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#CharitySoWhite exposes racial inequality in the sector
21 Aug 2019by Chloe Green
We examine a social media storm that is raging over the hashtag #CharitySoWhite, with charity sector workers sharing sobering stories of racial discrimination they have faced in the sector
Charity sector workers from BAME (Black and Miniority Ethnic) backgrounds are sharing their experiences of institutional racism and descrimination as part of the #CharitySoWhite hashtag that has taken Twitter by storm over the last couple of days.
It all started when Citizens Advice Bureau were called out for racially offensive training material brought to light by Fatima Iftikhar, an organiser with #POCIMPACT, a community that recognises, supports and connects people of colour working in the charity sector.
.@CitizensAdvice any explanation for this horribly racist training on ‘Working with BAME communities’? pic.twitter.com/gM0CS9xtke
— Fatima (@IftikharFatima).@CitizensAdvice any explanation for this horribly racist training on ‘Working with BAME communities’? pic.twitter.com/gM0CS9xtke
— Fatima (@IftikharFatima) August 9, 2019
Citizens Advice Bureau eventually came forward saying: "We agree these materials are not acceptable and apologise unreservedly. We’ve taken them down from our website and will be investigating how this has happened. We help anyone, anywhere, whatever their problem. We strive to ensure our service is truly inclusive."
However the Tweet has since had over 500 retweets in outrage at the racist stereotypes that the document propogates. As shocking as the original Tweet is, when Iftikhar kicked off the #CharitySoWhite hashtag encouraging people to share their own stories of racial descrimination in the charity sector, that is when the Pandora’s box really opened.
Many charity sector workers professed to being at the recieving end of shocking racism and descrimination going unchecked. The outpouring of responses from BAME charity workers reflect many of the issues that we heard recently from people such as Susheila Juggapah and Saimah Razak, speaking in our recent article: damaging assumptions, a lack of representation where it matters and a glass ceiling around upward promotion. We’ve featured just a sample of the stories below:
In one of my ex roles, as ceo of a small charity, like so many others I also cleaned the office to save money. When I resigned the White Make who took over from me was given 1. A cleaner 2. A £5,000 pay increase for working 4 days (I worked 5) 3. An assistant #CharitySoWhite
— RitaChadha - Serious (@SeriousRita)In one of my ex roles, as ceo of a small charity, like so many others I also cleaned the office to save money. When I resigned the White Make who took over from me was given
— Rita Chadha -Campaigner, Charity Manager, Politico (@SeriousRita) August 20, 2019
1. A cleaner
2. A £5,000 pay increase for working 4 days (I worked 5)
3. An assistant #CharitySoWhite
In one of the non exec roles I’ve had, I calmly suggested to the chair that the board should be more diverse, pointing out that I was the only BAME person on it. My advice was ignored and I decided to take my skills elsewhere #CharitySoWhite
— zoe amar???? (@zoeamar)In one of the non exec roles I've had, I calmly suggested to the chair that the board should be more diverse, pointing out that I was the only BAME person on it. My advice was ignored and I decided to take my skills elsewhere #CharitySoWhite
— zoeamar (@zoeamar) August 20, 2019
When leadership only shows interest in your concerns about diversity at the organisation when there is a potential funding bid involved.#CharitySoWhite #CharityTuesday
— Fatima (@IftikharFatima)When leadership only shows interest in your concerns about diversity at the organisation when there is a potential funding bid involved.#CharitySoWhite #CharityTuesday
— Fatima (@IftikharFatima) August 20, 2019
Talented people are leaving the charity sector - I’ve seen them leave and so have I #CharitySoWhite #CharityTuesday t.co/TidUzaRMHi
— Susheila Juggapah (@sushi_juggapah)Talented people are leaving the charity sector - I've seen them leave and so have I #CharitySoWhite #CharityTuesday https://t.co/TidUzaRMHi
— Susheila Juggapah (@sushi_juggapah) August 19, 2019
When I was promoted to a senior management position, I was offered a salary less than a quarter of my younger, whiter, less experienced predecessor. #CharitySoWhite
— Gloria Davies-Coates (@gl0ria)When I was promoted to a senior management position, I was offered a salary less than a quarter of my younger, whiter, less experienced predecessor. #CharitySoWhite
— Gloria Davies-Coates (@gl0ria) August 20, 2019
At casual charity sector social, am cornered by a white man who aggressively asks me why I would vote for Priti Patel just because she is Indian. I’m not Indian. I’ve never said I would vote for her. #CharitySoWhite #charitytuesday
— Fatima (@IftikharFatima)At casual charity sector social, am cornered by a white man who aggressively asks me why I would vote for Priti Patel just because she is Indian. I’m not Indian. I've never said I would vote for her. #CharitySoWhite #charitytuesday
— Fatima (@IftikharFatima) August 20, 2019
I get the gripe from directors about being mistaken as interns or secretaries, but one of the big problems with the charity sector is that a lot of us poc ARE in those positions and that it’s so hard for us to move ‘up’. #charitysowhite
— Nadia Inha (@nadiaiona)I get the gripe from directors about being mistaken as interns or secretaries, but one of the big problems with the charity sector is that a lot of us poc ARE in those positions and that it’s so hard for us to move ‘up’. #charitysowhite
— nadia inha (@nadiaiona) August 21, 2019
The Citizens Advice scandal is not a one-off incident.
— Saba Shafi (@sabashafi86) August 19, 2019
You can make change happen.
Share your stories and experiences of #racism in the #charity sector as staff, trustees, volunteers & service users.#CharitySoWhite #charitytuesday
Racism is not just calling someone a slur. Sometimes, it shows up in companies as: being a C-suite executive who isn't invited to leadership meetings, left conveniently off the meeting calendar. "Omg we forget you. So sorry." 😒😒😒
— Luvvie (@Luvvie) June 25, 2019
I’m the director of a national migrant rights charity but people have assumed, on countless occasions, that I’m associated with the organisation as a beneficiary. #CharitySoWhite
— Satbir Singh (@SatbirLSingh)I’m the director of a national migrant rights charity but people have assumed, on countless occasions, that I’m associated with the organisation as a beneficiary. #CharitySoWhite
— Satbir Singh 🧡 (@SatbirLSingh) August 20, 2019
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While the stories are incredibly sobering, they clearly made a lot of people on Twitter uncomfortable, as the barrage of responses show. As Samir Jeraj Tweets: "On a cultural level, there is the pervasive assumption in charities that because you’re ’nice people’ doing ’good work’ that you’re exempt from structural discrimination or unconscious bias."
The backlash seems to reflect this, with a large number of responses denying the problem, exclaiming ’PC gone mad’ and even accusing the Twitter users of a ’victimhood mentality’...and some even outright racist.
Whether or not these Tweets are just internet ’trolling’ and being purposely provocative, they are evidence of a deeper problem that urgently needs addressing.
The unfortunate thing is that the stories shared are likely to be the tip of the iceberg of stories from BAME people facing descrimination in the charity sector, not counting the many people unwilling to come forward and put their careers at risk, or face bullying such as this.
In our video below, Charity Digital’s own customer service manager Raabia shares her own views from her decade of experience in the sector:
Chloe Green
Chloe Green
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