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Original poster

Racism at work

41 replies

MoiraNotRuby · 02/04/2021 07:26

On a Teams call yesterday with my colleagues, conversation turned to moaning about people who don't social distance/wear masks. Two of my colleagues mentioned skin colour/nationality when talking about issues they had had. I said how is skin colour or nationality relevant, they instantly said 'oh its not I was just saying'. This has really made me pissed off. We are a small team, no one to 'report' this to. WwYD?

OP posts:
CrazyOldBagLady · 02/04/2021 07:29

Did they say something like "I saw these two black/brown/Chinese guys wearing no masks in Asda"?

If so I think you have handled it well enough already by bringing to everyone's attention that ethnicity isn't relevant.

Nandakanda · 02/04/2021 07:32

There are newspaper articles every day on the different reactions of various ethnic groups to safety measures, jabs etc. Ethnicity is relevant.

Original poster
MoiraNotRuby · 02/04/2021 07:37

@CrazyOldBagLady

Did they say something like "I saw these two black/brown/Chinese guys wearing no masks in Asda"?

If so I think you have handled it well enough already by bringing to everyone's attention that ethnicity isn't relevant.

Yes pretty much exactly like that.
OP posts:
Besom · 02/04/2021 07:39

Just what you have done by challenging it is the way to go.

CuthbertDibbleandGrubb · 02/04/2021 07:44

Good on you for challenging this.

Sometimeswinning · 02/04/2021 07:57

You challenged it. It's about educating people and making them think, which you may have done. I'm not sure why you are so angry.

Original poster
MoiraNotRuby · 02/04/2021 08:23

@Sometimeswinning

You challenged it. It's about educating people and making them think, which you may have done. I'm not sure why you are so angry.
Thanks. I'm angry because I hate racism, people shouldn't need educating, I guess I'm just tired of people being awful.
OP posts:
CoffeeandCakeEqualsLove · 02/04/2021 08:44

@Sometimeswinning

You challenged it. It's about educating people and making them think, which you may have done. I'm not sure why you are so angry.
I imagine OP means she's angry that it came up at all, which I think is valid
PinkiOcelot · 02/04/2021 08:46

You’re so angry about this? I think some people just go looking for racism tbh. Yes I agree ethnicity wasn’t relevant in this scenario, but they were hardly baying for their blood and being aggressive about race.
If you’d been a larger company, you would have reported them?! Jeez!!

WhatTheFlap · 02/04/2021 08:48

I’m with you on this, OP. My DM is one of these people who can’t help but include someone’s race/colour in any story even when it’s entirely irrelevant - “I spoke to the Indian man in the shop” Confused

I’ve challenged her on it a number of times but she doesn’t understand the issue. I won’t stop challenging though, things like this really piss me off!

IEat · 02/04/2021 09:01

I have learnt very very recently that if someone says/does something and you report it to a manager you have to make sure that at no time have you said/done a similar thing. If you have the manager will not bother with the issue but they will bother telling you for 15mins how they’ve ignored the time you went to an office to leave a message when you should have left the message on the office door because of covid. In other words that 15 minutes talk is them telling you not to say anything to anyone if you’re not perfect (I speak from personal experience)

WestendVBroadway · 02/04/2021 09:07

My hubby also seems to feel the need to mention skin colour or ethnic origin of someone he encountered, but only POC. For example he would say of his work deliveries " The first customer was miserable, there was a Chinese bloke he was chatty, the next chap offered me a cup of tea, then a black lady gave me a coffee." I then ask him what colour/ nationality the over two were. He then says " What's that got to do with anything?" I do have to add he is not racist per se, as I am of ethnic origin and he married me.

frazzledasarock · 02/04/2021 10:11

If it’s not racism and OP is ‘looking for racism’ why isn’t colour and ethnicity mentioned when it’s a white person doing it.

There are plenty of white people on the covid conspiracy bandwagon.

Stating ethnicity of a BAME person when they’re breaking rules/laws but not of a white person is othering them making out like well greater ethnic minorities have died because they’re going against guidelines breaking rules and refusing the jab. It’s their fault.

Those who don’t see pointing out a persons colour or ethnicity for no reason when they wouldn’t a white persons, need to stop and think why is there a need to point out the colour/ethnicity of a non white person in that scenario. And it is racist.

CuthbertDibbleandGrubb · 02/04/2021 10:28

Would the people referred to by the OP have made an issue of Dominic Cummings behaviour last year, or influencers so-called work trips to Dubai? I very much doubt it.

BothLeftAndRightAreDelusional · 02/04/2021 10:46

as am of ethnic origin and he married me

You both are like each other if you think he's also not of "ethnic origin". That's probably why he mentions 'those of ethnic origin' and not 'those who aren't', according to you.

bonfireheart · 02/04/2021 10:48

but they were hardly baying for their blood and being aggressive about race.
Did you write the government report on racism?? You know things can be racist without it being 'aggressive'?

BothLeftAndRightAreDelusional · 02/04/2021 10:49

Why is mentioning someone's ethnicity a bad thing if it isn't said negatively? Why is saying "I saw the Indian man from the shop" bad? Isn't he Indian? Where's the negative inference there? I thought everyone was supposed to SEE COLOUR, yet when people see colour, it's wrong.

Ethnic minorities point out white people's colour all the time. It's about what is your norm, that of the individual speaking. It's natural to point out those who're different. Everyone does it to an extent, even if not racially.

BothLeftAndRightAreDelusional · 02/04/2021 10:53

@PinkiOcelot

You’re so angry about this? I think some people just go looking for racism tbh. Yes I agree ethnicity wasn’t relevant in this scenario, but they were hardly baying for their blood and being aggressive about race. If you’d been a larger company, you would have reported them?! Jeez!!
Racism can still happen without anyone baying for blood.

Ethnicity may have been relevant because they wanted to give the image of what they were talking about but it was with a negative, shit-stirring intention to pile on those ethnic minorities breaking the rules as if white ethnic people don't, so that's racist.

Original poster
MoiraNotRuby · 02/04/2021 10:57

@BothLeftAndRightAreDelusional

Why is mentioning someone's ethnicity a bad thing if it isn't said negatively? Why is saying "I saw the Indian man from the shop" bad? Isn't he Indian? Where's the negative inference there? I thought everyone was supposed to SEE COLOUR, yet when people see colour, it's wrong.

Ethnic minorities point out white people's colour all the time. It's about what is your norm, that of the individual speaking. It's natural to point out those who're different. Everyone does it to an extent, even if not racially.

Because the conversation was like this:
  • I hate it when people don't social distance
  • Same, a xxxx man stood too close to me yesterday
  • This morning I saw a bunch of xxx people without masks

I interpreted that as being racist, yes seeing colour is important but this is different, its just negative and racist.

OP posts:
BothLeftAndRightAreDelusional · 02/04/2021 11:00

I actually agree with that @MoiraNotRuby. See my next post after the one you quoted.

I was responding to some pp about mentioning ethnicity. Like I said, their examples had no negative inference. Yours did.

WestendVBroadway · 02/04/2021 19:45

@BothLeftAndRightAreDelusional
I wrote 'Ethnic origin' as a tongue in cheek reference to what a lot of white people call people of colour, without them realising that it also describe themselves. As an aside at an Equality and diversity training course at work we all had to state which of the nine protected characteristics we all could come under. While everyone could possibly suffer from Age , sexual, racial, sexual orientation and religion and belief discrimination; most of the white people did not tick race discrimination because ' hey we are just English'. Which would also indicate that they truly believe POC are much more likely to suffer discrimination due to their race.

OhShitShit · 02/04/2021 19:51

Yes i think that it is racism.

At the very “least” I think it’s an example of unconscious bias.

You could suggest to a line manager that the team would benefit from unconscious bias training? It’s very readily available and I know some great practitioners I could recommend.

BothLeftAndRightAreDelusional · 02/04/2021 20:18

@WestendVBroadway Ah. Sorry...thought you were one of those.

That's interesting, the story. It could be that they believe so or because some people have said white people can't suffer from race discrimination.

partyatthepalace · 02/04/2021 20:39

@PinkiOcelot

You’re so angry about this? I think some people just go looking for racism tbh. Yes I agree ethnicity wasn’t relevant in this scenario, but they were hardly baying for their blood and being aggressive about race. If you’d been a larger company, you would have reported them?! Jeez!!
@PinkiOcelot

Re-read what you wrote. Do you believe that racism is only racism when someone is ‘baying for blood and being aggressive about race’? If you do, that’s an appallingly low bar.

Racism exists in many forms and degrees and isn’t always intentional. The OP is correct that this is racism. When someone refers to another person’s race when they are making a negative comment about behaviour, even though race has no relevance, then that’s racism - because the speaker, intentionally or not, is drawing a correlation between negative behaviour and racial groups.

As long as such references are commonplace, it matters because in a hundred small ways such associations limit the life chances of people who aren’t white.

That’s why the OP was angry about it and rightly called them out. When she mentioned reporting it I doubt she intended to get the individuals into any trouble (it wouldn’t have done) - she is simply expressing her frustration that this kind of casual racism is so commonplace in workplaces and society.

littlepattilou · 02/04/2021 20:42

@PinkiOcelot

You’re so angry about this? I think some people just go looking for racism tbh. Yes I agree ethnicity wasn’t relevant in this scenario, but they were hardly baying for their blood and being aggressive about race. If you’d been a larger company, you would have reported them?! Jeez!!
Exactly this. ^

The OP @MoiraNotRuby and a few others on here are just looking for things to be offended by.

It's happening quite a bit on here this week. Hmm It's almost like the woke have an agenda... to cause discord and disharmony and kick off over very little, and sometimes nothing.

Each time I see it, I roll my eyes a little bit more, and think 'every time one of these pops up, REAL ACTUAL racism is being pushed to the backburner.'

The 'woke' and the liberal-left are so up in arms and finger-waggy about what they deem as racism (when it isn't!) that they can't see they are doing deep and irreparable damage to people suffering REAL ACTUAL racism.

@MoiraNotRuby Don't report it FFS. You will look immensely foolish.