What is code-switching? Why Black Americans say they can't be themselves at work

That's interesting! I don't think anyone can completely be themselves at work because you're being paid to get the work done. Have you ever 'code-switched':

 

I think for the average person, it's best not to be themselves while at work.

 

She seems a bit young and unrealistic to me.

Few of us can be our true selves at work, and as the OP says, that isn't what they pay us for. She has it easy compared to those who have been paving the way these last five decades ir so on behalf of working women striving for equality in the workplace.

Do your work well. Recognition should only result from merit. Having your ethnicity recognized or appreciated is not instant, nor should it be.

 

Sounds like she has a negative impression of how black people act and thinks everyone feels the same way. She should cheer up, it’s black history month.

 

I can't be myself at work either. Jungle pattern camo joggers and a 'Punisher' logo T shirt arent acceptable wear for professional meetings with civil engineers and municipal financial officers. Not if you want to keep getting their contracts, anyway. Its oppression I tells ya!!

 

She has a realistic understanding that white people may have a negative impression of how black people should act.

You made her point.

 

How does she know how white people feel and why does she think it's negative? This woman is stereotyping white people and you're letting her get away with it. Apparently, this woman feels black behavior is not acceptable in a professional setting or she wouldn't do that code thing.

 

" spoke in a quieter voice "..... In other words, a normal tone of voice.

I even keep my beard well trimmed instead of a "natural" style so it looks more appropriate for work. There's nothing racist about being expected to have somewhat of a professional appearance and demeanor at your place of employment.

I'm even polite to very rude individuals that I would like to tell to go stuff it

 

The woman probably feels that "black behavior" is inappropriate" because she's been told it's inappropriate. How many times do we see stories from the news about an African American student getting a dress code violation because of their hair style?

 

Some jobs may encourage you to dress fancifully or be more liberal with your personal style. If that's what important to you, it would be best to find one of those jobs.

Now, if we were talking about an office where you could, say, come to work with a big spikey mohawk but not with dreads or braids, I'd say there was some discrimination going on there. But most offices expect standard at least semi professional hair and dress, no matter what your culture is because your job when you're at your job is not to be a representative of your culture(unless that IS your job in which case your hair and dress probably aren't an issue). Nor does something being cultural give it more importance than something that isn't that a person may care about.

 

Never saw one of those stories regardless of “how many times” it happened.

 

Are you telling me it’s not professional to come to work with eyelashes two inches long while wearing a halter top, dayglow pink hot pants, black stockings and stiletto heels?

 

Being professional is a symptom of whiteness, and hence the expectation of professionalism is racist.

 

That's why it's called work. I'm as far away from being a black woman as you can get but everywhere I worked I still was expected to maintain a certain decorum. That's why it's called "work".

This is from the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture and IMHO demonstrates the biggest problem facing Blacks trying to get a job and build a career.

 

The only area in this where I do feel some sympathy for black people is hair styles.
Many employers don't like their employees sporting long hair, afros, African-American style braids, or dreadlocks.

If I were an employer I would make it a point never to discriminate applicants or employees based on just hairstyle (so like as their hair was kept up and not unkempt).

This is probably a whole other discussion, but I thought I would quickly mention and bring that up.

And this might just be my personal opinion. I could see reasons why others might disagree.

 

OMG cry me a river, she can't be herself at work? You mean I could have been myself this whole time? Showing up in the office un-groomed in sweats and a T-shirt and every other word out of my mouth an expletive? AHHH, the horror!! I hope she gets the proper mental health assistance she probably needs after all this trauma of having to conform to corporate standards. I also agree with @kazenatsu on the hair thing. I have personally never experienced that anywhere I work with black employees being told what kind of hair to have but if that happens, not very cool. The only time I've even seen anything like that was a guy I worked with in IT (already relaxed dress code for us, jeans/pants + any kind of shirt as long as it had sleeves). Anyway, he got heat for showing up in those Adidas style workout pants. He was white, but was married to a black woman so I guess it was half traumatic?

 

A long time ago we had an HR person who came to our office dressed in fluffy slippers, sweatpants and a t shirt that had some sort of union logo on it (her boyfriend was in a fireman's union) My director made a call and that was the end of that. She would also brag about once being a model where she worked 'overseas and abroad.' We laughed about that one for a long time. Finally, her skin tone matched the skin tone of the woman in the OP.

 

When I started as a software engineer, I was required to wear a dress shirt and tie. Since then, the dress requirements have relaxed quite drastically at my job. From my perspective, the quality and quantity of the departments work product has dipped as well. I think there is something about dressing nicely that prompts you to give a little more.

 

Made me think of this clip.

WARNING Vulgar language... but funny as hell

 

Or, she goes to work every day and feels the awkward moments. Not that awkward moments are caused by hate or disregard by her colleagues.

 

Has the 'victim' requested reparations yet? Trying to "fit in" is part of life, for better or for worse.

 

Sure is a fine sob story for a slick piece of merchandising...

Code-switching: changing appearance, speech and behavior to fit in and put others at ease.

Cultural appropriation: inappropriate adoption of appearance, speech and behavior by someone from another culture.

 

And for good reason. Nobody wants to listen to all that ghetto bullshit at work.

 

Most gay man certainly have or tried to. While I never lied, I used to work hard to fit into a 'straightjacket' during my interviews and during my initial time of employment. I did not want people to see me as a 'gay co-worker'until they really knew me as a worker and a person. It was simply prudent and less complicated. It still is, but the timeframe before I take off the straight-jacket is less than it was a decade or two ago.

Its trickier if you are trans, because you have a fine line to walk with deadnames and pronouns. You do not want to be defined just as trans, but you want coworkers to develope the right habits off the bat when talking to and about you, rather than have to break them and relearn them down the road.

 

Sounds like a recipe for severe mental distress at best and likely a recipe for mental illness. People should have more respect for themselves than that. If your only goal in life is to be a slave to someone else's desires, that ain't good.