This article is written by Julia Fulukiya, Senior External Relations Officer (European Relations), Government of Jersey (on loan from the UK Civil Service). The views expressed in this article are those of the author, and may not reflect the views of her employer.

"…when we are comfortable and inattentive, we run the risk of committing grave injustices absentmindedly.” — Chinua Achebe

Racism is a prominent issue of public debate which is almost everywhere, and there is an overwhelming consensus in society that it is unacceptable — it has been illegal for a long time.

50+ years of human rights instruments such as the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, and legislation such as the Race Relations Act here in the UK, has taught us a lot. Given how far we’ve come, it would be easy to assume racial discrimination is no longer a major social issue.

In the last 10 years, I have worked in overwhelmingly white (and male!) workplaces where I am usually a minority black female. I have had such rich experiences through my work in the civil service — great professional development opportunities have come my way, and some of my most valuable friendships have been born through work. It is important that I acknowledge those privileges, and it is equally important for me to talk about some of my not-so-pleasant experiences.

I usually wear a headscarf. Others see it as a fashion statement and others wear headscarves for cultural or religious reasons. For me, headscarves are simply a defence mechanism. I got tired of having to explain my hair at work, and having it touched or patted like a dog, without my permission. Don’t get me wrong, I like wearing headscarves. I grew to love them. However, I did not consciously decide to start wearing them for the love of covering my hair, but more for sanitary concerns. I felt the need to.

The not-so-micro aggressions

I usually feel the need to explain my presence. The need to justify why I’ve found myself in certain spaces. Others’ reliance on incomplete stories leave me feeling as though I’ve been reduced to an oversimplified version of myself, my gender, or of my entire race.

Covert racism is harmful and causes unmeasurable damage, emotional or otherwise, over time. In some ways, it is more difficult to address than overt racism because people are often in denial that they might be subconsciously racist

My complexity and unique qualities are lost when assumptions about me are made based on stereotypes. Therefore, I naturally feel the need to correct the narrative. When I attend meetings both locally and in and around Europe, I’m usually struck by how surprised people are at the sight of me. I can be in constant communication with people over the phone and by email, and when we eventually meet in person for the first time, I see the effects of mental gymnastics expressed on people’s faces. It’s as though I am not the person they expected to see. I immediately justify my presence with a long explanation of what I do for work, along with my educational background for good measure.

The casual and almost neutral nature of some of these behaviours sometimes referred to as microaggressions, is astonishing. To start with, they are not even micro in nature – I have slowly, and possibly quite blindly, changed some of my behaviour because of these "ongoing slights". Headscarves, for example, are now part of my daily wardrobe! Covert racism is harmful and causes unmeasurable damage, emotional or otherwise, over time. In some ways, it is more difficult to address than overt racism because people are often in denial that they might be subconsciously racist and would be mortified to realise that the values of non-discrimination that they profess to live by do not in fact reflect the reality of their behaviour and attitudes.

In her Ted Talk, The Danger of a Single Story, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie explains what happens when people are reduced to a single narrative: “the single story creates stereotypes, and the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete.” They make one story the only story, usually one that is typically taught subconsciously or even consciously within social institutions or groups. It is that incomplete story I find myself attempting to complete on a daily basis, especially in my professional life as a civil servant.

Don’t buy into the single-story narrative

Diversity strategies and key performance indicators linked to them are informative and they help shed some light on unacceptable behaviour, but they are limited in what they can capture and expose. The harm done by covert racism on an individual and societal level, for example, largely goes unnoticed.

We must reflect on the more underlying subconscious prejudices that still exist in society — especially in those quarters such as the public sector where it is easy to assume discrimination no longer exists

There is a level of cognitive dissonance, an intellectual kind of “social distancing” that happens when we are preoccupied with how good we think we already are, and how good our intentions usually are. This belief in our own inherent goodness prevents us from checking our biases, so we end up defaulting on the “single story” and therefore causing harm inadvertently. Those of us on the receiving end of covert racism, unfortunately, do not get to choose when it harms us because whether or not the perpetrator’s actions are intentional, the harm is still done.

I will not wax indignant about recent events in the U.S; the protests in most major countries speak for themselves. History has taught us that racial equality is not always instinctive. It may be easy for us to distance ourselves from blatant racism or incidents of police brutality, but we must take a closer look at the root cause of such incidents, and reflect on the more underlying subconscious prejudices that still exist in society — especially in those quarters such as the public sector where it is easy to assume discrimination no longer exists!

It would be a shame to let the danger of the single-story seep into policymaking and produce harmful outcomes that disproportionately affect certain communities, or indeed inadvertently perpetuate covert racism to fellow colleagues. — Julia Fulukiya

(Picture credit: Unsplash)