On Safety and the Were-Douche

Safety isn't a given in any workplace environment, especially when you add in the number of degrees you are from being a heterosexual, cisgender person of pallor. And it's definitely not a given in any environment in our society.

And there is no dichotomy that exists between how things happen at work and how they happen in your neighborhood, down to whose safety is prioritized and whose safety is a concept of a plan.

It ain't like Bob from Accounting is a great human being when he's not at work but somehow work "brings out the worst in him." He's not a were-douche who only transforms into a creature that harms and harasses human beings Monday through Friday from 9:00 am - 5:00 pm. Nope - Bob is a crappy human being EVERYWHERE, and he's given passes and protection by systems and white supremacist culture and societal norms EVERYWHERE.

Work culture is societal culture. Period.

Let's not tell ourselves otherwise.

[Image description: a snapshot of Pam from the classic sitcom The Office. She can be seen saying, "They're the same picture."]

Image description: a snapshot of Pam from the classic sitcom The Office. She can be seen saying, "They're the same picture."

On Working While Black

Maintaining employment while Black, and trying to make sure you're not being mentally, emotionally, and physically harmed by white supremacy and bigotry while doing so, is...exhausting. And I'm going to stick with the word exhausting because other words I would use are considered expletives.

I'm Black and tired. Always.

Even when I'm at my most rested, there's always an underlying tiredness that comes from living and existing in a world that does not care about you and processing the generational and societal trauma in my Black body to be the healthiest version of myself I can be. And employment being a horrible reflection of the world we live in does nothing to abate that underlying tiredness.

Neither does knowing that what I'm feeling in my brain and body is amplified by five for Black queer folx and times-ten for Black women.

Capitalism while Black is [insert expletive here].

On CEOs and the Value of Human Lives in a Capitalist Society

Trigger warning: gun violence.

Never forget that a CEO for a multi-billion dollar Fortune 500 publicly-traded health insurance company with a horrible reputation for harming policyholders was assassinated in front of the building where he was supposed to be leading a shareholder meeting, and the shareholders were like, “Well, the show must go on,” and went about their day with barely a hiccup.

Oh, and their stock prices went up in the aftermath of the public assassination of their CEO. Don't forget that part.

Well, well.

What a visceral demonstration of the value of human life in a capitalist society built on the blood and trauma of others, eh?

Just something to chew on in case you were internally debating whether you should use or lose that PTO that won't carry over to 2025 while your supervisor tries to guilt you into working a few extra hours.

On Blackness and Being A Team Player

Being Black is being told you're not a team player for not allowing a workplace to place a metric ton of work and stress on your shoulders while you watch your “affable” co-workers of pallor do the barest of bare minimums while being lauded as great people.

Being Black is being told you're not a team player because you don't want to participate in work parties and picnics and prefer doing your job, doing it well, then going home to live the life you've worked so hard to create in a white supremacist capitalist society.

Being Black is being told you're not a team player because you have boundaries that you enforce and reinforce with co-workers who have none.

Being Black is being told you're not a team player because you don't want to be friends with every person of pallor in your office looking to capture a “Black friend” to co-sign their racist nonsense.

Being Black is being told you're not a team player and being subjected to oppressive actions and attitudes in the workplace that aim to break you and push you into assimilation or conformity as a fraudulent means of survival.

Being Black is being told you're not a team player so much that you start wondering if it's your name.

But real talk?

Being Black eventually comes with the realization that most of y'all don't know what a team player is because y'all are too busy being mired in the nonsense of white supremacist likeability politics.

But you know, keep telling Black folx we’re not team players while we're some of the only ones scoring points for the team.

On Melanated Olympics for Survival and the Responses of Pallor

I don’t think people of pallor understand or grasp the intricacies of the mental, emotional, and linguistic gymnastics that most melanated people, most Black and Brown folx, most Native and Indigenous folx, and all Black women and femmes engage in to maintain employment and stay safe in communities and workplaces of pallor. I’m talking about Olympic gold medal-level sh—.

“But Pharoah, I underst - - “

No. No you don’t.

“Really, Pharoah. I think I get it - - “

Nope.

“I’ve read about - -“

Oh, no boo-boo. You don’t want to say that.

“But - -“

Shhhh. Less talking and defending yourself and more acknowledging your complacency and participation in white supremacist culture.

Ain’t nobody got time for your Olympic-level deflection and defensiveness.

Listen. Learn. Disrupt. Own your actions and words.

We’re tired of medaling.

[Image description: A picture of the rapper Mase. He is looking at the viewer while holding his left pointer finger up in front of his mouth, essentially making the universal gesture for remaining silent.]

Image description: A picture of the rapper Mase. He is looking at the viewer while holding his left pointer finger up in front of his mouth, essentially making the universal gesture for remaining silent.