The current Black Lives Matter Movement allows the minorities to raise their voice and shatter the victimhood which they’ve previously been forced into. It might give an impression to the world that the United States will soon overcome racism and the crime revolving police brutality, but things are actually far more challenging and deep-rooted than we may perceive from the lens of privilege.

If there’s one thing that has resulted after the massive outrage of George Floyd murder, then it is the fact that it has started an open conversation. We are now opposing the despicable abomination and prejudice towards the black community. We are truly seeing who the genuine allies are – and they are the ones who are using their privilege to stand tall against the discrimination faced by the black community.

They are the ones who openly criticize and challenge the brutality instead of controlling the narrative to win all the glory.  

The truth is that racism is more intricate than we think it is. Corporate America, for example, is still struggling to maintain a proactive discussion on racial inequality in the workplace.

Source: Business 2 Community

Ryan Roslansky, CEO of LinkedIn, had a meeting with his staff on the platform to discuss the consequences of police brutality and the death of George Floyd. Shockingly, the comments that appeared on the chat were against the employment of black community. Many even tried to justify police brutality by suggesting that the rate of criminal activities within the black community is high. And some employees even said that black employees should never be provided with leadership positions.

Companies all across the United States are being compelled to reevaluate their strategies and make their workplace culture more inclusive and diverse. Recently, Alexis Ohanian of Reddit made headlines when he decided to step down from the board and give his seat to a black candidate.

He realized his privilege and used it to make the board more diverse.

The workplace culture in LinkedIn is not the same. Rosanna Durruthy is the vice president of global diversity, inclusion, and belonging, and she has acknowledged that the environment of the company is massively xenophobic and racist and that the company has to make collective efforts to counter this problem. It still has a long way to go as obvious from the response of the employees to the company’s plan against systemic racism.

One employee said: “As a non-minority, all this talk makes me feel like I am supposed to feel guilty of my skin color. I feel like I should let someone less qualified fill my position. Is that ok? It appears that I am a prisoner of my birth. This is not what Martin Luther King Jr. would have wanted for anyone.”

“I believe giving any racial group privilege over others in a zero-sum game would not get any support by others. Any thoughts on hurting others while giving privileges with the rosy name called diversity? George’s killers need to be tried according to law. But how can hiring more minorities into manager roles and C-suite positions address cop racism? I thought hiring at LinkedIn is based on merit alone.” – said another employee.

However, some employees did call out the derogatory behavior and ignorant attitude showcased by their colleagues.

“There are some extremely offensive comments here that go completely against the spirit of what this is intended for. I am COMPLETELY shocked by some of these racist comments from my fellow employees. I am thoroughly disgusted!”

Another employee mentioned: “I do not feel safe working at this company in a place where I was already uncomfortable with the treatment I’ve received on my OWN team since I started.”

After such a horrific response to the meeting, the CEO was appalled and sent out an email to give clarity.

“I am very sorry, and that won’t happen again. Also, we offered the ability to ask questions anonymously with the intention of creating a safe space for all. Unfortunately, that made it possible to add offensive comments without accountability … I said it in the company group yesterday, and I will say it again, we are not and will not be a company or platform where racism or hateful speech is allowed.”