“The Unwritten Rules” The Perils of Being Black in an All White Workplace

April 26th, 2012 - By Veronica Wells

 

Being one of a few, if not the only black person, at your job can be everything from annoying to straight up stressful. This is nothing new. If you’ve grown up in diverse environments, you know just how ignorant people can be when it comes to communicating with people of color. Actress, Kim Williams, feels our pain. Which is why she’s created a new webseries called, The Unwritten Rules. The series, humorously explores the challenges (specifically ignorane and stereotypes) an African American woman faces in a predominately white work place. She recently debuted her first episode.

Check it out and let us know if you can relate…


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  • Rmn18queen

    LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT!!

  • anon

    This is awesome. I love it.

  • Daisy

    I have dealt with aaaallll of this!! And let’s not forget the sh*t you have to deal with when you are the black overseeing whites. 

  • Rsdgilbert

    Wow, Oh yeah, been there, done that!  Can’t wait for the next “episode”!!!

  • Cchigbu23

    I have been accused of stealing at two of my work places and ne place I worked (This was in London, England) my assistant manager told me that my hours had been cut because I was black. (A formal case unsued.

  • jlmc3586

    Try being the only black employee in the whole town. I’m a new teacher in a specialty field, yet they keep setting me up with what I like to call a “babysittting” class with all the hellians they could find in the school. I think they expect me to get ghetto on these kids and either keep them in line since nobody else wants them or to screw up so they can fire me. Maybe I missed the Plantation Mammy seminar that’s supposed to make me be able to get these partially priviledged, country white kids (who are basically 10-12 years younger than me) to listen to someone they’ve been taught was an idiot or prostitute all their lives. Or maybe I should show up in afro puffs and bib overalls, teaching Spanish while my English sounds like I’m a runaway slave . . .

  • Sunnrise83

    LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT! As someone who has always been put in that same position, on nearly every job i have ever worked including the present…. i will be a loyal fan of this web series. She hit it on the nail!!!

  • Queen K

    Thumbs up! That was very good. Funny. It was on point. Unfortunately, a lot more subtle in most environments, which makes it really dangerous to navigate. This webseries should do very well!! I will keep watching.

  • MixedUpInVegas

    Witty, clever and a little touchy.  Been the “only one” at a job or two, but chose not to take anything too personally.  Eventually my being “different” seemed to melt away.

    It will be interesting to see where the author goes with this.

  • Aud2B

    this is great. I like this one, along with my favorite web series “the misadventures of awkward black girl”. What’s the website where I can follow the series?

  • ILOVEMICHELLEOBAMA

    YES! I Can relate! I have the exact same boss as she does but mine is black, yes..I have am a black woman with a black boss that acts like that.  I hope the web series delves into some deeper issues like when the discrimination comes from your own kind.  I grew up in a diverse town and my manager grew up in a majority black area so now that she is around white people, she seems to idolize them..doesn’t even know how to act. She goes out of her way to put my white counterpart on a pedestal while giving me subtle digs about not knowing how to do my job. It is so obvious, even my co-worker she loves so much notices it..so sad, this is a taboo reality in 2012. Love the webisode!

  • http://kimster-thatswhatshesaid.blogspot.com/ Kimster

    LOL! This is definitely my new favorite web series. This should be mainstreaming on TV! I can’t wait for day 2. She is so right; it’s doubly hard when there are also comments about your body size and subsequent “soul food” eating habits. SMH.

  • Sweets

    Love it already! I’m in the same situation!

  • FromUR2UB

    Hey, no one should feel ashamed for having gone to school on scholarship, especially a full ride.  They’re not passing those out on the corner; you have to earn them.  You shouldn’t let people throw cold water on the good things in your life.  Accept the dig as an unintentional compliment, like when someone comments on fake boobs that are actually real, or a weave that is someone’s real hair.  Some of the best kinds of compliments begin as the insult that was supposed to tear you down, but instead, elevates you.  That really makes ‘em mad!

    • L-Boogie

      That is a good advice!

  • L-Boogie

    LOL!

  • http://profile.yahoo.com/HB2EZDGOE26ZXUUUH666QOL2ZQ Lola

    That is hilarious!! Being an “oreo” and the only black woman at my place of employment, I can appreciate the series. By the way, I hate the term “oreo”; just because I believe in proper grammar does not negate my blackness in any way. People should enlightened themselves to the fact that poor grammar is not the preserve of black people alone. That is all.

  • One & Only

    That is great!!! I”m loving the series already! Being the only one is interesting…

    • Candacey Doris

       Interesting is an understatement. 

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