Comments on: 9 Things NEVER to Say to White Colleagues

By: Luke Visconti

Luke Visconti — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 19:45:15 +0000

There are no purple, green, blue or orange people. By phrasing your comment that way, you dismiss people who care very much about who they are and how they’re described. Majority people (in any culture) often make this mistake, because they don’t see themselves as anything but “neutral”—that’s why we don’t capitalize the “w” in white, but do capitalize the “b” in Black. The rest of your comment suggests that you have a long way to go to overcome biases that are deep within your thinking. You don’t have to do that, but if you do I think you’ll find your life a lot more pleasant as our country continues to become dramatically more diverse—and the globalization of business means that just about every business will do business globally and/or compete with global competitors. Luke Visconti, CEO, DiversityInc

By: Sarah

Sarah — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 13:30:00 +0000

The problem with people, and I’m saying people to include everyone black white purple green blue and orange, is not that they’re racist or ignorant. it’s that they’re so afriad of offending someone, so afraid of speaking their minds that they feel they have to say something like “my family didn’t own slaves”, “my dad marched on Washington…” they think that because they are born a certain color(which by the way NONE of us choose, just as we don’t choose our parents or the financial class we’re born into) they have to compensate, or feel guilty. do i think anyone should put another down simply because of their race, class or educational level? absolutely not. however, if someone wished to not be defined by the color of their skin, money or education, they have to work hard to break the stigmas forced upon them from birth. I am a middle class white female and i’ve had moments where people have looked at me and asked “what would you know? you’ve had everything handed to you. you’re beautiful, educated and well off.” all of those things are just an assumption that an ignorant person made when they looked at me after i had expressed an opinion. the truth is i have not have everything handed to me, i had to work just as hard to get into college, just as hard to pay for things and just as hard to be accepted. my parents started out dirt poor when they got married and it was through perseverance and hard work that they got to where they are today, that and good financial planning. instead of saving his paycheck and investing, my father could have spent it on drugs but instead he chose to be wise and rise above temptations of the world. white people live in the same world as black blue purple yellow orange and green people, we have to go through the same struggles. we should not be blamed for the history that this country had to go through. i’m not stupid enough to believe racism is gone, it is alive and kicking. but it’s not just the white people the fuel it. i work with black people who do not talk to me and look down at me because of the color of my skin. there is a girl at work that doesn’t even talk to me because she believes that i am so different from her simply because i have less melanin in my skin than her. how is this right? how is it right for there to be a black people connect or an BET? if a white person were to start a company simply for getting white people hired, they’d be stormed with pitchforks. there is a double standard. i don’t know who set it up, but it goes both ways. and don’t get mad and say without those things, black people couldn’t succeed. that’s crap, because before the internet, people of all races were working hard without the help of social networking created just for their skin color.

By: mariah

mariah — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 03:35:23 +0000

Ok so I hear you, but as a someone actively involved in anti-oppression work I have a hard time with the idea of telling people : “You shouldn’t say…” I think that white people who understand their privilege will know what stuff is theirs and what isn’t. However I have to say, I’m not one to stereotype people because I myself break a lot of stereotypes, but some things are so widespread its hard not too. Working in activism and social justice efforts, I encounter soooo many well-intentioned white people. The problem is not their ignorance, ignorance can be worked with, the problem is the denial of ignorance. Over and over I meet people who will say: “Well none of MY relatives had slaves” or “My dad marched on Washington, I’m not racist” or “I’m poor so I don’t benefit from being white”. These statements wear me out. White people benefit from a racist society without having to lift a finger or intend for it to happen. Its not about just interpersonal stuff, its systemic and widespread. Often white people in social justice work get frustrated by being asked not to dominate the conversation or be the face of the movement. Often they want all the acceptance without the work. For me, its not a choice to be in the struggle. I’m latina, I’m queer, and I come from poverty with limited access to college. Classism, racism, sexism, homophobia are part of my every day. I fight because I want a world that has room for me in it without constant violence and discrimination. I dont have the option to go back to sleep or to seek “the quiet life”. So when I work with white people who burn out easily and go on hiatus for long periods because they can, or who get frustrated with not getting to be leader (like they are in most of the rest of their life), or who cant accept that the number in their bank account doesn’t reflect the benefits they’ve had from able-bodied whiteness… it tests my patience a LOT. This doesn’t mean its all white people but it is so frequent that its easy to fall into assumptions when people make familiar statements, or do familiar things that mimic patterns I’ve seen before. All this to say, if your feelings are easily hurt by the above statements I have a hard time believing that you are conscious of these things I’m talking about. The trick is to remain teachable.

By: Fotis Kapetopoulos

Fotis Kapetopoulos — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 02:31:59 +0000

As someone who has spent their life in the promotion of cultural diversity in Australia I find this article enlightening.
Australia is a multicultural and multi-faith society, but we do not determine diversity by colour, as much as by culture, language and faith.
So, I find it very interesting that when I come to the USA I am a ‘white guy’ whereas in Australia I am a Greek Australian, or a ‘multicultural Australian’ or more clumsily a Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Australian or CALD Australian.

By: K Jihan

K Jihan — Fri, 24 Aug 2012 18:55:02 +0000

Thank you. As an African American working in Diversity I have never uttered any of these, but am quite appreciative of the perspective. Inclusion should aim to validate the point of view of everyone, white people included.