Across the country, our workplaces are well overdue grown-up conversations about race.
You will find those who refuse to engage because they don’t want to be uncomfortable. Some refuse to have their preconceived perceptions challenged. Whilst there are others who celebrate diversity but don’t challenge racism. Then there are those who hide behind a veneer of inclusive leadership.
If you want to make a real difference in the workplace then go beyond celebrating diversity. Don’t only invest in Black History Month instead invest in Black futures. Check your Black representation at senior levels and make improvements to that.
Then, don’t put all responsibility for solving racism on the shoulders of your Black staff. Here’s the uncomfortable truth, it is for white people to challenge racism in the workplace. Whats more, it is for us to pay attention to our own lens for seeing the world, that lens is often shaped by decades of external influence.
Terms are being misused, sometimes deliberately. Recently, I read an interesting article on LinkedIn by David McQueen, where he spoke passionately about social justice and how it addresses ensuring there is fairness for all. Then, he speaks about what it means ‘being woke’, where we need to wake up and recognise that our boundaries need to be checked and not stepped over. Similarly, he explains privilege as being about recognising systems that work in your favour and how you can leverage those to help others.
Even so, as David explains, in far too many discussions these terms have been weaponised with the purpose to stifle, deflect or deter meaningful conversations on seeing how we can all be aware of and build systems to reduce racial bias.
We must make the changes necessary to create inclusive workplaces. We need to be in this together or nothing will change.
Here the CIPD offer helpful guidance on how to talk about race at work.
If you want to read further on the topic, it is hard to find a better book than White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Race, by Robin Diangelo (Beacon Press, 2018).
Alternatively you can click here to watch the excellent video explainer by Robin DiAngelo where she explains why white people should stop avoiding conversations about race because of their own discomfort, and how ‘white fragility’ plays a key role in upholding systemic racism
Take a look at the short video below: John Amaechi: Let’s Talk about Race
JD
The Equality Blog 