When enveloped in personal culture and ethnicity, it can be difficult for one to recognize the characteristics that it has. Often, it is not until one steps back from their own experiences and viewpoint and considers their life in retrospect that the events come to the surface. This truth is applicable when discussing the experience of a Caucasian female in the United States. Although white women experience the pressure of gender roles, they are rarely challenged by their race in a way that makes life more difficult. Accomplishments and failures are rarely attributed to the race of a white person (McIntosh, 1988). It may not be realized by the white person growing up, but the truth of discrimination is very real for members of other races.
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The workforce, especially in more urban areas, can be a melting pot for a variety of cultures, religions, and ethnicities. The experience around groups who differ can be priceless. With education and awareness, one can appreciate a person for who they are and hearing more about their culture and religion to be an invaluable learning experience. The workplace also sometimes forces us to confront our own socialization, including what we had considered to previously be normal life experiences. Being a member of the population’s “majority” can be especially challenging in a workforce where that person is part of the racial minority. For example, a person may go from a situation where the entire room is of the same ethnicity except for one or two people, and they are a part of the majority. Life may bring about a new makeup, where they are the only member of their race in a room full of people. Conversations that have never been had around a person may happen around them, such as a discussion around the styling of African American hair. Suddenly, the Caucasian female, with no frame of reference whatsoever, has no way to relate or join the discussion. This can be an awkward situation for someone who had previously enjoyed the vast majority of conversations that involved their own “norms” of life (McIntosh, 1988). The white female listening to the discussion being had can learn quite a bit, especially the personal challenges faced by black females in an area of life that they make have taken for granted in the past (i.e. styling of
The workforce, especially in more urban areas, can be a melting pot for a variety of cultures, religions, and ethnicities. The experience around groups who differ can be priceless. With education and awareness, one can appreciate a person for who they are and hearing more about their culture and religion to be an invaluable learning experience. The workplace also sometimes forces us to confront our own socialization, including what we had considered to previously be normal life experiences. Being a member of the population’s “majority” can be especially challenging in a workforce where that person is part of the racial minority. For example, a person may go from a situation where the entire room is of the same ethnicity except for one or two people, and they are a part of the majority. Life may bring about a new makeup, where they are the only member of their race in a room full of people. Conversations that have never been had around a person may happen around them, such as a discussion around the styling of African American hair. Suddenly, the Caucasian female, with no frame of reference whatsoever, has no way to relate or join the discussion. This can be an awkward situation for someone who had previously enjoyed the vast majority of conversations that involved their own “norms” of life (McIntosh, 1988). The white female listening to the discussion being had can learn quite a bit, especially the personal challenges faced by black females in an area of life that they make have taken for granted in the past (i.e. styling of