Starbucks Implicit Bias Training
The writer and associate professor of journalism at Temple University Lori L. Tharps lives in Philadelphia. She wrote about the recent Starbucks incident when two Black men were arrested.
She offers five easy steps for Starbucks to take if they really want to address race relations in a meaningful way. I read her piece in Beacon Broadside, a blog from Beacon Press, an independent publisher of serious non-fiction.
Lori Tharps, author of the recommendations for Starbucks
In her summary of what happened, she says, “the two men were arrested for “sitting while Black.” That’s a new phrase for me! We already know “driving while Black,” and many other variations.
Tharps says, “To break it down another way, the white manager of the Starbucks, who has been identified as Holly Hylton, picked up the phone and called in her white privilege to destroy the lives of two innocent Black men.”
She is glad that the CEO of Starbucks apologized. His requirement for employees to take an afternoon of training in “implicit bias” is a positive step. There will not be change overnight, she says, but it’s good that the phrase “implicit bias” gets spoken.
Her Suggestions, Better Than Implicit Bias Training
Her five steps? First, implement a “zero tolerance” policy. Any racist act will get an employee fired, right away. Post signs everywhere stating this, she suggests.
I love her second idea: “Give Back and Give Black: In order to show the Black community that you are truly remorseful for what happened on April 12 and to make that day meaningful in a positive instead of a negative way, reclaim April 12. From now on, April 12 should officially be known as Free Black Coffee Day, a day when Black people can get a free cup of coffee from Starbucks.”
Three, make an “implicit bias” test part of the hiring process. Anyone who shows excessive bias would not get hired. She adds as 3.5, test periodically.
Number four, diversity the staff. “Diversity works,” she says, it’s not just for show!
And the last is also really interesting – sell books! She notes that a few Starbucks stores are already stocking books (none that I know). Her recommendation which she says will also help their bottom line: sell a “curated collection of books by Black authors about Black life and culture that will help white people understand and appreciate Blackness on a higher level, and will help Black people feel like they are in a space that honors their identity.”
What do you think of her five recommendations?
Female Voting in Nigeria
Do you remember that a couple of weeks ago I asked for help in answering a question. The query, at one of my book talks, was, “Can and do women in northern Nigeria vote?” I offered a prize!
Buhari waves to the crowd at his insauguration
I heard nothing until May 29 when a reader provided a full picture of the situation.
“Any Nigerian citizen 18+ is allowed to vote (starting in 1979). Prior to this, only adult males and females in the East and West could vote. Despite the 1979 law, female voting rates in Northern Nigeria have historically been low. There are many cultural reasons for this, including in some cases having to take permission from a husband (or male guardian) to do so and a general apathy by mostly domesticated (this is changing) Northern women towards political participation. However, a high turnout of female voters was reported in the North – for Buhari’s election. This may have been driven by their husbands, who had vested interests in a Buhari win.
The writer provided two links to stories about voting by women in Nigeria. The first describes the large turnout of women in the 2015 election.
This link explains some obstacles to female voter participation in such places as Northern Nigeria. I only saw one example from Northern Nigeria, but the article was interesting. It was a response to a researcher asking about barriers to voting by women.
Today I mailed a signed copy of my memoir to the responder. Thank you, Manny, (or Nike or Ade) for answering the question!
Fltyin’ West, at Westport Country Playhouse
Flyin’ West
Tonight Clem and I saw the play Flyin’ West, by Pearl Cleage, at the Westport Country Playhouse. Clem said, “That’s one play I really enjoyed.”
I also liked the play a lot. It is set in the all-black town of Nicodemus, Kansas, in 1898. The older woman remembers her days in slavery, and having her children sold away!
This was – and is – a real town, though today it has few residents. At one point, according to notes in the program, there were more than 300.
The cast of Flyin’ West
The acting was brilliant, and the drama intense. A light-skinned Negro man, or Mulatto, as he was called, was married to a woman from the town. He frequently “passed,” though he said he just let people draw their own conclusions. He mistreated his darker Negro wife as became evident to her sisters.
The importance of land to the “colored women” as they called themselves, reminded me of the importance of land to West African men, as I write about in my second book.
The meaning of the land is different, but it is equally important in their identity. For the women in Kansas, it gave them freedom, a place of their own, where no one could tell them what to do or take away their babies.
If you’re nearby and have the chance, go see the play! It’s on until June 16.
