Is anyone really thinking about work right now?
Photo by Peter de Vink.
It's early.
We're writing Tuesday morning for you to read Wednesday. We're reading the news from last night, and wondering how much will change in the next 24 hours. It's safe to say that neither of us got a full night's sleep. Maybe you didn't, either.
We're thinking about the last week. Upheaval and suffering in a year already overfull of upheaval and suffering. And, to be honest, we're wondering if there's anything to say to bosses right now. Is anyone really thinking about work? Is it even our place to speak, today?
It's a worthwhile question to ask. As white/white-passing people, we're always in danger of shoving ourselves into conversations we don't have a place in. We learn early that we get to occupy every space. And it's work to unlearn that. So it's a worthwhile question to ask. But it also has an answer: we don't get to sit this one out. As Keosha Love says, we've got to pull the fuck up.
Pull the fuck up
Our Black readers don't need us to tell them anything about how to fight the oppression they face. That's not our lane.
But we're hearing from non-Black bosses that they don't know what they should do. They know there are a lot of things not to do. And some of them feel tempted to just sit quietly until this passes, for fear of getting it wrong. But they know it and you know it, too. That's not solidarity. So let's talk about pulling the fuck up.
As a Human Being
Pulling the fuck up has two dimensions in this newsletter: as human beings, and as bosses. They're closely related. First, as a human:
Read this. Welcome to the Anti-racism Movement -- Here's What You've Missed. Watching Ijeoma write is breathtaking. She is surgical and vulnerable and honest and clear. She wrote this back in 2017, but it holds. up. If the outrage of the last few weeks has you referring to protesters and activists as "we" instead of "they", it's time to read this. It will not be comfortable. Surgery isn't.
Then act. March if you can, but don't fuck shit up. Our job in a march like this is solidarity and protection, not spraypainting a starbucks.
Act. Come get your people. Your family, friends, and colleagues who don't get it. Don't ignore it when they talk about "Black on Black violence" or "if they were peaceful the police wouldn't shoot them with rubber bullets and tear gas." Make things uncomfortable. Be less polite.
Act. Support organizations that are close to this problem and have been working it for a long time. COVID has made things hard on a lot of folks, we know. But there are a lot of ways to help, and power in numbers. Just don't get dazzled and put it off - this is a thing to do now.
As a boss
Back at the beginning of the pandemic we wrote this:
"We talk with bosses a lot about what a privilege it is to do this work. Sometimes they look at us funny. Amidst the vacation approvals and work assignments and promotion battles it doesn't feel that way to them. But in moments like this, you have budget. You have influence over workload. You are invited to the management meetings. You have the ability to exercise discretion. You have privilege and sway and impact that your people don't. It's time to use it."
That's still true. So, as a boss:
Read this. Hey Employers: Do Black Lives Matter? Pariss Athena did the free work for us all of collecting a thread of ideas for how employers can support their black employees, as offered by black employees. Not other folks imagining what might help.
Then act. Pariss lays it out. Talk about what's going on (without offering your own unhelpful takes). Give your Black employees space and permission to be low productivity. Better yet, proactively offer them time off if they want it. Don't make them do all the work to lay out your allyship for you. Don't demand ally points or "one of the good ones" credit for doing this. And listen without defensiveness if they tell you that something you're doing isn't what they need.
Act. Most businesses have corporate giving budgets, employee matching programs. Do you know what yours are? If they don't exist, now's a good time to push for them. We know that COVID-19 has tightened everyone's budgets. It's certainly tightened ours. But fuck it, what's the point of running a business if you can't use it to make things better? If it helps to have a place to start, we're sending money to BLM Toronto, Raheem, National Bail Fund Network, and Justice for Regis.
Act. It's not enough to give out of one budget while propping up racism elsewhere. As a boss, you get to shove your company towards anti-racism beyond the charitable giving policy. Are your products helping awful people be awful? Is your company holding a "neutral" stance that, in practice, means you're supporting the groups that fuel hate? Time to make things uncomfortable there, too.
We know. It's a lot. A thing we appreciate so much about all of you is that you don't need us to just be fluffy and light about this work. That you let us talk about heavy shit when we need to. We're in a heavy spot right now, and we all have work to do. Thank you for doing the work. It's worth doing. Black lives matter.
(If the work is wearing you down. Or if just... all of this is wearing you down, please remember that there are resources out there for you. There is no shame in mental health struggle. Not now. Not ever.)
- Melissa and Johnathan