|
Recently, I had the opportunity to
serve as a panelist for the 5th Annual Can We Talk™ Conference held in
Cincinnati, Ohio. This multi-cultural conference, sponsored by Black
Career Women, brought together women of all ethnic groups and
organizational levels to have a dialogue about the impact of race on women
in the workplace.
When I was first approached to be a panelist, my immediate thought was,
“What can I add? I’m white.” However, when I thought about the questions
that were being posed to the multi-cultural panel I learned a great deal
about myself, the impact of my cultural heritage, and the role I can play
in eliminating racism in U.S. institutions.
I’d like to share those questions – and my responses as a panelist – so
that you might also pause to think about how your race has influenced your
identity. I also hope you’ll consider how you, regardless of your
ethnic heritage, can be a positive influence for change in your workplace,
church and volunteer activities.
Question #1: How has your race influenced your identity?
First, I want to share that my mother is Native-American (a member of the
Keowah tribe) and my father is French (born and raised in Calais, France).
My father emigrated to the U.S. when he was 20 and settled in a
small town in Kentucky. My grandparents, both Keowah Indians, ran
away from their reservation in South Dakota and went as far as their money
would take them…to a small town in Kentucky. That’s how my parents
ended up being in the same place at the same time!
As a small girl, it wasn’t at all unusual for me to hear three languages
in the house. It wasn’t unusual for me to be served three different
types of food and to observe some colorful, interesting people stop by our
house to visit. Being bi-cultural opened my mind to different ways
of living, and different ways of understanding. I have to admit,
though, that my childhood friends often left our house saying, “you people
are strange!”
When I was six, the teacher asked each of us the first day of school to
stand up and say our names. I proudly said my entire name, Linda
Suzanne Halona Mahala Lautaret (it did, after all, take me a long time to
learn my name!). The teacher immediately said, “we’re going to have
to shorten that.” I became “Susie” for the rest of the year, until I
assertively took back my own first name in second grade. I knew
somehow that my grandmother – a huge influence from early on in my life –
would not be pleased with the assigned moniker.
When I was a young girl, my mother and father had their own version of the
French and Indian War and divorced. The pressure of being a
bi-cultural couple in a small town in central Ohio, where they had moved,
was too much….they were “too different”.
I felt the sting, too, of being “different”. Even though I have
auburn hair, green eyes, and very fair skin, my siblings have the dark
coloring and high cheekbones of my mother’s side of the family. They
were often called “half breeds” and told me how fortunate I was to have
our father’s coloring. They also told me that I’d be naïve to ever
tell people that I’m half Indian….if they could pass for white, they said,
they most certainly would.
As a young teenager, I felt torn between two worlds. My father’s
family didn’t fully accept the fact that I was half French, despite my
physical appearance. My mother’s family didn’t want to hang around
me in their circles because I wasn’t a full-blooded Indian. I
remember complaining bitterly about this to my grandmother one day, and
what she said caught me up short. She said, “You are the river
between two worlds. What a gift you’ve been given. Your Indian
name is ‘fortunate woman’. What will you make of the gift you’ve
received?”
During my teenage years, I spent a great deal of time with my grandmother,
recording her stories on audiotape of life as a young girl on the
reservation. It was quite a challenge getting her to agree to let me
“capture” her voice on a machine, but she finally relented. Her
stories gave me a sense of history and a sense of identity, as well as
respect for my destiny as a human being. That sense of identity gave
me the courage to go halfway around the world right out of college and
live and work in Japan, where I knew I’d be different from “the norm”.
That sense of identify gave me the patience to learn the Asian culture and
language and teach those who would learn my own culture…as an American,
and as a French – Native-American woman.
Question #2 – Why Does Race Seem to Define Some Women and Not
Others?
I believe that race is significant for those of us who’ve either had to
defend our culture or who have been treated with hostility and even anger
simply because of our race. I also believe that race is significant
for those of us who’ve cared about another person who we’ve seen
mistreated simply because of their race. If we haven’t witnessed or
experienced this phenomenon, it’s difficult to see race as an issue, let
alone a defining issue.
The real question becomes, what do we do when race becomes a defining
issue in the workplace? For those of us with white skin, we can “cruise”
along in most places within the Western world with relative ease and
anonymity. We’re not followed immediately upon entering department
stores. We’re not pulled over by the police for driving in a
predominantly white neighborhood. We’re not foreclosed from
purchasing a home in any area we choose, given that we have the financial
capability to purchase the house.
In my case, I could’ve kept my background quiet and not ever mentioned the
fact that my mother is Native-American. We live in different cities.
All my Indian relatives live far away, in the Western part of the U.S.
However, after growing up in an environment where I was made to feel “less
than” simply because of my heritage, I must speak out against race
becoming the sole defining criteria for one’s success in life and in the
workplace. After living in an Asian culture that treated Caucasians
as invisible, I must speak out against bias and speak up for making
decisions based on expertise, skills and talents. I hope you will
too.
Question #3: What can individuals do in today’s workplace to
eliminate, or at least minimize racism?
First, I believe it’s important to be alert to the world around you and
notice that racism (and sexism, and other “isms”) still exists. It’s
not just a group of people or individuals being overly “sensitive” or
whiny. There is ample empirical evidence of inequitable treatment in
housing and work for people of color. If you want a listing of
articles to read on this issue, please let me know and I’ll provide you
with resources.
Secondly, I believe in the power of one voice. But not someone
else’s voice: your voice. If you observe that qualified minorities
are not being mentored or provided with developmental opportunities the
same as every other person in your workplace, work with organizational
leaders to establish a system that’s available for each employee. If
you’re in the room when racial slurs or jokes are used, object and
redirect the subject. Be counted as a person who won’t tolerate any
form of racism….whatever your ethnic identity.
For comments or questions about this article, e-mail Dr. Linda Gravett at
Linda@gravett.com.
this window) |
