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As the fight for racial equality and representation finally finds some consistency, we need to be very honest about what progress entails, because what I’m seeing is quickly becoming performative. Amplifying the voice of one or two people of color does not constitute diversity or inclusion — it is tokenism. You may think you are an ally, but what you’re doing is more harmful than you know.

As defined by Oxford, “Tokenism is the practice of making only a perfunctory or symbolic effort to do a particular thing, especially by recruiting a small number of people from underrepresented groups in order to give the appearance of sexual or racial equality within a workforce.”

Tokenism is the concept that companies and institutions hire and admit Black people to convey the illusion of diversity and inclusion. More often than not, we are undervalued. Our ideas are second guessed because we are not there for our minds, we are there for our melanin. Decoration for a narrative. A tool used to atone for decades of segregation and white guilt.

Tokenism — whether it be in the workplace, in schools or in everyday life — negatively impacts the Black community and the individual. These environments create a subconscious expectation, using an identity of the one to map out the potential of the many. All Black people can not succeed if they work hard, there are plenty of systems in place to prevent that. When the rooms only contain one or two of us, we are competing within our own communities because you’ll only allow a few, regardless of our talent.

How can we thrive when we don't see anyone around who looks like us? How can we not question if we're there because of our accomplishments or simply to check a box? We are not rarities, so there is no reason that tokenism should be so commonplace. Color should not be sparse.

I know it may seem as though we are making huge strides, but they are not good enough. Whether it be in politics, corporate arenas, the beauty industry or television, we have been fighting for so long that when we see someone who looks like us win and make it into the room, we applaud, we let out a sigh of relief. We are overjoyed because we did the work to achieve diversity where there wasn’t before.

What we don’t hear over our cheers, is the slam of the door behind them. A golden ticket we won’t see again for who knows how long because they never want the room to be “too Black.” Our presence is used to meet a quota and to keep us quiet. The triumph will be used to distract us from how much harder they will make it for it to happen again.

It’s 2020 and we are seeing a lot of “first Black woman,” “first Black man” and “first person of color” headlines. Things are not as progressive as we thought. When we narrowly escape the systems meant to keep us in poverty, closing the gap of inequality — whether it be by circumstance or hard work — does not equate to racial equity. It comes with a whole new set of subtle obstacles. Fighting a war within, we constantly struggle between feeling like imposters, feeling like sellouts and feeling like the identity of an entire race falls on the impressions we make on our coworkers. We often have to tread lightly because we know why we are there, rarely having the chance to hold the door open and usher in other fully capable BIPOC with us because we are seldom given that power.

I no longer want to hear about intent when the impact is divisive. I no longer want to see warm messages of ally-ship and solidarity, because we need more. We need gladiators. Pursuing racial equality will take more than an Instagram post and your promises to do better. Action is imperative to seeing tangible change. If you work somewhere with only one or two people of color, you need to inquire as to why. If you don’t have BIPOC friends, you need to self-reflect and ask yourself why. Your sister is a photographer, but only photographs and posts white faces, you need to ask her why. The brands you follow have zero representation, you need to publicly ask them why.

Self-reflection is the only way to address subconscious biases, and demanding accountability in every aspect of your life is the only way to dismantle racism in the world. The time for walking on eggshells is over. We are not tokens. We are not instruments used to tell the world your spaces aren't racist, because your spaces weren't built to include us to begin with, and there is an invisible “limited capacity for Black people” sign posted on the door.

Chelsie DeSouza

Writing since February 2022 · 1 story contributed