The recent riots and racially-motivated intimidation across the North of the UK, and in Northern Ireland, has shown one thing very clearly; that inclusion training and 'awareness' in the UK is failing.
For those who have to live in a marginalised experience, especially where their marginalisation is very visible, this isn't news. It isn't a surprise. Even for white British people who face marginalisation because of disability, economic status, sexuality, or gender identity, the fact that "inclusion and diversity awareness and training" typically only makes discriminative attitudes worse.
As an organisation working in inclusive practice, we at The Productive Pessimist are obviously very concerned both about genuine inclusion, and the welcome and safety of all people who are able to behave with courtesy and open-mindedness to others, and about why traditional inclusion training isn't working.
The primary issue we've observed is that traditional inclusion training isn't a conversation. It tends to revolve around a person of lived experience of marginalisation, usually only a single identity marginalisation (ie, their race, their gender, a disability, being gay) telling people who were treated with the assumption that that individual hadn't faced any barriers themselves how difficult their experience of being visibly "other" had made their lives.
While this may make marginalised people feel they're being heard, and they may genuinely believe that "being heard" is how change is effected, what happens on the other side of the table - or, more typically today, screen - is people who have faced, and are facing, their own barriers, often without any support, feel they're "just being made to put up with someone going on about how hard they've had it", and are given the impression that "no matter what I do, how I behave, I'm always going to be told I'm a terrible person, I'm racist, misogynist, ableist, transphobic, homophobic." The presentation through inclusion training of "this very common colloquial expression, which is currently used in a completely neutral context, actually relates to racism/misogyny/homophobia/transphobia, if we look at the history of the phrase, from 200+ years ago" is actually directly antagonistic towards people with cognitive impairments, lower literacy levels, and who are at breaking point with the competing demands they're handling - because it creates the anxiety that "I don't know a lot about words, I can't read about all the history and everything, it confuses me - so I'm going to end up accidentally saying something bad", which becomes a fear of saying anything at all to people who are "different", which escalates to a feeling that "I'm not allowed to say anything when people who don't look like me are in the room", and the fear-rooted anger that says "Hey! I'm being silenced here!!!" - which leads to the anger-fuelled aggression of "F-k you, if you're going to say I'm 'offensive' because I didn't use a word I didn't even know existed, or I used a word that you've had enough time to find was once used negatively in 1765, but which I and everyone else I know is using completely neutrally, then I'm going to be really offensive!"
People who are part of the privileged majority are not always privileged as individuals, and that's not being addressed. As a result, the word "privilege" has come to be seen as meaning "Getting an easy life" - when what it actually refers to is "the ability to live unconsciously."
. You are privileged if you can walk into any high street shop, and know that there will be a wide range of choice of clothing that will not just fit you, but in which you will look good.
. You are privileged if you can travel by bus or train without having to make extensive advanced plans, arrange for support at the train station/s you'll be passing through ahead of the day of travel, confirm that that support is in place on the day you're travelling, if you don't have to wait for the next bus if someone else is already occupying the wheelchair bay.
. You are privileged if you know that the media and education systems of the country you are living in present information in your native language, and in a format that you find easy to process and understand.
. You are privileged when people, on first meeting you, don't assume you "will struggle to understand the conversation."
. You are privileged when you don't need to rely on your community to help you achieve your ambitions - the distant, 'professional' establishments will help you - for a fee; which, if you are privileged, you are able to afford.
. You are privileged when you don't have to plan around 'potential communication issues' - language barriers, non-verbal communication, comprehension levels, prominent accents, hearing impairments, etc.
. You are privileged when you can experience a rejection, and not wonder if it was "something about you as a person" - when you can just assume "they found someone better qualified."
. You are privileged when you don't find yourself anticipating having to repeat the very slow, very clear pronunciation multiple times.
. You are privileged when you don't think twice about knocking on a neighbour's door to complain about something they're doing, or not doing, or to ask a favour.
Privilege is a systemic state of being which society applies to certain groups; being in a group which is systemically privileged doesn't mean that the assumption is you as an individual will never face barriers and problems; all it means is that you don't have to deal with those problems and anxiety about other peoples' reactions to you.
Unfortunately, as UK business has become more focused on "making human beings work as fast as computers" (rather than the more achievable "replace work which computers can do accurately far more quickly than humans with computers, and free up human beings to be human, and handle the emotional intelligence, relational aspects of workplaces"), the attitude towards the communication of information has been "Put it in bullet points. Don't you dare have more than six bullet points - less, if possible!", the nuances of conversations around privilege, de-privilege, marginalisation, and how to make a difference have been lost, and the "message" that comes across to many people from inclusion and diversity training is: "I suffer so much because I'm XYZ; because you're not me, you are actively exacerbating my suffering."
Lived Experience shouldn't be "this is the sad story of my life, and how awful I feel" - it should be "What do people like you think about people like me? Okay, here's evidence against your assumptions. These are the actual, very real challenges I face, here's what I'm doing to work around those, here's where I could use some help from people who are perceived as being "better" in some way than I am. Now - tell me about what struggles you're facing, because I bet we've got a lot of problems in common, and we should really look at working together on those."
My main marginalisations, where the impacts are significant, and day-to-day, are that I'm legally blind, and that I'm a carer for my wife, who has cerebral palsy, autism and ADHD, OCD, and who is also partially sighted. (We are both each other's unpaid carer - we muddle along, make up for the 'deficits' that arise through each other's respective disabilities, and sometimes get tripped up by the potholes where we happen to share 'deficits'. It's a wild ride, and exhaustingly frustrating at times.)
For those who have to live in a marginalised experience, especially where their marginalisation is very visible, this isn't news. It isn't a surprise. Even for white British people who face marginalisation because of disability, economic status, sexuality, or gender identity, the fact that "inclusion and diversity awareness and training" typically only makes discriminative attitudes worse.
As an organisation working in inclusive practice, we at The Productive Pessimist are obviously very concerned both about genuine inclusion, and the welcome and safety of all people who are able to behave with courtesy and open-mindedness to others, and about why traditional inclusion training isn't working.
The primary issue we've observed is that traditional inclusion training isn't a conversation. It tends to revolve around a person of lived experience of marginalisation, usually only a single identity marginalisation (ie, their race, their gender, a disability, being gay) telling people who were treated with the assumption that that individual hadn't faced any barriers themselves how difficult their experience of being visibly "other" had made their lives.
While this may make marginalised people feel they're being heard, and they may genuinely believe that "being heard" is how change is effected, what happens on the other side of the table - or, more typically today, screen - is people who have faced, and are facing, their own barriers, often without any support, feel they're "just being made to put up with someone going on about how hard they've had it", and are given the impression that "no matter what I do, how I behave, I'm always going to be told I'm a terrible person, I'm racist, misogynist, ableist, transphobic, homophobic." The presentation through inclusion training of "this very common colloquial expression, which is currently used in a completely neutral context, actually relates to racism/misogyny/homophobia/transphobia, if we look at the history of the phrase, from 200+ years ago" is actually directly antagonistic towards people with cognitive impairments, lower literacy levels, and who are at breaking point with the competing demands they're handling - because it creates the anxiety that "I don't know a lot about words, I can't read about all the history and everything, it confuses me - so I'm going to end up accidentally saying something bad", which becomes a fear of saying anything at all to people who are "different", which escalates to a feeling that "I'm not allowed to say anything when people who don't look like me are in the room", and the fear-rooted anger that says "Hey! I'm being silenced here!!!" - which leads to the anger-fuelled aggression of "F-k you, if you're going to say I'm 'offensive' because I didn't use a word I didn't even know existed, or I used a word that you've had enough time to find was once used negatively in 1765, but which I and everyone else I know is using completely neutrally, then I'm going to be really offensive!"
People who are part of the privileged majority are not always privileged as individuals, and that's not being addressed. As a result, the word "privilege" has come to be seen as meaning "Getting an easy life" - when what it actually refers to is "the ability to live unconsciously."
. You are privileged if you can walk into any high street shop, and know that there will be a wide range of choice of clothing that will not just fit you, but in which you will look good.
. You are privileged if you can travel by bus or train without having to make extensive advanced plans, arrange for support at the train station/s you'll be passing through ahead of the day of travel, confirm that that support is in place on the day you're travelling, if you don't have to wait for the next bus if someone else is already occupying the wheelchair bay.
. You are privileged if you know that the media and education systems of the country you are living in present information in your native language, and in a format that you find easy to process and understand.
. You are privileged when people, on first meeting you, don't assume you "will struggle to understand the conversation."
. You are privileged when you don't need to rely on your community to help you achieve your ambitions - the distant, 'professional' establishments will help you - for a fee; which, if you are privileged, you are able to afford.
. You are privileged when you don't have to plan around 'potential communication issues' - language barriers, non-verbal communication, comprehension levels, prominent accents, hearing impairments, etc.
. You are privileged when you can experience a rejection, and not wonder if it was "something about you as a person" - when you can just assume "they found someone better qualified."
. You are privileged when you don't find yourself anticipating having to repeat the very slow, very clear pronunciation multiple times.
. You are privileged when you don't think twice about knocking on a neighbour's door to complain about something they're doing, or not doing, or to ask a favour.
Privilege is a systemic state of being which society applies to certain groups; being in a group which is systemically privileged doesn't mean that the assumption is you as an individual will never face barriers and problems; all it means is that you don't have to deal with those problems and anxiety about other peoples' reactions to you.
Unfortunately, as UK business has become more focused on "making human beings work as fast as computers" (rather than the more achievable "replace work which computers can do accurately far more quickly than humans with computers, and free up human beings to be human, and handle the emotional intelligence, relational aspects of workplaces"), the attitude towards the communication of information has been "Put it in bullet points. Don't you dare have more than six bullet points - less, if possible!", the nuances of conversations around privilege, de-privilege, marginalisation, and how to make a difference have been lost, and the "message" that comes across to many people from inclusion and diversity training is: "I suffer so much because I'm XYZ; because you're not me, you are actively exacerbating my suffering."
Lived Experience shouldn't be "this is the sad story of my life, and how awful I feel" - it should be "What do people like you think about people like me? Okay, here's evidence against your assumptions. These are the actual, very real challenges I face, here's what I'm doing to work around those, here's where I could use some help from people who are perceived as being "better" in some way than I am. Now - tell me about what struggles you're facing, because I bet we've got a lot of problems in common, and we should really look at working together on those."
My main marginalisations, where the impacts are significant, and day-to-day, are that I'm legally blind, and that I'm a carer for my wife, who has cerebral palsy, autism and ADHD, OCD, and who is also partially sighted. (We are both each other's unpaid carer - we muddle along, make up for the 'deficits' that arise through each other's respective disabilities, and sometimes get tripped up by the potholes where we happen to share 'deficits'. It's a wild ride, and exhaustingly frustrating at times.)
The assumptions I'm aware of about these facts of my circumstance are:
. You won't be able to use a computer
. You won't be able to respond promptly to customers
. You won't be able to get to work safely
. You won't be able to commit to a full-time work schedule
. You'll be distracted by phone calls throughout the day
. You'll be asking to leave early regularly, or you'll be coming in late
. You'll get offended when people talk about driving, or about how people with complex needs should be in residential, formal care settings.
I can easily counter most of these assumptions simply by talking about my professional background. I can talk about how, yes, I do sometimes struggle with computers, and with responding promptly to non-verbal stimuli from people, but I've developed (and am continually refining and developing) ways to mitigate and manage that.
I can accept and dialogue around the times when, yes, I have had to leave work early, or come in late, or call out completely, either because of issues with my sight, or an unexpected care demand. I can talk about the ways I ensured my absence didn't result in work left undone. I can talk about entirely able-bodied, non-carer colleagues who have dropped out at short notice, for weeks at a time, because of sudden illness, and whose work just either got left undone, or dumped on people who were already at capacity - where it got done badly, by stressed, distracted, resentful people.
I know most other people are able to drive. It does frustrate me that I can't, but I'm not "offended" by people talking about driving. I'm not "offended" if a job genuinely requires driving; I am offended - in the sense of "I believe this statement is offensive, because it deliberately intends to create an unnecessary barrier to people whose skills and experience the company can't possibly know" - when a job which doesn't require driving includes a "mandatory requirement" of "full UK driving licence and own transport." I'm not offended that I can't be a HGV driver; I am offended that I'm prevented from even applying for project management roles because of that "Full UK driving licence and own transport are an essential requirement for this role." The HGV driver role has an obvious requirement for someone to be able to legally drive. The project management role? Not so much. (I can travel independently by bus or train, I can take a taxi, if the company covers the cost, I can arrange and host remote calls on both Teams and Zoom...) I actually agree that people with complex and/or unpredictable care needs should be in person-centred, genuinely affordable, evidence-led residential care settings; it means that their needs can be met very quickly, by people who aren't resentful that their day has been interrupted, who aren't half-thinking of the work they had to abandon, and who are professional trained in safe, contemporary manual handling, medication administration techniques, people whose life is limited by disability/ies and/or chronic illness will benefit from the ability to socialise more readily, and with people facing similar experiences.
What I need from colleagues/employers/sighted people is fairly minimal:
. Ask me what settings I need a computer at, and set it up for me (scroll to just over two-thirds of the way along the bar for text size, set to white-on-black contrast, or closest option, 175% default magnification, dark mode for websites which offer it).
. Give what I call 'kinetic' directions, which centre prominent visual cues - eg, rather than "take Regent Street for 500yards, then turn onto Askwith Road, and turn left after 250yards", direct me by saying: "When you get off the bus at Market Gates, walk towards McDonalds and KFC, then turn right at the crossing, so Poundland is on your right; when you come to the crossing in front of Costa, cross the road and turn left; you'll pass a row of shops, with Subway, a newsagent, and two barbers' shops, on your right; when you get to the church on your left, turn right; you'll see a charity shop next to a hairdressers; our venue is two doors past the hairdressers, walking towards the Last Rites pub, which is at the top of the road we're located on." - I can't easily read street names, but I can usually identify prominent brands, and particular types of businesses.
. Let me know if a doorway or floor slopes downwards, and keep passage ways and doorways clear.
. I need to work in very well-lit rooms, with both natural and artificial light.
. I need to screen-break, or task-switch to non-screen-based work, every 2-3hrs, for at least 15mins.
. I need to be able to bring my own notepads and pens in (I can only see writing clearly when I use a Berol pen, and I have specific requirements for notepads, which are complex to list, and so it's just easier for me to be able to bring my own kit in.)
. If there's a PowerPoint or similar presentation, please email me the slides ahead of the meeting/seminar, as I won't be able to see them during the session.
. You won't be able to respond promptly to customers
. You won't be able to get to work safely
. You won't be able to commit to a full-time work schedule
. You'll be distracted by phone calls throughout the day
. You'll be asking to leave early regularly, or you'll be coming in late
. You'll get offended when people talk about driving, or about how people with complex needs should be in residential, formal care settings.
I can easily counter most of these assumptions simply by talking about my professional background. I can talk about how, yes, I do sometimes struggle with computers, and with responding promptly to non-verbal stimuli from people, but I've developed (and am continually refining and developing) ways to mitigate and manage that.
I can accept and dialogue around the times when, yes, I have had to leave work early, or come in late, or call out completely, either because of issues with my sight, or an unexpected care demand. I can talk about the ways I ensured my absence didn't result in work left undone. I can talk about entirely able-bodied, non-carer colleagues who have dropped out at short notice, for weeks at a time, because of sudden illness, and whose work just either got left undone, or dumped on people who were already at capacity - where it got done badly, by stressed, distracted, resentful people.
I know most other people are able to drive. It does frustrate me that I can't, but I'm not "offended" by people talking about driving. I'm not "offended" if a job genuinely requires driving; I am offended - in the sense of "I believe this statement is offensive, because it deliberately intends to create an unnecessary barrier to people whose skills and experience the company can't possibly know" - when a job which doesn't require driving includes a "mandatory requirement" of "full UK driving licence and own transport." I'm not offended that I can't be a HGV driver; I am offended that I'm prevented from even applying for project management roles because of that "Full UK driving licence and own transport are an essential requirement for this role." The HGV driver role has an obvious requirement for someone to be able to legally drive. The project management role? Not so much. (I can travel independently by bus or train, I can take a taxi, if the company covers the cost, I can arrange and host remote calls on both Teams and Zoom...) I actually agree that people with complex and/or unpredictable care needs should be in person-centred, genuinely affordable, evidence-led residential care settings; it means that their needs can be met very quickly, by people who aren't resentful that their day has been interrupted, who aren't half-thinking of the work they had to abandon, and who are professional trained in safe, contemporary manual handling, medication administration techniques, people whose life is limited by disability/ies and/or chronic illness will benefit from the ability to socialise more readily, and with people facing similar experiences.
What I need from colleagues/employers/sighted people is fairly minimal:
. Ask me what settings I need a computer at, and set it up for me (scroll to just over two-thirds of the way along the bar for text size, set to white-on-black contrast, or closest option, 175% default magnification, dark mode for websites which offer it).
. Give what I call 'kinetic' directions, which centre prominent visual cues - eg, rather than "take Regent Street for 500yards, then turn onto Askwith Road, and turn left after 250yards", direct me by saying: "When you get off the bus at Market Gates, walk towards McDonalds and KFC, then turn right at the crossing, so Poundland is on your right; when you come to the crossing in front of Costa, cross the road and turn left; you'll pass a row of shops, with Subway, a newsagent, and two barbers' shops, on your right; when you get to the church on your left, turn right; you'll see a charity shop next to a hairdressers; our venue is two doors past the hairdressers, walking towards the Last Rites pub, which is at the top of the road we're located on." - I can't easily read street names, but I can usually identify prominent brands, and particular types of businesses.
. Let me know if a doorway or floor slopes downwards, and keep passage ways and doorways clear.
. I need to work in very well-lit rooms, with both natural and artificial light.
. I need to screen-break, or task-switch to non-screen-based work, every 2-3hrs, for at least 15mins.
. I need to be able to bring my own notepads and pens in (I can only see writing clearly when I use a Berol pen, and I have specific requirements for notepads, which are complex to list, and so it's just easier for me to be able to bring my own kit in.)
. If there's a PowerPoint or similar presentation, please email me the slides ahead of the meeting/seminar, as I won't be able to see them during the session.
I'm not "offended" if someone forgets any of these; I forget things. People forget things. Life is busy and complex. Forgetting things happens. If someone consistently 'forgets', however - that feels more deliberate. I still won't be "offended"; I'll just be done.
So - tell us here at The Productive Pessimist Ltd about you. What challenges and barriers are you facing? What stresses you out? What assumptions have you experienced? What are your answers to those assumptions? Drop us an email: theproductivepessimist@yahoo.com
So - tell us here at The Productive Pessimist Ltd about you. What challenges and barriers are you facing? What stresses you out? What assumptions have you experienced? What are your answers to those assumptions? Drop us an email: theproductivepessimist@yahoo.com
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