Three Things to Understand about Allyship Now
Allyship is the rocket fuel of inclusion, and true Allyship is active, not conceptual.
Allyship as defined by Roxanne Gay an American writer, professor, editor and social commentator, requires action, empathy and common sense.
“...We need people to stand up and take on the problems borne of oppression as their own, without remove or distance. We need people to do this even if they cannot fully understand what it’s like to be oppressed for their race or ethnicity, gender, sexuality, ability, class, religion, or other marker of identity. We need people to use common sense to figure out how to participate in social justice.”
And it can be a huge challenge for individuals in their homes, hobby spaces and places of work to stand up and be an Ally.
The first thing to understand about Allyship is that it is challenging. Making change always is. You are not alone in finding it difficult. We all do. It is not easy to be a lone voice in challenging your friends and colleagues in their thinking, language and behaviour. When in the workplace, challenges are further increased by interpersonal dynamics and power structures. However with practice, commitment and support you can develop as an Ally to others, whether you share their characteristics or not.
The second thing to understand is that what you go through as an Ally is only a portion of what people who are experiencing discrimination and micro aggressions are going through.
Allyship has taken centre stage as an approach to addressing poor behaviour - from supportive statements to the redesign of companies’ logos - organisations have been keen to express where they stand.
However we must not become complacent. So much of what we do as allies happens within the space between expressions of support and working cultures.
Take for example the recent and rather depressing outcome of the Euro 2020 finals. Black British players were targeted by racist trolling and quite rightly this behaviour has been taken seriously by the authorities and some leaders. As I took note of the developing story my heart went out to those players, their families, friends and real supporters, who would have been hurt and heartbroken by their treatment.
I also couldn’t help thinking about everyone who would be going into work on Monday morning, and particularly people of colour. They will have endured the continuation of that trolling often dressed up as “a casual chat in the kitchen”, or “banter”.
Therefore the third thing to understand about Allyship is that the good work that organisations are doing to demonstrate their support can be completely undermined by ignoring the experience of staff members within their own organisation and failing to address micro aggressions wherever and whenever they occur, whether that is in the boardroom, on a building site, at social events or in the kitchen. Building an inclusive work culture is created on a bedrock of Allyship and everyone can be an Ally.
For more on Allyship check out the following resources:
How to be good Ally
Guide To Allyship
Netflix Culture - Allyship