I was told an illustrative story that explains the origin of Black Lives Matters as more than a protest at the lack of justice for innocent black people murdered by the police. BLM as a movement seeks to tackle and drive action on the systemic racism that exists throughout society, which leads to the marginalisation of whole communities based on the colour of their skin.
Having worked in some of the poorest parts of London I have seen the reality that BME communities are more likely to have poorer quality housing, poorer access to education and healthcare, die younger, are more likely to suffer from chronic illnesses, earn less and become trapped in cycles of poverty with few opportunities to escape.
It can be easy to see these issues through the lens of class and poverty; trying to escape the poverty cycle when you are black, facing underlying and often invisible systemic racism makes the struggle even harder. If we’re to rectify this we have to recognise it. To often we, as a society dismiss it, resorting to victim blaming; blaming BME communities for the failings of society on the whole.
Below is a story that put this into context for me; explaining why Black Lives Matter is so important, and conversely why the mantra ‘All Lives Matter’ creates greater divisions and hardships.
The dinner
After years of toil and struggle, a black man and black woman are invited to join the community banquet. Both arrive famished and exhausted from their labours, hands sore from their work, feet blistered from travels and limbs heavy from hunger.
On arrival at the village hall they’re immediately welcomed with wide smiles and warm words from most sitting at the table. A white, grey-haired, middle-aged man at the head of the table smiles and directs them to their seats saved for them at the end of the table.
The black woman and black man walk the length of the table, greeting follow guests as they pass; white men and women in suits, uniforms and fashionable outfits at the head of the table, before greeting men and women of differing races wearing work overalls and tired expressions before taking their seats at the very end of the table.
After a short wait and pleasant conversation, the meal is served. Those at the head of the table pile their plates high with the sumptuous meal as the food is passed down the table. The food looks and smells delicious. Meats, vegetables and highly sought after treats rarely seen by the black man and black woman. The platters are passed down the table from person to person, each taking their fill. By the time the platter reaches the end it is nearly empty; offcuts, undercooked and overcooked meats and shards of gristle remain. Both the black woman and black man are disappointed but remain quiet as they share the remaining food from the platter between themselves.
After finishing what little food they have they are still hungry and exhausted. They look towards the head of the table at the food piled high on the plates of the white guests at the head of the table.
The black man coughs lightly into his fist, attracting attention of the other diners to ask politely whether fellow guests would be willing to share some of their ample food, as they had received so little.
The white men look to one another, some with disdain, some with sympathy, one or two even with guilt, but most look down at their filled plates, pretending not to hear. A few nod and share some of what they have, passing a plate down the table with an assortment of foods (some of which is siphoned off as it travels the length of the table). A small offering arrives for the black man and black woman to gratefully received and share between them.
After a few further minutes of eating in awkward silence, the black woman and black man remain hungry and disappointed. The meal they had been promised has been meagre and unsatisfying, while they watch others dining on the food that they had worked so hard to produce.
They’re still exhausted and hungry, dizzy from the lack of food and tiredness. Their attempts to request more from their hosts and neighbours (as galling as that is) is drowned out by the increasingly loud conversations and occasional laughter.
Eventually the black man and black woman look to each other and rise to their feet in silence, ready to make their point and make their presence known.
The other diners cease their conversation to look down the table at the couple. Some are surprised, others curious, and some look on with disgust.
“Friends, we have travelled far after a long day labouring to produce the food that we eat here. We appreciate the hospitality you have offered but we are both hungry with barely a meal between us. We can see you have more than you can possibly eat on your plates, please would you be so kind as to share more with us.”
Having to asking their hosts to share more is humiliating, but they remain polite and respectful while making their point clear.
At first, silence greets their request. Faces of disappointment and anger are mixed with those deliberately seeking to avoid their gaze. One or two guests look on genuinely concerned, muttering things under their breath to their neighbours, but say nothing out loud.
“Is this all that you bring to this community?” raises the voice from the head of the table. “We give you our hospitality, share our food, and you disrespect us and demand more from us? You have no respect for the people sitting here trying to eat their meals in peace.”
Still standing, the black man and black woman respond, this time with more force: “We are hungry and tired. You invited us here to share in the meal as equals, yet we have received barely a meal to share. Do we not matter to you? Do our lives mean so little to you?”
“All lives matter, friends. The lives of everyone sitting around this table matters. Do you mean to argue that your lives matter more than ours? We all share the same food. You have the same as us, it’s not our fault if you don’t take advantage of the opportunities we bring you. Next time don’t arrive so late or sit so far away.”
“These are the seats you gave to us! We only have the food you make available to us! It may all be the same but you cannot say we all have the same when your plates are piled high and ours are empty.”
“Perhaps you should have taken better care of what you had. Very well, since you are so upset, I will ask the other guests whether they would be willing to give up more of their own food for you. But I warn you, do not continue to disrespect our guests with your interruptions. Stop making a scene and sit down.”
As promised, the head of the table asks reluctantly for other guests to donate food from their plates for the black man and black woman at the end of the table. A second plate of food makes its way down the table, handed from one guest to another, some adding items, some removing them as the plate is passed along until it reaches the end of the table.
“There; you have what you asked for. Now let that be the end of it.” Booms the irritated voice from the head of the table. “Any further disruption and I will ask our uniformed guests to keep the peace. Now let these good folks eat in their meals without interruption.”
The black man and black woman look down in disappointment at the donated food that sits in front of them. Disappointment transforms to anger. They have assumed good-intentioned mistakes of their hosts, made polite requests and finally respectfully and insistently made their case for a fair share of the meal. In return they had been met with anger, derision and scorn.
Their anger and rage rises; filling their hearts and bodies with righteous power. “We will not sit-down and be told any-longer; we see what this is now! We matter, as much as anyone else at this table and we demand to be recognised and treated as equals.”
The grey-haired, white man at the head of the table stands. In one hand he holds a bible, in the other, a flag. “My follow guests, are you going to allow such disruption and disrespect to continue?” With a practised wave of his hand, he signals to the uniformed men and women around the table. They understand their role, rolling-up their sleeves. “If you’re going to act like criminals, we will treat you like criminals.”
The black man and black woman stand their ground, joined by just a few others who had remained quiet throughout the meal. They are outnumbered but there is no-longer a choice.
If you are reading this and thinking “what has this got to do with business or management?” my answer is that it has everything to do with business and management. If you don’t believe me, carry out a PESTLE analysis, look at the headlines, or read the Financial Times.
If you don’t believe what’s in here, do some simple research, at the very least read the Smithsonian Magazine webpage on 158 resources to understand racism in America, or the Wikipedia page on Racism in the United States and look at the over 450 sources of evidence on the historic and contemporary racism in the USA.
References
- Bulan, M. 2017, Racial inequality in UK: The appalling reality of how a Briton’s ethnicity affects their chances of a good life, The Independent, UK, online at: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/racial-inequality-uk-racial-disparity-audit-government-report-theresa-may-bme-black-ethnic-minority-a7992016.html (viewed 24/07/2020)
- UK Government, 2018, Health inequalities: reducing ethnic inequalities, UK Government, online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/health-inequalities-reducing-ethnic-inequalities (viewed 24/07/2020)
- Marmot, Sir Michael, 2010, Healthy Society, Healthy Lives – Strategic Review of Health Inequalities in England post 2010 (The Marmot Review), Institute of Health Equity, UK, available online: http://www.instituteofhealthequity.org/resources-reports/fair-society-healthy-lives-the-marmot-review/fair-society-healthy-lives-full-report-pdf.pdf
- Wikipedia, 2020, Racism in the United States, Wikipedia, available online at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racism_in_the_United_States (viewed 24/07/2020)
- Edwards, Frank; Esposito, Michael H.; Lee, Hedwig (July 19, 2018). “Risk of Police-Involved Death by Race/Ethnicity and Place, United States, 2012–2018”. American Journal of Public Health. 108 (9): e1–e8.
- Solly, M. 2020, 158 Resources to Understand Racism in America, The Smithsonian Magazine, USA, online: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/158-resources-understanding-systemic-racism-america-180975029/ (viewed 24/07/2020)
- Black Lives Matter, 2020, Black Lives Matter, website, US available at: https://blacklivesmatter.com/ (viewed 24/07/2020)
- Singh, A, 2020, COVID-19 is highlighting BAME inequality, and now is the time to act, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK, available online at: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/businessreview/2020/07/17/covid-19-is-highlighting-bame-inequality-and-now-is-the-time-to-act/ (viewed 24/07/2020)
- Public Health England, 2020, Beyond the data: Understanding the impact of COVID-19 on BAME groups, PHE Publications, UK, available online at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/892376/COVID_stakeholder_engagement_synthesis_beyond_the_data.pdf (viewed: 24/07/2020)
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