The "Problem" Woman of Colour in NonProfit Organizations - COCo About Us Our Mission and Theory of Change COCo Team Our Members Our Bylaws Our Structure Annual Reports Our Funders Services Services Organizational Support Information Sessions Anti-Oppression Communications and Technology Support Conflict Resolution Resources Toolbox Legal Information FAQs Community Jobs Job Postings Add a Community Job Posting Projects Learning Organizations Lab Ateliers C Conflit à l’Oeuvre: Conflict and Diversity Diversité d’Abord Quebec on the Move By & For Us?: The Community at the Head of the Organization Communities Connecting the Digital Dots Portes Ouvertes In the Know: Identifying multiple aspects of Quebec’s community sector Contact Us Search en fr Menu Menu The “Problem” Woman of Colour in NonProfit Organizations March 8, 2018/7 Comments/in COCo Highlight, Front Page, ToolBox, ToolBox Document /by Kira Page Table of Contents The “Problem” Woman of Colour in the Workplace How does this relate to COCo’s research on racism in nonprofits? How to Use the Tool in Your Nonprofit Organization A few notes Overview The “Problem” Woman of Colour in the Workplace A couple of years ago, COCo discovered an earlier version of this tool, which depicts a common experience for women of colour (and especially Black women) working in the nonprofit sector. The diagram, which was originally developed in the United States, really struck us. It spoke to many of the stories employees in the nonprofit sector had told us about their own experiences; it also told the ‘story’ of much of the data we were reading from other research into racism in nonprofit organizations, not to mention the data we were collecting ourselves as part of our Diversité d’Abord research project (more on that in a minute). About a year after we started using it in trainings and discussion groups, it went viral on social media, with thousands of shares- another sign of its continuing relevance in 2018. Since then, we’ve been inundated with interest and inquiries about this tool and what it means. How does this relate to COCo’s research on racism in nonprofits? In the coming months, COCo will be releasing our own research into the question of racism in the nonprofit sector. In the meantime, there has been so much interest in this tool that we felt it was time to make it publicly available. Our own research involved 2 online surveys and a series of focus groups. From what we already have seen in the data we collected, much of the survey findings support empirically what the tool depicts about the experience of women of colour in nonprofits. For example, within the last 3 years, ~30% of our racialized survey respondents said they had left a job due to an unwelcoming racial environment. At the same time, the data also shows that white respondents gave different reasons why their racialized colleagues had left their jobs, for example, thinking their colleagues had left because “they got a better job,” or “they want to spend more time with their family,”. Overall, white respondents underestimated how many people of colour were leaving their jobs because of discrimination by 15%. In contrast, the rate at which people of colour working in nonprofits reported witnessing their racialized peers leaving the sector because of unwelcoming racial environments was pretty much on par with the actual rate of people leaving. How to Use the Tool in Your Nonprofit Organization Throughout our workshops, we have asked: What is the impact of this dynamic on the woman of colour in the organization? What is the impact of this dynamic on the organization? What is the impact of this dynamic on the community sector at large? These questions can be a great starting point to start discussing this tool within your own organization. The tool can be used for workshops or discussions of different lengths, broadly to discuss race dynamics in an industry or area of work, or to explore specific policies and practices within your organization. If the environment you are working in is supportive enough, talking about the specifics of this pattern in your nonprofit, rather than in general, can make it a lot easier to identify real changes. We are experimenting with developing worksheets that can help people deepen their analysis, name their experiences, and use this tool more effectively in their workplaces. Most importantly, the tool invites women of colour to share their stories and to be believed BECAUSE it centres their experiences. A few notes We adapted this tool with permission from the Safehouse Progressive Alliance for NonViolence. One of the changes we made was to have the “woman of colour” be represented as wearing a hijab. While we understand that women who wear hijab can have many different racial backgrounds, we felt that this image allows us to make an explicit connection between racism and Islamophobia in Quebec- a connection that many women live every day. We also know that while our own work centres in Quebec, and on nonprofits, this tool is also relevant outside of the nonprofit sector, and we’re totally happy to see people using this wherever it feels appropriate. Overview Below is an overview of the outlined trajectory in the “Problem” Woman of Colour in the Workplace tool. This narrative begins when a racialized woman is hired into an organization where the leadership and/or staff are predominantly White. She is excited to explore her new position and feels welcomed in her new workplace. This is also known as the honeymoon period. However, soon the hire is experienced as tokenism. Even if she was employed because of her skills and qualifications, the hiring process may be perceived as such by colleagues, community members, etc. Further, how her racial identity is used in the context of her position will impact this perception. After a period of time in her new position, where weeks, months or even days, the reality of a white dominant space becomes apparent. The racialized woman experiences recurring microaggressions and structural barriers. For example: heightened surveillance of her work and interpersonal relationships repeated comments about her body and physical presentation expectation of her addressing internal race dynamics These dynamics are further complicated by the fact that if she were to explicitly name her experiences with race, both the organization as a whole and individuals within it will deny her experiences of racism. In fact, her attempt to address these dynamics can often become the arsenal for retaliation: the racialized woman becomes the source of the problem. She is viewed as no longer being “a good fit” or “not qualified”. She is then targeted and attacked by the organization by both formal and informal mechanisms (comments by co-workers, HR practices). In response to these experiences, the racialized woman leaves the organization, having been fired, quitting, finding a new job or going on sick leave. Download (PDF, 61KB) Tags: anti-oppression, antio, coco publication, nonprofit, Quebec, race, racism, women, women of colourShare this entry Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on WhatsApp Share on Pinterest Share on LinkedIn Share on Tumblr Share on Vk Share on Reddit Share by Mail https://coco-net.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Screen-Shot-2018-03-08-at-2.03.57-PM.png 313 570 Kira Page https://coco-net.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/COCo-Logo-No-Text-300x165.png Kira Page2018-03-08 14:11:302019-12-12 12:31:59The “Problem” Woman of Colour in NonProfit Organizations You might also like Dos et donts The Black Community Resource Guide 2010-2011 Barriers and Solutions to Anti-Oppression Practice in Community Groups Resource: Indigenous Ally Toolkit Does it Work? Feminist Analysis and Practice at Inter Pares Anti-Oppressive Social Work: History and Practice Surveillance Self-Defense: Tips, Tools and How-tos for Safer Online Communications Les Panthères Roses de Montréal 7 replies Funke says: March 9, 2018 at 6:29 AM This was really interesting to read and it’s a good diagram of a black woman’s experience in a company. Irie L. Session says: March 9, 2018 at 6:08 PM This was my life for 14years and 4 months. Thank you for posting this diagram. I was not crazy. Naomi Cromwell says: March 9, 2018 at 9:18 PM Hi! I’m interested in learning more about your research abotu racism in the nonprofit sector and whether it extends beyond Quebec to other Canadian provinces. I was interested in mounting a similar project in BC focusing on the arts sector. Would love to learn more about your process of collecting data and possibly collaborate if it feels appropriate for both of us. Cheers 🙂 Tea says: March 13, 2018 at 9:37 PM What is the solution?? Jenna says: March 15, 2018 at 4:00 PM @Tea, as a white person in a nonprofit setting, I see many places to help find a solution. Can the “all white leadership” change? Can we not make tokenzing hires? Can we not make it women of colour’s responsibility to point out inequity and issues? Can we not respond defensively when they do bring these up? Every step of the way on this path, there are places to make changes. Jae says: March 16, 2018 at 11:07 AM Diversify leadership. Cheree says: March 18, 2018 at 4:36 PM Thank you for sharing this. I am First Nation Australian and recently went through this in a feminist NGO. Racism is a huge problem in Australia. Would love to be included and learn more about your research. Comments are closed. Recent Posts Help us launch the LabOA Social Innovation Hub An Update On Our Services We’re hiring! Communications Coordinator and Organizational Health Consultant We’re hiring! Fundraising Coordinator and Organizational Health Consultant Video: Women and Femmes of Colour in Community Organizations Archives Archives Select Month November 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 Upcoming Events Sun 29 Chargé.e de projet : Immobilier communautaire @ La petite Maison sur Laprairie November 29 @ 6:00 PM Organizer: La petite Maison sur Laprairie Mon 30 Chargé.e de communications @ La Coalition des familles LGBT+ November 30 @ 11:30 PM Organizer: La Coalition des familles LGBT+(514) 878-7600 Dec 15 Bilingual Communication Agent @ Afghan Women’s Centre December 15 @ 11:30 PM Organizer: Afghan Women’s Centre514-321-2194 Dec 18 Marketing and Communication Specialist @ Hear Quebec December 18 @ 10:00 AM - 10:30 AM Organizer: Hear Entendre Québec(514) 488-5552 Dec 22 Intervenant de proximité – salle de consommation supervisée @ Cactus MTL December 22 @ 11:30 PM Organizer: Cactus Montréal View More… Contact Us info@coco-net.org By Phone: (514) 849-5599 | toll free: 1 (866) 552-2626 By Fax: (514) 849-5553 | toll free: 1 (866) 560-2626 Opening Hours 3680 Jeanne-Mance, #470 Montreal (QC) H2X 2K5 Monday – Thursday 10am – 4:00pm Please make an appointment with us by phone or email, as we are not able to receive drop-ins. 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