Disrupting Patterns of Oppression in the Workplace with Dr. Maxine Davis
Release Date: 11/02/2021
Building Inclusivity in the Tech Industry with Dr. Dede Tetsubayashi
Break Concrete
It’s no secret that the tech industry has a diversity problem. Dr. Dédé Tetsubayashi, a product equity, inclusion and tech ethicist, joins to discuss how the lack of representation within tech adversely impacts product equity and user experiences, and how tech companies can be more inclusive. Dr. Dédé also shares how she educates and empowers individuals, groups, and communities through , a Black-woman-owned consultancy transforming organizations to be more inclusive in product design and processes. Topics Covered: How Dr. Dédé got started in the field as a technologist Causes...
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The Immigrant Experience: Challenges, Opportunities, and Impact in the Workplace with Jackie Glenn
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From a newly immigrated nanny to CEO, Jackie Glenn has embraced life’s challenges with boldness and humility, always being true to herself and giving back to those who come after her. It’s this commitment to helping others, which led Jackie to write her instructional biography, . Jackie discusses how she climbed her way up the corporate ladder and the character gems that brought her and other immigrants professional success in the American workplace. Topics Covered: Why Jackie decided to write Workplace challenges Jackie faced as an immigrant in the U.S. How your accent can...
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Overcoming Barriers to Career Advancement as a Woman of Color with The FLI Collective
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Women of color face unique gender and racial barriers to their professional advancement and are less likely to move into leadership roles. In today’s bonus episode, we speak to the women of The FLI Collective, a lifestyle podcast that deals with the experiences of being first generation and low income in academia. We examine some of these challenges and discuss strategies for advancing women of color, including when we should pursue stretch opportunities and how we lead and bring others along with us. Welcome Drs. Marlette Jackson, Edritz Javelosa, Nidia Ruedas-Gracia, Miranda Stratton, and...
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Turning Your Side Hustle into Your Full Time Gig with Beth Diana Smith
Break Concrete
Stuck on how to turn your passion project into so much more? After more than a decade in accounting and finance at companies like Morgan Stanley, Viacom, and Johnson & Johnson, Beth Diana Smith left her six-figure salary and the corporate world to launch her own interior design firm, . Her style is modern and eclectic with luxurious finishes and custom furnishings. Above all, her work is client-centric as she helps each homeowner hone in on their own style and create a space that inspires them and enhances their lifestyle. Beth chats about how she turned her side hustle into her full time...
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The Elusive Black Middle Class with Imari Smith
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With rising costs of living, steadily increasing debt, and stagnant wages, middle class Americans may find themselves living paycheck to paycheck. But is there even a Black middle class? Imari Smith, a doctoral student in Duke University’s Joint Program in Sociology and Public Policy, argues that the Black middle class is a “subaltern middle class”, just one tier of a marginalized group. The Black middle class has never reaped the benefits of their middle class status and continue to be subjected to the same harms faced by Black Americans of lower economic status. Find links and show...
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Valuing the Work We Do: Black Women's Unpaid Labor with Dr. Nina Banks
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Every year women perform thousands of hours and trillions of dollars of unpaid work. You’ve likely heard of the invisible daily household work women perform, but what about unpaid community activism performed by Black and Brown women? Dr. Nina Banks, an associate professor of economics at Bucknell University, argues that this collective activism places additional burdens on women of color that often go unrecognized and uncompensated. Through recognizing how Black women challenge racial oppression in their communities, we can reconceptualize Black women’s labor and their impact on the...
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Discriminatory or Simply Burdensome? Workplace Dress Codes with Professor Stacy Hawkins
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Many employers require their employees to follow workplace dress codes. Employers can regulate employees’ clothing, makeup, hairstyles, nails, and more. Your employer might even be able to regulate your weight. Although the line between discriminatory and simply burdensome may seem blurry, today, Professor Stacy Hawkins, Vice Dean and Professor of Law at Rutgers Law School, joins to explain just how far a company dress code can go before crossing into unlawful discrimination. Find links and show notes at . Topics Covered: Defining authenticity The importance of bringing your whole Self to...
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The Problematic Politics of Style and Gender Identity in the Workplace with Doreen Pierre
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After spending over a year working from home, returning to the office and readjusting to your company dress code can be challenging. Today, Doreen Pierre, a Brooklyn based fashion writer, visual content creator, and events producer chats about how restrictive dress codes inhibit us from bringing our true Selves to work. Doreen’s work centers people of color and queer communities and has been featured in The Huffington Post, Buzzfeed, Virgin Media, DapperQ and more. Find links and show notes at . Topics Covered: Exploring the connection between fashion and identity How Doreen embraces the...
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Disrupting Patterns of Oppression in the Workplace with Dr. Maxine Davis
Break Concrete
Are you guilty of performative allyship? Today’s guest, Dr. Maxine Davis, a scholar, activist, and author, breaks down the pitfalls of performative allyship and how even well-meaning professionals can perpetuate oppression and social harms in the workplace. In early 2021, Dr. Davis authored an article in Nature Human Behavior, . We chat about Dr. Davis’s own experiences with anti-black practices in the workplace and recommendations for a more inclusive workplace. Find links and show notes at . Topics Covered: Defining cultural appropriation and how it shows up in the workplace How...
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Does Your Definition of Leadership Exclude Women of Color? with Dr. Marlette Jackson
Break Concrete
Far too often, we operate in workplaces where women of color leaders are lacking. However, that’s not because women of color lack leadership skills. Nor is it because of a lack of interest. Break Concrete is kicking off Season 4 with Dr. Marlette Jackson, a scholar, diversity and inclusion consultant, and co-author of the Harvard Business Review article, Dr. Jackson interrogates common leadership values and norms and how they exclude women of color. We talk about how organizations can expand their definition of leadership and assign value to qualities often overlooked or criticized...
info_outlineAre you guilty of performative allyship? Today’s guest, Dr. Maxine Davis, a scholar, activist, and author, breaks down the pitfalls of performative allyship and how even well-meaning professionals can perpetuate oppression and social harms in the workplace. In early 2021, Dr. Davis authored an article in Nature Human Behavior, Anti-black practices take heavy toll on mental health. We chat about Dr. Davis’s own experiences with anti-black practices in the workplace and recommendations for a more inclusive workplace.
Find links and show notes at https://breakconcrete.com/bc046.
Topics Covered:
- Defining cultural appropriation and how it shows up in the workplace
- How cultural appropriation causes harm
- Distinguishing cultural appropriation and cultural appreciation
- Defining performative allyship and how it shows up at work
- Tips for moving beyond performative allyship
- How professionals in helping professions can perpetuate oppression and social harms
- Finding a mental health therapist/social worker
- How to hold organizations accountable to move beyond performative allyship
- Dr. Davis’s experience with anti-black practices in academia
- Why it’s difficult for some to talk about race and interrogate their practices
- How institutions can address anti-Black practices
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