The Missing Piece - This One Goes Out to All the Antiracism Advocates
Sep 09, 2022
The no. 1 element antiracism advocates in the workplace underestimate…
Tell me in a song lyric.
“Get up Stand up, stand up for your rights” Bob Marley?
“Don’t Touch my Hair.” Solange?
“Free your Mind” Envogue?
No, okay, forget the songs. Try again.
Dr. Shola Mos-Shogbamimu? Ibram X Kendi? John Amaechi?
Come on, I’m rooting for you. Try again.
LinkedIn? Guardian? The OBV website?
Okay, come back this way, you’re heading way out the dancehall.
Let’s keep things very real. You know more about race, racism at the workplace, microaggressions, unconscious bias, and diversity and inclusion at work than most people. You live and breathe it. As soon as you discover a new angle, Amazon Prime is on your doorstep with the latest book filled with golden knowledge nuggets.But you have forgotten something.
But you’ve forgotten something.
Before I get into that, allow me to share a personal story for context, a story that shaped the way I approach equity, diversity, and inclusion today.
I started out delivering cultural awareness sessions (long before unconscious bias training became a buzzword) to primary school teachers. Even mentioning the “R” word racism was beyond taboo, so we took the scenic route, talking about “culture” and “cultural clashes.”

One session, I shared that as humans, we all pre-judge, yes, the foundations of unconscious bias. This idea was so horrifying to one teacher that she leapt up in rage, insisting she didn’t judge anyone and never would. She later made a complaint about me, and I wasn’t invited back.
This was shocking and deeply traumatising. Up until then, I had been happy-go-lucky Rebbecca simply sharing researched material. Suddenly, I became the “problem,” the disruptor who dared to suggest that, as fallible humans, we might not treat everyone equally.
So, I left training, for about eight years.
Fast forward to 2020. George Floyd (rest peacefully). BLM protests. Black squares lighting up social media feeds. A global awakening. Suddenly, people remembered me. My inbox lit up with requests for anti-racism training, DEI training, inclusive leadership workshops, and equality-focused courses from white leaders of large organisations.
“Say what now?”
My eyes nearly fell out of my head.
Times had changed. People were finally (not everyone, but many) open to meaningful conversations about workplace inclusion diversity, systemic racism, and the subtle ways harm shows up through microaggressions.
I realised it was time to return. Hence why you see me going all in today, creating CPD-accredited courses that support genuine inclusion in the workplace, grounded in cultural humility and lived experience.
Are you following what I’m saying?
- Do you find you're constantly battling to be heard?
- Is race always squeezed out of the meeting for more “pressing issues”?
- Are you viewed as the moany disruptor because you dare to highlight how systems are failing ethnic minorities?Yet you still show up to work rapping Kendrick Lamar’s “We gon be alright.”, with a Colgate smile but a heavy frowning heart?
Yet you still show up to work rapping Kendrick Lamar’s “We gon' be alright,” with a Colgate smile but a heavy, frowning heart?
It doesn’t have to be this way. You can talk about race, be yourself, and be supported.
How? Place yourself in environments where you are:
CELEBRATED and not merely TOLERATED
(Thank you to the originator of that quote - I wish I knew who you were.)
I’m not saying everyone in the trenches needs to abandon the front lines. I’m saying that when it becomes too much, there is another way. There’s only so much calling out microaggressions, challenging inequitable policies, or explaining the racism definition for the hundredth time that one person can do. Some people are committed to not hearing you.
And experiencing the impact of systemic racism, especially if you’re an ethnic minority, is hard enough.
So what does this mean for you?
Imagine showing up to an inclusive workplace where your values and ideas are supported. Envision a company that genuinely champions anti-racism and invests in diversity and inclusion efforts at work. These workplaces exist , I’ve delivered training in many of them.
As Viola Davis says in Finding Me:
“…I found it. I found the party inside me. The celebration that needs to happen to combat the pain and trauma of memory. I found that there is no creating without using you.”
Exactly.
What Viola and I are saying, is…
Authenticity + a supportive environment = the freedom to create change.
That’s the formula.
When you’re in a workplace that values workplace inclusion diversity, your capacity to create meaningful change multiplies — and your mental well-being is protected.
Encouragement and celebration (of you) lead to a more fulfilling life.
Before you know it, Beyoncé’s Break My Soul will be your personal anthem.
“… I'm on that new vibration
I’m building my own foundation, yeah!”
(Okay, last song reference, I promise.)
Psychology expert Tony Robbins says that to change our outcomes, we must change our perception or our procedure.
Which is it going to be for you?
And if you need colleagues to further support you by developing their understanding of racism, enrol them in our CPD-accredited courses on anti-racism training, unconscious bias training, and Understanding Microaggressions - the subtle racism. These courses build the foundations of inclusive leadership and help organisations create meaningful and lasting equity, diversity, and inclusion.
I’m wishing you nothing but happiness, success, and a new hope-filled playlist for your journey.
Take care of you,
Rebbecca “your creating cultural harmony guide” Hemmings
Talking about racism can seem difficult and uncomfortable. This CPD accredited course provides a foundational education on racism to help to increase racial literacy which includes building confidence to speak about and deal with issues concerning race. It provides a language through which meaningful conversation can take place (particularly in the workplace).
Stay connected with news and updates!
Join our mailing list to receive the latest news and updates from our team.
Don't worry, your information will not be shared.
We hate SPAM. We will never sell your information, for any reason.