CURBING THE “ANGRY BLACK WOMAN” TROPE IN THE WORKPLACE
I’m known for my bubbly and jovial personality; many refer to me as a “happy go lucky gal”. While I am the type of gal who always tries to find the silver lining in any situation life throws my way, I do have my moments where even the most optimistic and nonconfrontational girl has to speak up and confidently defend her stands. I’m sure my sistas can feel me on this one.
As a professional black woman, in the many instances when microaggression and repackaged racism has been thrown my way, I have been expected to remain cool, calm, and collected as many black women are expected to do in the workforce. Any attempt to straddle the fence between “anger” and “assertiveness”, we risked being labeled the “angry black woman” trope.
God forbid a black woman stands up for herself when she is deliberately being disrespected and undermined, she’s not afforded the same grace as her white counterparts to experience the full gambits of her emotions. This intentionality around misinterpreting a black woman’s “assertiveness” for “aggressiveness” or “hostility” is a stereotypical ignorance that stems from past generations to undermine the validity of our emotions and experiences. Throughout history, we have seen this stereotype amplify in books, movies, theater, etc. This pervasive stereotype has also infiltrated American work culture, which continues to create more challenges and barriers for black women in recognizing our full potential and shaping our professional experiences.
Being straightforward as a black woman is frowned upon especially when it comes in contact with white fragility. This unfair treatment that black women have to be considerate of other people’s emotions when expressing ourselves while the same isn’t afforded to us is blatantly hypocritical. The policing of black women’s emotions and expressions has only created more demeaning harm than good to our confidence and self-esteem within the workspace. Companies also stand to lose out significantly when black women within their organizations are stifled from expressing themselves.
Anger is a natural human emotion; everyone expresses it in varied ways. What makes this an ignorant stereotype for black women is that “anger” is seen as part of our personality rather than looking at it from a situational perspective. Meaning, this isn’t a personality flaw, rather we are put in certain situations that may incite an “angry” reaction from us just like any other human being, race, culture, ethnicity, nationality, religion, and gender would. Characterizing black women as angry is intellectually dishonest.
Instead of employers jumping to these detrimental assumptions, perhaps a call for action would be combatting and challenging this stereotype within their establishment. More listening, learning, and reflection is needed from companies and employers. Their acknowledgment that this problem does exist instead of turning a blind eye in recognizing their own biases is the first step to jumpstart intentional and inclusive actions to curb these discriminatory practices that continues to plaque black women’s professional experiences.
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