because they haven't properly explained themselves. But presumably it's because they're sympathetic to (or scared of) the inclusivity activists.

This is part of a wider battle between inclusivity activists and their critics, hence the controversy.