I have never been able to put my finger on it, but I always wonder when was the point where Black people were convinced that they were “bothering” somebody when they asked for decent liberties at work. I know how they did it though. That much I am 100% sure of. It was when they titled any Black person with an issue at their job, “Angry.” Have you ever wondered what “Angry Black” man or woman really meant? I have, but it’s always compared to things that don’t really make sense to me. They say a Black woman who is too aggressive or argumentative in the workplace is an “Angry Black woman.” Pssh, Black people have had a term for that since the time of slavery, “She has an attitude problem.” Attitude problems can go to anybody white, Black, Puerto Rican or Haitian. I don’t buy it when it’s applied as this “Angry Black woman” syndrome. I’ve sat and watched and I’ve just come to the conclusion that the “angry black man card” is the white counterpart to the “race card” for Black people.
I always wonder if I’m the Angry Black guy in my office. I thought about these five things and wondered “does that make me the Angry Black guy?”
1) Am I paid enough for the BS I have to put up with?
This is probably what I spend most of my time thinking about when I’m at work. Am I making enough money and am I paid enough for all the BS I have to put up with on a daily basis? This is white people fault, sorry buddy, but you have to call a spade a spade. If you can manage to take down stories of injustice then you should take down articles that show that white people make more money on average than Black people. Since there’s no changing this fact, and I know somebody at my firm who makes more money than me, this is always going to bother me.
2) If you don’t want me to sleep with my coworkers, why do we got to hang around each other so much?
I think most Black men thought they just ain’t want Black men sleeping with white women in America… okay maybe that was just me. However, turns out they don’t want you to sleep with your coworkers because it could cause problems in the workplace should it not work out. Here’s what I don’t understand, why do we have spend so much time together? It’s bad enough that you want me here first thing in the morning and then you don’t let me go until the day is over and you HAVE to let me go home and sleep. But what the hell is all this work picnic, work happy hour, work service event on the weekend, softball and kickball with the coworkers? Please explain why you want to hang out with each other all the time. Do you guys have friends outside of work you can hang out with? I’m getting upset just thinking about this.
3) Am I smarter than my boss?
I don’t think we’re ever going to get to the bottom of this. I think we’ve all worked for someone who was a complete idiot. That’s fine, you will have good bosses and you will have bad bosses. You know what really grinds my gears to no end? When my boss intentionally has to make it known that he’s the boss despite the fact that he’s wrong. Besides all that, I just think to myself sometimes, “Didn’t I say that two weeks ago?” It’s like a never ending battle. I think the logical solution would be for bosses to give their subordinates credit when credit is due for solving a tough problem or going the extra mile. I find that this is not logical. It’s WAY more logical to just steal the idea and keep it moving.
4) If you piss me off, what is the most productive way of me expressing my discontent?
People in general have weird ways about them. They nonchalantly do something to piss you off and then get mad when you’re pissed off. You don’t include a person on several meetings, you have “brainstorming” sessions where “you don’t need to come to this, we’ll just fill you in [NEVER],” and then you write on their review, “Needs to be more proactive and take initiative.” At what? Busting you in your f*cking lip?! This is a casualty of war and people will get upset at work, but then how do you express your discontent? This is where I just don’t get it or see eye to eye with people. I’ve always said, “If you act crazy, what does that make me for coming back at you in a logical manner?” Dumb as hell.
5) Not to belabor, Point #2, but if this place isn’t made for me, why you expect me to be happy being here?
Let’s keep it all the way 100, there’s nothing about Corporate America that was made for Black people. “Consider what we’ve seen” (in my Morpheus voice), we can’t speak our language in the workplace, we can’t go to the school of our choice (Re: HBCU) and then gain equal access into it. You keep asking me to show up on-time. You seek to deny me my MLK holiday. And we celebrate Jewish and Christian holidays, but not Kwanzaa? Word, yeah okay. Sometimes when you’re in the workplace you feel like you’re in sex trafficking. You’re put in this crappy place that’s not your home and told that you better enjoy it, or you’ll end up dead or in poverty. So when you ask a Black person in the workplace, “why are you so angry?” Think about it from their perspective. The only thing they have left is an attitude.
– Dr. J
I promise to stop listening to N.W.A. while blogging, but it’s just what I like to hear at work.
"You keep asking me to show up on-time"
ok if this means what i think it means, you're hilarious!
I feel you on the workplace b.s!! Even though I will say that in my experience, i found that it isnt limited to just white people; Human beings in general just get really competitive in a treacherous, unhealthy manner.
My recent post Race – an illegitimate concept.
Be happy you have a job lol.
But yea I think as time goes on were starting to see bit more diversity in the work place. The company I intern at now has a lot of young people from different backgrounds. Now I’m not saying my internship looks like the million man march but, my people are in there. I definitely understand not looking like the angry blk women at work, at school and in public. I guess we sound scary/(not taking that shit) when we put on a serious tone (not yelling or curing just -__-).
Wouldn’t expect the corporate world to cut us to much slack, they feel they did their part when they allowed affirmative action in the office.
The part about spending so much time together is one of my peeves and has been one of my peeves for years. It's like yo, I have a life outside of this place. I am not going to the twice a week happy hour and Johnny DelMontaine's house every Sunday to watch football. I see you all enough!
I really don't know a Johnny DelMontaine.
My recent post Will I Ever Be Mature?
Uggg! I c/s 100% Luckily I don't have co-workers who are big on hanging outside of work…but what peeves me w/ these heauxs is they wanna leave work together. Listen, if I'm ready and you're not I should be able to walk to my car w/o coming off as an @sshole. But no, everyday its some unspoken rule that we must wait for each other when really I want to get away from them and this place as soon as possible.
Yeah my co-workers tried that mess and you know what I told them? You all are too slow and I'm bouncing. You all can hang around this plantation if you WANT TO but I have things to do. What can they say when you keep it real like that?
Hahaha! I can imagine you saying that! But you're right. Like this bish KNOWS its time to go…what are you doing? You really need to punch out (we have this stupid log in system on the computer now) at 5? Man eff, that…4:57 I'm out, lol…it really doesn't make a difference.
that would drive me insane. is this kindergarten–we gotta hold hands to walk to the bus? man, naw. lol
My recent post I Give Her That Insomnia…
EACTLY!!!
Even when its a fire drill they wanna leave together. Real talk, if something EVER, EVER, EVER, EVER popped off…I'm not waiting for ANYBODY!
Lol! I’m guilty! I used to want to leave together but for me it was a safety reason. We got off at eight o’ clock and on the days I didn’t ride the bus we had to go into a dark, scary parking garage. It made me feel just a little bit safer to be with a group instead of all alone.
I”ve always been this way even in school. I had my friends in school but when that bell rings, its been real but im to the hood. Nowadays, i’m still the same way, i have a lot of fun at work but when i’m off the clock leave me alone. I hate them Monday morning how was you weekend stories cuz they always together and always wanna finish each others sentences and whatnot. I can’t. I really can’t.
I used to be that way in high school, until I realized that all I was rushing to was home to do hw. So, I created an exclusive “After Hours” club where I was the dj and everything. Man, those dance parties were epic. Haha, not really but yeah, def was doing the most back then.
co-sign all of this. Every week, someone plans a happy hour, or some other social event with co-workers. I like you enough to work with you, not enough to spend nighttime hours with you.
I learned the hard way not to party with co-workers. I actually dont mind doing it but there are definite consequences that stem from playing "I Never" with them after a few shots. lol!
The whole hanging out thing happens with bosses who have schitty home lives and/or no personal life outside of work. They're so wrapped up in their job that they don't take vacation time, even when they're expected to use said time. Their romantic relationships weaken, and their family resents them for it. I've seen it happen time and time again. I can't be mad. I almost feel pity for them.
#3 All day everyday.
I'm not being egotistical, but I really am brighter than my boss. Even the other managers say that on the regular, (see: every day). Luckily I have a good working relationship and get kudos once in a while.
I am rewarded with slices of cold watermelon sprinkled with sugar and some biscuits with syrup.
I defintely don't get paid enough to deal with this sh!t
How about my supervisor TOLD ME HERSELF I'm a better leader than she is…..
-_-
Well heaux….give me that better leader salary!
bosses always say things like "your my number 1 guy" yet they do nothing to reflect it. Sometimes i feel like he literally read a passage in some Managing self help book and then comes out his office and tries it out.
My recent post ItzTrizz617: *sits and waits for one of them fake accounts to steal an Amanda Knox/Troy Davis tweet*
LOL!!! My supervisor does NOT do that…heck, I wish she would.
But it is painfully obvious that I am a better leader than her…I just wouldn't admit that. Not to someone who is my subordinate. #FakeItTilYouMakeIt
"I just wouldn't admit that. Not to someone who is my subordinate. #FakeItTilYouMakeIt "
ha! yeah, i learned this the hard way. That's a no, no; acknowledge contributions from team members and all that stuff but never admit any weakness to your subordinates.
My recent post Race – an illegitimate concept.
Did you get that on video?? Send that right to her superior!
Yeah I get this all the time. My direct supervisor has told people in my presence and outside that he believes i'm the smartest person on the team.
My recent post My First Blog (The Final post on The Book of Jackson)
"Am I paid enough for the BS I have to put up with?" If I have to ask myself this, I'm so so gone
No offense Doc but I don't understand why you just don't get the eff out?? I've never understood folks that were disgruntled at work. I could never in my life work someplace that made me unhappy and I've prob worked for every prestigious law firm in NYC. the moment I feel like I shouldn't be there I'm GAWN!
Me and my dad always talk and my dad says, "Boy you making a lot of money now" and I always reply, "They say I made a lot, I ain't made enough." The money ain't the thing. I been all around the Big 4 and a couple other firms, doesn't make sense to keep moving around esp for me because the increases would be nominal. I feel like the 5 points in this post will be true no matter where I go unless I just stop working altogether. I'm really not unhappy, but every so often I get in a mood.
My recent post My First Blog (The Final post on The Book of Jackson)
Oh aiight gotcha – just a lil rant n rave of the day, I see..lol
My biggest issue is actually climbing up the corporate ladder and loosing myself..that scares me..
I think it's hard to move on… you always wonder how long is too long at one company. I've been at the current place 4 years, 2 promotions, and I know I'm good at what I do. But do I LOVE it? Not really.
And with only 4 out of the 7 of us (parents included) that are working, it's hard to give up a steady paycheck.
My recent post Fool for you
I feel you on this. It's actually quite terrifying.
My recent post I Reminisce(d)
I’d add to this post and specifically to point #3 that people are often promoted to their highest level of incompetence. It’s called the Peter Principle. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Principle
My recent post Will I Ever Be Mature?
In my industry, this happens a lot. From a Senior to a Manager is just the natural progression, but no thought is given if the person is a great Manager or if they'd be better served as a Subject Matter Expert.
My recent post My First Blog (The Final post on The Book of Jackson)
Dr. J., Number 2 is just HILARIOUS to me. You're such a trip. No, I don't sleep with my co-workers but it was a funny write.
I refuse to be the angry black man at work, dreading each day i walk thru the door, spending half the day on craigslist looking for anything else. But i think my issue is im just not social enough at work so it comes off that way. I'll smile and say how's it going but i pray you dont actually answer the question. If one day i am mindlessly flirting with a female co-worker, dont ask me where she at everyday or ask her about me. I'm aware my facebook status was clever when i posted it, THAT is not a conversation starter. Damn maybe i am the angry black man lol
My recent post ItzTrizz617: *sits and waits for one of them fake accounts to steal an Amanda Knox/Troy Davis tweet*
You make coworkers Facebook friends?! Dude……
Two quick stories about why I hate corporate america and the whole 9-5 system.
1. I'm sitting at my desk, music playing – Dr. Dre's "Ain't Nothing But a G-Thang." This white dude who I'm really cool with is sitting next to me. Song gets to the hook: "Ain't nothing but a g-thang baaaby, two loc'd out niggas so we crazzzzzy." This fool is singing along and says the whole lyric. Like… the whole thing.
So of course I'm all like "dude, you can't say the n-word around me." He's like "why not bro, it's just the song… Dre says it." I'm like – "nah chill homey … we don't have to listen to Dre ever again if that's the case."
Another story:
I'm in an analyst program with a bunch of other young overachievers. Email is going around (as it does weekly) about where folks are going for happy hour. Of course they wanna go to -insert local 2520 bar. So I'm send a message like, nah, I'll pass. So my boy hits me offline like, yo bro – why don't you ever come out to happy hour. I told him – because, I spend enough time around you people already. He laughed but was genuinely inquisitive about why hanging out with white people all the time was bothersome for me. I put it to him like this: Imagine if you went to an all black college. All the parties you went to were full of people who didn't look like you drinking Hennessy while listening to loud music that you rarely ever listen to and dancing in ways you're not accustomed to. I'm like… does that sound like a fun four years to you? He's like… nah, not really. Then I said… that's what my whole life is like.
He kinda got it after that.
My recent post The Millennial Manifesto: How 80′s Babies Can Save the World
Your second story was my grad school life. A few hundred white women and maybe 5 black people. They were so friggin clueless. I almost lost my mind.
My recent post I Reminisce(d)
this is my job now. people wonder why i don't go to happy hour or out to lunch. i eat lunch alone. i'm the only black person (not including the older secretaries) here. y'all cool but i don't consider hanging out with asians a good time.
My recent post Cole World/Charity Starts at Home
every media company i've stepped into always has a black receptionist and she (it is always a she) is always the only black person there … in my company i'm the 2nd colored person, after the receptionist, this seriously bothers me
My recent post the things unspoken
1. I had that interaction with my boss who said his favorite comedian was Chris Rock and he loved the Chappelle Show. He asked me if I liked it and my exact response was, "I think it's racist that they don't bleep out the n-word, so I can't watch it." Awkward silence in the car for about an hour.
2. I don't have a problem with going out with my coworkers. I actually have a pretty mixed network anyway. The coworkers who are close to me in age and lifestyle are cool. It's filling the gap of some man who all he does is work and go home to his wife and kids that really becomes a drab.
You have not worked until you have had to deal with the Chappelle Show or The Man who doesn't want to go home. Those are two of the most hilarious parts about being Black in the workplace.
My recent post My First Blog (The Final post on The Book of Jackson)
I'm actually the only black guy in my office. There's roughly 30 people here, maybe more. I dont think I'm the "angry black guy" but that's mainly because I'm a laid back guy and really DGAF about much of anything. I have a different outlook on work than most. I make good money but I also feel to a degree work is suppose to suck. That's why they pay me to do it. I work to live, not live to work.
My boss is cool though and I generally tell all my bosses (current one included) that my passion is writing. I do this work thing to pay the bills. I'll give 100% but when I leave, I'm gone. I dont want to deal with work outside of work and if it were up to me, I wouldnt be here at all. All in all though, work is work. You're just not going to convince me to be "happy" about waking up at 6am, hopping on a crowded train, to come and do something for 8 – 12 hours that I'm not passionate about.
My recent post Men Already Know How to Act Right
This is me… That's why you'll see these points are very introverted. My thoughts and my stress points, but I try and keep a low-profile, team player approach at work.
My recent post My First Blog (The Final post on The Book of Jackson)
#1. I ask myself this weekly, if not daily. Usually I'm good on the answer, but recently, I said "no" and therefore, I'm out soon!
#2. Yep, I get called out often because I don't do afterwork shopping and all that. I aint never been to anybody's house and I'm not inviting them to my own. I am the only one for whom this is true. *shrug*
#3. I am. And everybody knows it. When I went above her head to get the money they owed me, and they couldn't justify paying me less than I'm worth, and couldn't lose me, they settled for paying her $500 more than me since she's my boss. Yeah. $500. And now? It's hard as hell to get a raise. Why? Because if I get one, I will _again_ make more than her… and who signs off on the raises? Her. *facepalm*
#4: http://6monthsto30.wordpress.com/2011/08/17/workp…
#5: My office is small. I belong here just like anywhere else. It's a diverse place, in fact, there are no white men directly in my office. I love my job 95% of the time, but there comes a time when it's time to go!
My recent post I Reminisce(d)
No it makes you are "Smart Black Man" that asks questions that deserve answers. You're only an "Angry Black Man", if you let those things prevent you from doing what you need to do and then complain about it.
Peace, Love and Chocolate,
Tiffany
My recent post Are You Ready For An Idiot
I agree with point #1: I know people who've been at my job less time than I have who are making more money. that's annoying. Especially when I know that I put in more work.
Which brings me to my biggest pet peeve: the promotion of "work/life balance" at a company that's downsizing. You say that I don't have to work overtime, and no I won't get paid for the extra hours I work, but if I project isn't thoroughly completed in excellence, then sayonara B?
Then you say work smarter, not harder, but you forward me emails or voice mails or add extra meetings in my day that distracts from my main points. Yet, you put things in my performance review which don't reflect on all the excess that you throw at me. ludicrous!
If you don't go to the happy hours or the picnics or the stupid firework display during July 4th, then you won't be recognized as one of the team… and when you see the skank from the 13th floor who never comes to work on time, move into a better position/bigger office and increases her global grade from all that sideline @$$kissing… well who can you blame?
My recent post Fool for you
Then you say work smarter, not harder, but you forward me emails or voice mails or add extra meetings in my day that distracts from my main points. "
What would managers do if they didnt schedule 2-3 meetings a day? I've had meetings about upcoming meetings. UGH!!!
Or they schedule a meeting 30 mins before you have to actually be at work but still dont arrive until 30 minutes later. Huh?
My recent post I Reminisce(d)
I HATE it when we have a meeting and during the meeting (which is already running long) someone on the team suggests that we should table this discussion and schedule a follow-up call… ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME? If it needs to be said, then say it.
And what really grinds my gears is when people who have no business opening their mouth, think it's okay to talk for 2/3s of the meeting. It's like SHUT UP, or I will MAUL YOU!
And people wonder why I zone out 1/2 the time.
My recent post Fool for you
"well who can you blame"
Do you bring up the excess they throw at you during your performance review or do you just accept what THEY put in there? Why are people coming in making more money than you, are you passively waiting on a raise instead of checking every three months How you can improve you chances of getting a raise? The skank on the 13th floor has the right idea…she isn't @$$kissing, she is taking Charge of her life. Instead of knocking her, it may help to find out how people are getting what you are complaing in you are not getting.
It's important to not allow yourself to be overlooked in corporate america. You can have what you want if you would follow through, and if it still doesn't work to your advantage it may be time to do something different.
@Beef Bacon: you're right on some points and misinformed on others.
I think after surviving 4 sets of layoffs and being promoted twice, I think I'm doing alright. But it's not where I want to be, and my bosses know that. They also know my ambition, which I'm not afraid to have known. I'm definitely at a cross road where I either bid my time, or I leave. My decision either way isn't final.
I shouldn't have referred to the woman as a skank, that was a low-blow on my part. But she did sleep her way into that position, and when the guy she slept with left, she was booted out as well. Not sure if that's really taking charge of her life… but I should've included the whole story.
My recent post Fool for you
Don't believe anything your employer says. Deal with them on the terms of your contract. You work, they pay you. You work harder, they pay more. All that work/life balance and "you are not required to attend" is a blatant lie. I saw a girl lose her job because the team had happy hour on Thursdays and that was her night to go to Bible Study. That's messed up right? Didn't matter much when she didn't have a job.
My recent post My First Blog (The Final post on The Book of Jackson)
So its not just me? THIS made my day and I will keep this post and your comments in mind while laying low at the cube farm….
Most of the folks are oblivious….the folks being blacks, latin and pwt….they’re the “lifers” I’m so jealous of their oblivion.
The others like to pretend they’re not pretentious….I look them dead in their eyes, while they loathe the perfect smile they help paid for.
Questions/Comments I hate that happened at work:
Is that ALL your hair?
So what is your religious background, your name is Muslim?
Can you do that for me? (Seriously, are you asking?)
(this one I hate the most) That was a really great comment/question/suggestion you gave at that meeting….(me thinking *are you fucking kidding me? Miss me with crappy compliment, show me the f*cking money)
F your ratings, give me my bonus, I know your EEOC points are off the charts. Lose me with the phony crap!
I feel you on the hair comment. I'm one of the only black people in an office of 200. I've been told, not so politely, that my natural hair scares people. Like they want to touch it,they will stare at it or they ask if it's all mine.
Especially when I straighten the curl and it flows down my back, then these bammas wanna ask if I got weave… ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Miss me with that nonsense.
My recent post Fool for you
and its reasons like this that make me happy i don't work in corporate america. especially reason number 3. there's no way i'm going to respect someone who i'm a subordinate to when they are incompetent.
My recent post Cole World/Charity Starts at Home
Definitely enjoyed the post. And I think I may have been labeled the "angry black woman" in my office after a recent meeting where I explained many of the inconsistencies in a project they offered and the restrictions we weren't told it would place on us after "volunteering" (which I now knows really means more work for the same pay and once you volunteer yourself you are stuck forever) for this "special project". This is my first time working in corporate america majority of my jobs have been in small businesses where you truly feel appreciated for your hardwork and those that do more get more it may not be in pay but small businesses don't have the luxury of making you feel like employee 1,299. But now I know why no one "volunteers" for any special projects and how a company can have such a strong talent pool and yet not be able to leverage it. People have to feel they are going to be recognized for their efforts and if I solve an issue then d*mmit give credit where credit is due.
Ok apprently I am too wordy but final thoughts. In the end while I don't feel I get paid enough I have and am learning a lot working here and how a bad manager can really dampen the energy and productivity in a dept. I endure because one day in the not to distant future I will own my own business and I want to ensure their mistakes are not mine. I feel I will make a good leader and business owner and manager because I always try to put myself in the other person shoes. I try to understand where they are coming from then go from there. This is apparently not a skill any of our upper management has been privy to. They would rather suggest I move to a different dept than fix the actual issue. Someone tell me how logical is it to send away your most productive (and yes I have seen stats to confirm this) employee?? Anyway I could rant on and on but I will just end it here.
And again good post.
Good Post.
I don't really have a problem hangin with coworkers every once in a while. Its the every day shyt that makes me pass. I have a routine on the weekends that I like to adhere to that doesnt include coworkers!
Your #1 is the main reaosn im ready to bounce from my gig… Im big on $$$ at a job but even bigger on recognition. To get heralded by bosses but then screwed in performance reviews and compensation is a cycle I plan to end. Makes me wish this writing shyt paid liek the job I had now. I'd type for a week straight! hahahaa
My recent post [FITNESS] Weekly goals 10/3/11
co-sign your first paragraph. My night to go out is usually Thursday. And Thursday is the night the co-workers always want to go out to happy hour. Hell, just an hour ago, I got invited to a birthday happy hour this Thursday. smh… I'll go, I just would rather party in my city than drive 30 minutes home after drinks on drinks on drinks.
great post, enjoyed reading it. my team here in DC is really small and most telecommute so we don't do the whole hang out thing but when I was in FL they were always planning something. I at times felt more out of place being the youngest than I did being the only black woman, but with women you can still find general things to discuss when going out–like reality TV LOL. The only time I really felt the pressure to socialize with coworkers is during conferences. I HATE THAT. I been with you all all day and now we gotta do the mixer, then the dinners. Actually I love the dinners because its usually sponsored by the VPs or other big wigs and they like swanky spots, and they pay.
but yea, I still don't get paid enough for the bs.
My recent post I Give Her That Insomnia…
One thing I will say is that many of us work in predominantly white offices. The predominantly Black office struggle is fierce too. I would like to hear some of their thoughts. My mother is in higher ed at a Black campus and it's hilarious listening to some of her stories. Many times I have to end our conversations with,
"But didn't I tell you not to go work at Howard?"
My recent post My First Blog (The Final post on The Book of Jackson)
I’ve worked in a predominantly black almost all female office and it wasn’t bad at all maybe because we were all temps and were genuinely happy for one another when we got on permanently or moved to better departments. We all hated the job so maybe that’s what unified us.
Great post Dr. J!
I love my job….freakin love it…seriously. My office is small and ALL black. It is heaven now, but when I first got hired….it was hell. They was putting up with a she-devil narcissist for two years prior to my arrival; she was gone 3 months later. Her thoughts became her actions. She was so worried about me ‘taking’ her job…she acted a fool and got fired (lol). That is TOO FUNNY.
I have worked in several settings and have come to the conclusion that I can have what I want. When I felt i wasn’t making anough money, I went back to school. When I became unhappy working in an all white copany, I left. When I found myself miserable working side by side with a crazy insecure girl…I just chilled and watched her self-destruct. Ahhhh—-life is really beautiful.
that last paragraph… all awesomeness!!!
Awesomeness indeed!
Dr.J~
Your mom work at HU?
GodBless!
Howard is a different type of beast..I worked at one of the dorms so I gotta taste of the drama!
Great post 🙂
I was the only black person at an insurance office I worked for when I was 21. What bugged me was having to be the representative for the whole race. I got a lot of questions that started off with “why do black people….” Even with all of that I still wasn’t considered an angry black woman until the day I got fired. Who fires a pregnant woman anyway?
#4 is my life. I’m the only Black girl for miles around working in the a$shole of the a$shole of the advertising industry. I’m thrown shade on an hourly basis. I used to kick over trashcans as a way to passively express my discontent but where I’m at right now everyone’s trash is behind their locked office door so I have no choice but to fly off the handle on a weekly basis. This is not a good look.
Thank God I don't work in corporate. I will never be in that world, but academia has its own struggles. Sometimes I wonder if I'm making the right choice to pursue academic medicine, it would be nice to just finish residency, open up a practice and run my own isht, but I realize the field needs more black doctors… one of the reasons why things are the way they is cuz ppl like me get so discouraged and once we graduate, we dip and don't look back. I don't blame the ppl tho… there's a lot of racist bs. They make it hard. But I think I'mma stay and do the academic thing anyway. Hopefully I can break down a few barriers so the ppl coming after me will have it a little easier.
My recent post Fun times… 🙂
I will say this much; Corporate America and Higher Education/Academia are totally different beasts. I find Higher Education to be a complete mess though. Oft times you have to change employers to have upward mobility and if you are on the faculty side some of those positions are positions for life. And when you have Administration/Faculty positions you can have someone who is really knowledgeable in their field, but sucks as a Manager. I think Corporate America has it's faults, but Higher Ed/Academia would drive me nuts.
And they definitely don't pay enough.
i like my job!!
Thanks for this. I am soo happy that I am not the only person that has these feelings. I am currently working at my first "corporate America" job after college. I have locs so all my co workers give me the "is he going rob me" look. It's mad annoying and it used to bug me, but I'm trying to just ignore it. Other times they try to use slang when talking to me which annoys the shyt out of me. Why speak to everyone a certain way and then say words that "black ppl use". Awww I'm going through it! lol
I started a new job a couple days ago. I'm not the most social person on the planet, but I try to be cordial. Took me off guard this morning when a lady who started the same day as me wanted to take pictures together.
*Sigh*
I did it though. And I even agreed to go to happy hour with her. But only because she helped me find an apartment and has been really nice to me. And I don't know anyone else in the city yet. But picture day tho?
Sitting in my cubicle in Johannesburg, South Africa, laughing my butt off!! Everything said above is so true.. This is my first job as i finished law school last year, so i cant really say im smarter than my boss as yet 🙂
From what i see the corporate would is the same all over the world!
Like Nia the hair thing IRKS me, white people dont understand that its not ok for you to sneak up behind me and touch my freshly twisted joints! no matter how good they look.
In Africa, i think we have a harder time in this corporate world because we have vernacular languages that we speak all day, every day (well after work and weekend) in very animated and loud tones..so changing to a soft voice and an english accent can have an “eish” element!
But there is nothing better than speaking about someone in their face while smiling at them!
I love all the darkies i work with,we sort have a community within these walls where you can escape and “touch base” with other people on the same page as you.
I read this blog everyday, but today is my first comment coz this touched base and is relevant to today!
PS just heard some say “cracka-lacking” to my black colleague….rolls eyes!!