The compulsion to assimilate will continue to hinder Inclusion, until the Majority decides to take action.
Origins
You often hear people reminiscing about their younger years, and how they were the best years of their lives. Some were high school athletes, scholars, or they had the luxury to be simply just carefree and young. Others went to top universities across the globe experiencing new environments for the first time, all while slowly figuring out who they were as individuals. My story, on the other hand was far more scripted, primarily focused on adhering to specific guidelines on how I can adapt into a world where I can hide behind the shadows of “normality”.
As a child of South Asian immigrants, I did what many immigrant children do — excel and enter the workforce where my skills would be monetarily rewarded. I integrated within the corporate narrative and did everything in my power to maintain a high social status. I ignored overt racial micro-aggressions from colleagues and enabled superiors to exploit my strong work ethic. I refused to acknowledge the deterioration of my morals, values, and mental health — all unknowingly allowing the erasure of my identity. I intrinsically was aware of the mission that my parents instilled in me at a very young age: Assimilate into a society that was never intended for me.
Assimilate and be ready to compromise your values.
When you grow up with a self-sacrificing narrative your entire life, it becomes strenuous to alter the direction. I never felt comfortable in constantly throwing away my values and opinions to simply appease society. It felt robotic and hollow because I withdrew from my own emotions to apply a mask that served a singular purpose — “Be more like them”. Yet, I ignored the empty emotions and went against my natural instincts, in order to ensure my parents’ sacrifices were not in vain. I worked diligently to create opportunities for myself, and stood side by side with the majority race. If a White person can achieve success, so can I — and there would be no interruptions to this master plan. I continued to leverage this philosophy without realizing it all came at a very high cost.
Assimilation, or often known as code-switching, not only affects an individual’s mental health, but it hinders a culture of true inclusion at the workplace. A Deloitte study states 61% of employees report they cover up aspects of their identity amongst their colleagues. Employees from marginalized communities purposefully would avoid speaking about public racial injustices, change their physical appearances, or ultimately alter their personalities to behave in a way that was more palatable to their work environments. The cost of code switching can be psychologically exhausting as it reduces true authenticity, leading to higher levels of burnout at the workplace. Many of us in marginalized communities fully understand the repercussions, yet consciously ignore it as a trade off to be accepted and reach new levels of prosperity.
In my personal experience, I ignored the racial slurs about the Indian heritage when White leaders decided to mock our religious practices. My intelligence and overall capabilities were brought into question time and time again because I refused to scream my accomplishments the loudest. I was passed on for promotion because I was told I needed to possess more gravitas similar to my White colleagues. If I could not be as assertive as they were with client demands and sales opportunities, then I needed to try again. I went back to the drawing board on numerous attempts, and found different avenues that were aligned with my values. However, it was all futile because my immigrant upbringing was in direct contradiction with their feedback. Suddenly the hidden subtext became perfectly clear: “Be like us, or don’t bother trying”.
If you want a culture of inclusion, then stop ignoring our narrative.
You can call it whatever you want — assimilation or code-switching, but the fact remains that marginalized communities are in constant survival mode. Change is possible, if our White allies provide us a safe environment to be ourselves. The ownership cannot always land on our shoulders because many of us have attempted to challenge the norm. Our actions are misconstrued as not being a “team player”. Grievances around workplace stressors are ignored because we signed up for a “demanding role”. Key decisions are made without our input because “our experience does not apply”. It simply does not work in our favor.
If allyship is your true intention, then put aside performative statements such as “Be yourself at work” in your corporate campaigns that often fall hollow. Understand this fundamental truth: We never bring our true selves because we are petrified to show you. Leaders should ask themselves very simple questions: What culture do you want to create within your organization? Are you going to allow someone to bring their cultural values to the workplace, or compel them to adapt to your antiquated ideologies? Will unique perspectives be honored, or will they be dismissed because it does not match the formula you have been accustomed to?
A culture of inclusion demands organizations to acknowledge more than just diverse recruitment. While representation is imperative to raise equitable stakes, true inclusion requires organizations to implement daily practices that empower marginalized communities to contribute their unique insights, without being penalized.
- Train your leaders on how they can coach their employees to be successful in positions of influence, that are often historically underrepresented.
- Offer flexible working arrangements to all employees, understanding we all cannot work the same way. By presuming we do, it inhibits a cohesive work environment.
- Promote inclusive practices in daily interactions by supporting those quiet voices in the back and ask for their input. Do not incorrectly assume their silence equates to incompetence.
- Collect qualitative data across marginalized groups and determine what inclusion practices are working, and be open to changing strategies.
The depths we go to in order to appease the majority race has no bounds, and it often feels defeatist. While our day to day environments can be complex, we continue to fight and represent ourselves in the only way we know how. We simply ask you to meet us halfway and finally allow us to put our guards down. Our ask is ambitious, but we deserve to live freely from the shackles society has created for us. We are owed that much.
