Underrepresented groups: Finding your voice

The world has never been an easy place to be an underrepresented group or the ally of any. But events in recent times show that there’s never a good time to start the conversation, so let’s just bite the bullet right now. ?

RATTLING THE CAGE

Some of you may never have heard of Rachel Riley. But you most probably have heard of Manchester United .

Ms Riley is the presenter of the British show Countdown who spoke up against Manchester United’s handling of the Mason Greenwood saga as a woman, a Manchester United fan, and someone who had supported a friend through an abusive relationship.

Just for voicing her discomfort against the club’s press release on Monday, announcing Greenwood would never play for the club again, she faced death threats, threats against her children, and varying abuse, some antisemitic. Most unfortunately, her Twitter feed was full of vitriol with very few supportive comments:

‘Prostitute”; “U r the real enemy”; “Shut up! You’re just nauseating and bitter. Go get laid.”

The anger Riley sparked appeared to be among Manchester United fans — mostly but not exclusively male — whose main concern seemed to be over what an asset Greenwood could be on the pitch. Totally disgusting behaviour.

And we must talk about Jenni Hermoso who has been robbed of her World Cup glory in the evolving backdrop of Luis Rubiales ’ forced kiss on her lips. It is incredible that a person of privilege has the audacity to not just shrug off responsibility for aggression against a woman, but also to leverage on his power to shift the narrative in his favour. Mr Rubiales has defied widespread calls to resign, though yesterday he was provisionally suspended by FIFA. In an astonishing turn of events, the 46-year-old blamed “false feminism” for a “manhunt” against him and claimed the kiss had been “mutual, euphoric and consensual.”

Appalling. Totally disgraceful.

It is important that Jenni Hermoso spoke up to express distress and saying that “at no time did I consent to the kiss”, whilst being backed by 72 fellow compatriots who all vowed to no longer play for Spain under the current leadership. And almost all the coaching staff for Spain’s women’s team have resigned, citing the “unacceptable attitude” of Luis Rubiales, who vowed to prove his innocence after his provisional suspension as president of the Spanish FA.

Rewind back to 2017, during the reign of Donald Trump, the White House had also come out to dismiss women accusing Trump of sexual harassment are lying and called the allegations from at least 16 women “fake news”. This was the same man who had bragged about kissing women without their consent and saying stars like him could “grab them by the pussy”.

But this isn’t just limited to women. Just last week, I experienced service that made me feel like I was given a different treatment based on my identity, and I shared my experience on LinkedIn, with an offer to Qantas to help them improve. Just last night, a person commented that I was being petty, I was making a mountain out of a molehill and said that I should focus on finding a job, and that me speaking out didn’t help with uplifting my profile. It was unwarranted, it was nasty and it was personal.

This is the world we live in. Men riding on their coattails of privilege of race and gender, dismissing the experience of another person from underrepresented groups.

As someone sitting at the intersectionality of race, neurodivergence and disability, I have struggled in my whole life around speaking up. Through my life, I lost count of the many times which I never spoke up due to fear, shame, and concerns about retaliation.

Fear is REAL, very real and it manifests in many ways that people in privilege may never understand. Fear of being dismissed. Fear of not being supported. Fear of repercussions for whistleblowing. Shame for being made to think that speaking up is wrong. Shame for being made to doubt your own convictions and intentions. Retaliation from people seeking to maintain status quo. ?

WHY FINDING YOUR VOICE MATTERS

If you are from one (or more) underrepresented group, it is important that you speak up against discrimination, harassment, microaggression and/or bullying for several significant reasons below:

FOR YOURSELF

• Empowerment: Speaking up against harassment can empower individuals to take control of their own lives and stand up for their rights. It helps individuals regain their sense of agency and self-worth, which can be diminished by the experience of harassment.

• Breaking the Silence: Discrimination and harassment often thrives in silence and inaction. By speaking out, women and underrepresented groups help break the cycle of silence and create a safer space for others to come forward as well. This collective voice can lead to a shift in how society responds to harassment

• Mental Health: Keeping harassment experiences bottled up can have severe psychological effects. Speaking up allows survivors to express their emotions, process trauma, and seek the necessary support to heal.

FOR BROADER SOCIETY

• Change and Awareness: When a person speaks up about their experiences with discrimination/ harassment/ bullying, it raises awareness about the prevalence of the issue. It can lead to conversations that challenge societal norms and attitudes that perpetuate harassment. This increased awareness can ultimately drive positive change in both personal and societal behaviour.

• Support for Others: When a person shares a personal experience, they offer support and validation to others who may have experienced similar situations. This builds a sense of solidarity which can provide comfort and encourage survivors to seek help, knowing they are not alone.

• Prevention: By speaking out, the act itself contributes to prevention efforts. When people realize that discrimination/harassment won't be tolerated and that there are consequences for such behaviour, it can act as a deterrent for potential offenders.

• Cultural and systemic Change: The act of speaking up challenges harmful cultural norms that perpetuate discrimination/ harassment/ microaggression. Over time, open discussions and advocacy can contribute to shifts in societal attitudes, creating a culture that respects boundaries and fosters equality.

• Legal and Organizational Action: Speaking up against harassment/ discrimination/ bullying can prompt legal action against perpetrators and lead to organizational changes that promote safer environments. Reporting harassment incidents can trigger investigations and consequences for perpetrators.

• Educational Opportunities: Sharing personal stories can serve as educational tools for others. It helps people better understand what constitutes harassment/ discrimination/ bullying/ microaggression and the impact it has on individuals, encouraging empathy and informed conversations.

• Collective Action: When people from underrepresented groups come together to address negative behaviour, it creates a powerful force for change. Collective action can lead to policy reforms, awareness campaigns, and community support networks.

SPEAKING UP FOR A BETTER FUTURE

While speaking up against negative behaviour is important, we already know that doing so can be incredibly challenging due to fear, shame, or concerns about retaliation. Each person's situation is unique; there's no one-size-fits-all approach.

The question is where does one start? Here are some tips:

• Establishing clarity of intent – it’s important that you do it with the right intent, it should not be about getting even. We can’t change what has happened, but we can do our part to ensure that people walk away with lessons and with a plan so that others will not go through the same experience again. That is my strongest motivator for speaking out. Clarity of intent is important to steering you to act consistently towards the outcomes you want, with your personal principles and conviction providing the right frame for action.

• Acting objectively – focus on what went wrong, what needs to be improved – be it the process, or behaviour or intent. Whilst we may not always be able to influence people or to shift their bias, but we can certainly try to change systems, processes, and behaviour/ culture. Please be professional about your views, be respectful of others and create a space for objective dialogue.

• Choosing your battles – whether your situation is like Rachel Riley, Jenni Hermoso, victims of Trump or mine, you are likely to face backlash. People may call you all kinds of names, they may call you petty, they may belittle your claims, they may try to shift your focus, and they may attack you personally in all kinds of ways. Yes, this is distressing and no one should face this. I will defend a person’s right to an opinion, but I will not tolerate personal attacks. And neither should you or anyone. There’s no right action but surely retaliation is the wrong one. Don’t lower yourself down to their level. Ever. Stay focused on why you are speaking out and on communicating the change you want to see.

• Work with the right people – it is already distressing enough to fight for what is right, and it is entirely counter productive to talk to people who have no intent to change or improve. I’m talking about the Luis Rubiales, the executive team at Manchester United, Donald Trump or the person who thought that I should ‘grow up’ and stop sulking. They don’t think that’s there’s anything wrong nor do they have any intent to change. Focus your time and energy to engage with people who want to make a change, who share the same motivation for improvement. Seek out allies and leverage on their support.

• Taking care of yourself – no one should ever be made to put up with bad behaviour and yes, we all have different thresholds. And that’s ok. It’s ok to delete comments that are offensive, it is ok to ignore bad behaviour, it is ok to respectfully disagree. Looks, it’s never easy to initiate challenging conversations, especially when you are the underrepresented voice. We need to fortify ourselves mentally and to connect with allies to buffer up and weather through the journey ahead.

If you are an ally, then it is important that you do the following things:

• Be curious – start by asking questions to understand the experience and try to be empathetic – it’s about placing yourself in the person’s shoes. Sometimes, you may never fully comprehend what a person is going through, so it’s useful to understand how the experience impacts the individual.

• Be supportive – support here means to stand up for the person and to provide shield from further abuse. It is also about enabling the person to take the next step and to be part of the conversation on how to improve things. It’s not about giving total unconditional and blind support.

Disclaimer:?This article reflects the author’s personal opinions, and they are not in any way a representation of the author’s current or past organizations' views.?