Everyone is white?

Nurses General Nursing

Published

I am posting this because I need some feedback. I work at a SW Florida hospital and well just like the title says, everyone is white lol. The entire executive team, all the board members, and to be honest, in a department with over 50 employees, I am the only minority. The hospital has this website where staff can post questions to upper management and then they post an answer. I am tempted to ask why the disparity however to be honest I am afraid that I will be terminated if I do so. Has anyone else experienced this kind of discrimination and if so did you speak up about it? Please don't ask me what hospital or what department as I have to be anonymous for fear of retribution.

Wow, there's so much to unpack in this thread but I just wanted to pop in to say that being the only black person somewhere and being the only white person somewhere are NOT the same thing. (I'm white, btw.) It might feel uncomfortable to be the only white person for various reasons, but the history of racism and all the structures built and maintained to support racism just don't affect white people the same way they affect black people. I won't go into the more traumatic, graphic illustrations of that history because the black people reading this thread don't need to encounter that casually, but don't forget about the 750,000 white people who fought AGAINST freeing the slaves. Where in this nation's history did 750,000 black people all get together and decide whites deserved to be treated worse than cattle, and then fight and die for that? Hmm? And it's not just history. Generations of discrimination are alive and well today. It's just different. Don't conflate the two.

14 Votes
Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.
8 hours ago, autumn_blue said:

Wow, there's so much to unpack in this thread but I just wanted to pop in to say that being the only black person somewhere and being the only white person somewhere are NOT the same thing. (I'm white, btw.) It might feel uncomfortable to be the only white person for various reasons, but the history of racism and all the structures built and maintained to support racism just don't affect white people the same way they affect black people. I won't go into the more traumatic, graphic illustrations of that history because the black people reading this thread don't need to encounter that casually, but don't forget about the 750,000 white people who fought AGAINST freeing the slaves. Where in this nation's history did 750,000 black people all get together and decide whites deserved to be treated worse than cattle, and then fight and die for that? Hmm? And it's not just history. Generations of discrimination are alive and well today. It's just different. Don't conflate the two.

You stated very eloquently something I was thinking as I read through here.

5 Votes
12 hours ago, autumn_blue said:

Wow, there's so much to unpack in this thread but I just wanted to pop in to say that being the only black person somewhere and being the only white person somewhere are NOT the same thing. (I'm white, btw.) It might feel uncomfortable to be the only white person for various reasons, but the history of racism and all the structures built and maintained to support racism just don't affect white people the same way they affect black people. I won't go into the more traumatic, graphic illustrations of that history because the black people reading this thread don't need to encounter that casually, but don't forget about the 750,000 white people who fought AGAINST freeing the slaves. Where in this nation's history did 750,000 black people all get together and decide whites deserved to be treated worse than cattle, and then fight and die for that? Hmm? And it's not just history. Generations of discrimination are alive and well today. It's just different. Don't conflate the two.

As a minority myself I find the thought of qualifying the severity of racism for one group versus another (while the intention may be good) to be essentially wrongheaded and dangerous at best.

Racism, regardless of individual impact or historical rationale, is wrong and should never be accepted or qualified.

This is like those people who say that women who wear skirts deserve to be raped more than those who wear more modest clothing. Rape is rape. Racism is racism.

10 Votes
On 8/26/2019 at 7:21 AM, Snatchedwig said:

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As odd as it sounds, there is an actual rationale for this. Now the United States is not the least racist nor do the circumstances that impact the United States are unique.

The United States, and a number of other countries, is not ethnically or racially homogeneous so there is not really an ethnic or racial identity. Now there are many countries, most in fact, do have a somewhat homogeneous population so the national identity tends to mix and merge with that ethnic or racial identity.

An example of an ethnically and racially homogeneous country is Japan. Now they of course have non-racial an non-ethnic Japanese but by and large the national identify is closely tied to their racial and ethnic identity.

This in and of itself is not bad, it is just a part of being ethnocentric like we all are naturally. That being said, "racism" as we coin it in the western societies tends to be more prominent in some ways not because of a particular issue with a race per say but because their national identity is tied to their race and there tends to be a natural pull-through with normal nationalism or patriotism.

In the west we see genocides as an inherent evil process, which it is, but due to the often racial and ethnic homogeneous identities being tied to national identities the social dynamics can be complex. The homogeneous group will tend to push out and attack "other" not purely from a racial or ethnic position but rather from a national patriotic position. They are not killing a racial or ethnic group, they are engaging in legitimate (self-perceived) warfare with a competitive state.

Racism tends to be the norm in non-western (and sometimes western) homogeneous populations.

2 Votes

Just a reminder, OP. Discrimination works both directions.

You are pre-judging the whites - assuming they are racists and strive to keep things as they are because of race.

Appearances can be deceiving. Things are not always what they appear to be.

I would not send any messages to the bosses, as it will only make them look askance at you, as many people here have told you.

Work instead on your skills, knowledge, experience. Be perfect in attendance and punctuality. Help your coworkers without being obsequious. Be a person who other people like. Look for opportunities to very subtly and gently educate your coworkers. And I do mean subtlety and gently. Quietly lead, quietly respect yourself and you will gain their trust and respect.

Find others of your same race, background to get hired there. I know it's awkward being the only. We all like to have companions who we believe are like us, who understand us. In the meantime, make some new friends. Bring in some food for your shift - just something like cookies, fruit, or bagels, just to share with them and let them know you like them and appreciate them. Many of them have troubles at home or whatever. They, just like you, need a word or gesture of encouragement. Be the change you want to see. Model it, start it. Very kindly. To have a friend, be a friend.

Perhaps you could invite someone who is reasonably friendly at work to meet you for a cup of coffee sometime. Don't take it badly if they say they are busy. They likely are - kids, appointments, you know. Or they might be super shy. Perhaps they want to reach out, but are afraid. You could well be not the only person feeling alone and awkward.

And who knows - an opening might come for you to advance, too. Somebody has to be the first. Jackie Robinson, Rosa Parks, Thurgood Marshall, many others.

to the person who called whites "pasty". That is not polite. Racism does work both ways.

10 Votes
Specializes in MCH,NICU,NNsy,Educ,Village Nursing.
5 hours ago, Kooky Korky said:

Just a reminder, OP. Discrimination works both directions.

You are pre-judging the whites - assuming they are racists and strive to keep things as they are because of race.

Appearances can be deceiving. Things are not always what they appear to be.

I would not send any messages to the bosses, as it will only make them look askance at you, as many people here have told you.

Work instead on your skills, knowledge, experience. Be perfect in attendance and punctuality. Help your coworkers without being obsequious. Be a person who other people like. Look for opportunities to very subtly and gently educate your coworkers. And I do mean subtlety and gently. Quietly lead, quietly respect yourself and you will gain their trust and respect.

Find others of your same race, background to get hired there. I know it's awkward being the only. We all like to have companions who we believe are like us, who understand us. In the meantime, make some new friends. Bring in some food for your shift - just something like cookies, fruit, or bagels, just to share with them and let them know you like them and appreciate them. Many of them have troubles at home or whatever. They, just like you, need a word or gesture of encouragement. Be the change you want to see. Model it, start it. Very kindly. To have a friend, be a friend.

Perhaps you could invite someone who is reasonably friendly at work to meet you for a cup of coffee sometime. Don't take it badly if they say they are busy. They likely are - kids, appointments, you know. Or they might be super shy. Perhaps they want to reach out, but are afraid. You could well be not the only person feeling alone and awkward.

And who knows - an opening might come for you to advance, too. Somebody has to be the first. Jackie Robinson, Rosa Parks, Thurgood Marshall, many others.

to the person who called whites "pasty". That is not polite. Racism does work both ways.

Yes to all of this. And, the term "pasty" is offensive to some, and is indeed, impolite.

4 Votes
Specializes in Dialysis.
7 hours ago, Kooky Korky said:

Just a reminder, OP. Discrimination works both directions.

You are pre-judging the whites - assuming they are racists and strive to keep things as they are because of race.

Appearances can be deceiving. Things are not always what they appear to be.

I would not send any messages to the bosses, as it will only make them look askance at you, as many people here have told you.

Work instead on your skills, knowledge, experience. Be perfect in attendance and punctuality. Help your coworkers without being obsequious. Be a person who other people like. Look for opportunities to very subtly and gently educate your coworkers. And I do mean subtlety and gently. Quietly lead, quietly respect yourself and you will gain their trust and respect.

Find others of your same race, background to get hired there. I know it's awkward being the only. We all like to have companions who we believe are like us, who understand us. In the meantime, make some new friends. Bring in some food for your shift - just something like cookies, fruit, or bagels, just to share with them and let them know you like them and appreciate them. Many of them have troubles at home or whatever. They, just like you, need a word or gesture of encouragement. Be the change you want to see. Model it, start it. Very kindly. To have a friend, be a friend.

Perhaps you could invite someone who is reasonably friendly at work to meet you for a cup of coffee sometime. Don't take it badly if they say they are busy. They likely are - kids, appointments, you know. Or they might be super shy. Perhaps they want to reach out, but are afraid. You could well be not the only person feeling alone and awkward.

And who knows - an opening might come for you to advance, too. Somebody has to be the first. Jackie Robinson, Rosa Parks, Thurgood Marshall, many others.

to the person who called whites "pasty". That is not polite. Racism does work both ways.

I wish that I could ❤️ this 1000x!

4 Votes
Specializes in Medical Surgical, Postpartum, Derm/Allergy, Hemonc.

The hospital i currently work at are now hiring more AA in specialty areas. My unit had a total of two AA. Since merging with another hospital they have five AA. It’s no big deal to be the only non white person . But, it is a big deal to work with people who don’t display teamwork or talk about you if you make a mistake instead of helping .

4 Votes
On 8/21/2019 at 12:41 PM, Asystole RN said:

"White" is a pretty loose term. I am a minority who currently lives in a Caucasian dominated area of the country but there are strong European roots. There are Germans, Norwegians, and some Irish. They take offense if they are pooled together because there are distinct cultural and heritage differences.

I used to work in an area where there were a lot of Africans. The Africans HATED the term African American because they generally only thought those who are from or who still hold cultural ties to Africa should be called "African American." The Dominicans I worked hated being called African American because they were Dominican.

Point is, painting a broad brush of "white" and assuming cultural or ethnic homogeneity is close to the same racism you fear.

Look beyond the color of someone's skin and see them for the unique ethnocentric person they are.

This is a good point. I work with people from Lithuania, the Ukraine, South Africa, Mexico, Philippines, and America. A mostly-broad-brush of "White" could be painted, over our facility. The Mexican lady is white-skinned, as is the South African and Native American. They are a minority, in their own right. You wouldn't know their ethnicity unless they told you due to their skin color.

3 Votes
Specializes in 8 years Telemetry/Med Surg, 5 years Stepdown/PCU.

I completely understand where you are coming from. In upper management at my place of employment, there is no diversity at all!

Specializes in Transitional Nursing.

Just wanted to say that where I live there are lots of areas where that would be quite normal, mostly because the population happens to be like 95% white.

1 Votes
On 8/27/2019 at 11:25 AM, Asystole RN said:

As odd as it sounds, there is an actual rationale for this. Now the United States is not the least racist nor do the circumstances that impact the United States are unique.

The United States, and a number of other countries, is not ethnically or racially homogeneous so there is not really an ethnic or racial identity. Now there are many countries, most in fact, do have a somewhat homogeneous population so the national identity tends to mix and merge with that ethnic or racial identity.

An example of an ethnically and racially homogeneous country is Japan. Now they of course have non-racial an non-ethnic Japanese but by and large the national identify is closely tied to their racial and ethnic identity.

This in and of itself is not bad, it is just a part of being ethnocentric like we all are naturally. That being said, "racism" as we coin it in the western societies tends to be more prominent in some ways not because of a particular issue with a race per say but because their national identity is tied to their race and there tends to be a natural pull-through with normal nationalism or patriotism.

In the west we see genocides as an inherent evil process, which it is, but due to the often racial and ethnic homogeneous identities being tied to national identities the social dynamics can be complex. The homogeneous group will tend to push out and attack "other" not purely from a racial or ethnic position but rather from a national patriotic position. They are not killing a racial or ethnic group, they are engaging in legitimate (self-perceived) warfare with a competitive state.

Racism tends to be the norm in non-western (and sometimes western) homogeneous populations.

I tried to not reply to this thread because there's a lot of dismissiveness and whataboutism going on. Some people truly don't understand what it's like to face micro and macro aggression on a daily basis, and some don't want to understand. Some simply can't relate or process how it occurs or don't care because they're guilty of it themselves. Fine, whatever.

But did you just really make a whole post validating racism? There is nothing to validate racism, nothing! There is no rationale. And to say it's "from a national patriotic position" is pure ignorance. As a Black Native I'm offended. My people were murdered in record numbers on their own land and it's still being stolen, not to mention the broken treaties, and here you are excusing racism with the lie of patriotism. Really? Please just stop.

1 Votes
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