Race Reflections AT WORK

In today's episode we explore the relationship between podcasting and power, both the ways that podcasting has replicated and interacted with existing power systems, and ways that it offers a radical space for marginalised voices to create freely without gatekeepers. We think about how The Podcast Industry has developed into just another industry/workplace incorporating the issues inherent in...

In today's episode we are joined by Black Business Network founder Shari Leigh to talk about the Black, British, In Business and Proud report. She talks about the issues, actions and solutions suggested by the survey of more than 800 Black people in Britain. Black Business Network: https://www.blackbusinessnetwork.online/ BBIBP Report: https://www.blackbusinessnetwork.online/bbibpreport Black...

In today's episode Guilaine responds to a listener query about strategies for navigating situations where you are the only person of colour or marginalised person within the space. She reflects on her own experiences of this dynamic and considers issues such as representation, isolation, assimilation, scapegoating, hyper-visibility, invisibility, tokenisation and internalised racism. And she...

In today's episode Guilaine reflects on the particular dynamic where a person with power reacts to accusations of structural harm by saying that they feel unsafe. She considers how affect and feelings are conditioned and shaped by social context, histories and structures, and how feelings can play a role in protecting and enforcing social (dis)order and the status quo. She encourages us to co...

In today's episode Guilaine reflects on the importance of relaxation for racialised and marginalised people,  particularly when experiencing discrimination or oppression within the workplace.  She considers the physical effects of oppression and stress and offers some approaches that may help to transform this embodied data; visualisation, mindfulness, breathing. She reflects on ways to use p...

In today's episode Guilaine reflects on how how people, especially Black and brown people, face pressure to assimilate within the workplace. She considers what assimilation or "the politics of assimilation" means,  how this works in practice, what implications this has for marginalised employees, and strategies for resisting assimilation. Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts...

In our last episode of 2021, Guilaine reflects on her recent article The Invisible Gaze of White Women (now only available to Race Reflections members) and considers how the insights she explored in this article can be applied to the workplace. She combines theories around misogynoir, rape culture, and the white gaze, to theorize systemic sexual harassment created in part by the white female gaze....

In today's episode, Lucia -the Assistant Disruptor at Race Reflections - reflects on how Whiteness as a set of cultural practices affects our work environments by setting norms and expectations for everyone. Starting with a definition of Whiteness and its characteristics, we then examine how it enacts exclusionary practices in organisations.  Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, Spot...

In today's episode we reflect on writing in relation to the workplace and in relation to power. Who gets to document, author, and narrate their lived experience? What can writing give you in relation to self care, transgression and home-ness?  Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music or wherever you get your podcasts. To send us your queries, questi...

In today’s episode Dionne - the Admin, Comms and Engagement Lead at Race Reflections - continues the conversation on side hustles and entrepreneurship, following Guilaine's introduction on episode 12. Dionne reflects on her own personal and professional journey in business and introduces five suggestions for those side hustling, or taking the leap towards building their business as a full-tim...

In today's episode Guilaine reflects on her personal and professional news that she is starting a PHD. She considers why she has chosen to pursue this path given her difficult journey within psychology, and thinks about this process as an act of resistance and about the roles this can play in disrupting whiteness and structures of power. She also discusses the focus and process of her studies...

In today's episode we are joined by head of editorial at Black Ballad (and author of Hope & Glory) Jendella Benson, and teacher (and author of Being Amani) Annabelle Steele to talk about how they navigate the workplace and the publishing space as Black women. The conversation reflects on Black representation, Black motherhood, authorship, self care and Black literature. Jendella Benson: h...

In today's episode we look at how the workplace relates to the sociopolitical context it exists within. We critique existing individualistic thinking that presents workplaces as exceptions to sociopolitical violence, sociopolitical processes and sociopolitical events, and instead consider the workplace as a microcosms of societies.  Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Googl...

In today's episode, in response to a listener's request, we give an introduction to one of our most requested interventions our training course, Beyond Bias.  We cover a little bit about it's content and some of its learning objectives, and give some context for why Guilaine designed the course, and the journey that the training takes you on. Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podc...

In this podcast we discuss  side hustling when black or brown or otherwise marginalised and therefore likely to encounter inequality, injustice and oppression at work. We think about why side hustling matters and why it can act as a buffer to adverse work experiences.  Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music or wherever you get your podcasts. To send us...

In today’s episode we think about the dynamics at play in someone finding themselves in the role of being "The Black Advocate" (or any other position of advocating for marginalised groups) in the workplace.  Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music or wherever you get your podcasts. To send us your queries, questions and dilemmas please email a...

In this episode we think about the treatment of the Black players in the England team after the Euro 2020 final. We think about the parallels between all of this and the struggles people navigate in more conventional workplaces. We consider the conditional humanity afforded to Black people and people of colour, the colonial notion of gratitude and how Black people are objectified. Twitter thread:...

In today’s episode we take the recent Tiktok trend of "white women fake crying" as a jumping-off point to consider a slightly different take on intersectionality in relation to white womanhood. We consider the reasons why black people and people of colour find these videos disturbing or triggering, and explore "toxic femininity" which we define as when white fragility meets the...

In today’s episode we think about how the so called "deadly sin' of envy can play out in the workplace in relation to racial dynamics and inequality. We consider the distinction between envy and jealousy and the underlying motivations behind these feelings and what they look like within the contexts of whiteness and work. Further reading:  Neuroses of whiteness, white envy and racial vio...

In today’s episode we consider surviving the workplace while black. We reflect on the workplace conditions of previous and current generations of black people, particularly black women. We think about three strands that are navigated when working while black: 1.  Inequalities and structural racism which impacts physical and mental health. 2. Experiences of discrimination, interpersonal racism and...

Today we do something a little bit different because Living While Black: The Essential Guide to Overcoming Racial Trauma is due to come out very soon! So this episode is dedicated to thinking together about the book, considering the relevance of LWB to the workplace and sharing an exclusive extract from the book's introduction. You can preorder living while black here: https://www.penguin.co....

In today’s episode we consider the influence of the past on the present by exploring the concept of transference, what it means and how it might manifest in the workplace. This episode is all about making present-past links to better make sense of conflicts, tensions and race-based difficulties at work.  Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music or wherev...

In Episode 4 we consider aversive racism. Specifically, how the fear of being called racist, the fear of confronting racism and the avoidance of difficult race-related conversations by white managers, can lead to exclusionary interpersonal dynamics and cultures of marginalisation within institutions which can have significant adverse consequences on the welfare, morale and/or workplace experience...

There are many challenges black leaders must contend with, that is for certain... In this episode we consider why black authority in the workplace continues to attract resistance, hostility and sometimes sabotage and reflect on some of the challenges of black leadership within white institutions. To do this, we make links to historical configurations, colonial relations and the expectation of blac...

In this episode we ask ourselves why institutions often turn on those who allege racism. We consider some of the group processes at play using as illustration the treatment of Meghan Markle and responses from that interview. Location of disturbance and scapegoating are presented as frames to formulate victimisation and retaliation within institutions.   Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts...