If Not Us Folks, Then Who? I'm Just Askin'...

Ms Phyllis Hyman!!! Listen to what she has to say. She is clear on her responsibility to support the community that made her. She calls out her peers and others who did not share her sense of obligation, calls two by name. Pay particular attention at minute mark 3:09. She poses the question we must all ask of ourselves. If not us, then who? IF you have "arrived" and you are not trying to help other Blacks along the way, please know that I have ZERO respect for you and your "success". Just KNOW that...

In the 90s I worked for a Black woman who was the ONLY Black female director for the major telecommunications company I worked for. Her ENTIRE management team which was quite expansive was lily white!!! The ONLY Black employee she ever hired was her secretary who would only last working for her long enough to find a new job in the company. She was horrible. At that time my manager, a fellow MBA and a White woman of course, decided to leave the company. She informed me that her replacement, my new supervisor, would be another White woman, who, get this, held a HIGH SCHOOL diploma and I was expected to train her, Now who thinks that really happened??? NOT!!!

Now don't kid yourself. This young lady not becoming my supervisor was not because of any objection or exercise of authority by the Black female director, an MBA herself, who theoretically was empowered to stop the cycle of such unfair and blatantly discriminatory abuses in the workplace against minority employees. One might ASSume that she too was appalled by the mere suggestion that a fellow Black woman with an MBA, should train and be supervised by a White woman with a high school diploma. Not at all. Instead, this Black woman from Chicago, defended the decision, which quite possibly was hers all along, and was all too eager to share with me what I could do to also be considered fabulous and perhaps get the next promotion... Yeah, she said that!!! As I did with my exiting supervisor, I concluded our meeting by informing her that I would be going over her head to see the Vice President, a White man. I did and the rest was history.

The job was given to a Guyanese woman whose skin was damn near as dark as mine but who would die if someone told her she was anything but White. Poor thing... Undoubtedly this was a strategic move to ward off a potential lawsuit if I decided to sue, which I did not. The Guyanese woman was ridiculous too. She knew of the controversy and of course she defended the nonsense. After a year or so, I left the company and guess who became her supervisor? Yeah, you guessed it! Ms High School Diploma herself!!! Being only concerned with self promotion and not the big picture serves no one well. Not to mention that thing about karma... To this day that high school graduate might hate me and that is OK. But what she did not do was supervise me... Just wasn't going to happen...

To the point at hand as being made by Ms Hyman in her video, shame on the Black director who during the course of my tenure NEVER promoted or hired a Black manager to be on her team and who would dare suggest that I should train and be supervised by someone of lesser professional and academic ilk... Still SMH on this one!!! Sadly, I have seen over the years that this woman has been honored by Black organizations for her achievements. Obviously we don't ask the right questions. It is because we are impressed with and have been conveniently distracted and pacified with gestures of individual success that we have not yet realized collective success and therefore continue to beg for standing as we tread the same tired waters.

So I say it again, IF you have "arrived" and have not made conscious efforts to reach back and help other Blacks, I have ZERO respect for you or your "success". I have protected this woman's identity ONLY because I have never had the conversation with her and have not seen or spoken with her since the late 90's. I am hopeful that the "Sistah" from Chicago, has seen the light and changed her ways...

If not us folks, then WHO? I'm Just 

Askin'...