One of the senior leaders of my university asked us (a room full of black scholars) for advice on how they could improve diversity at the institution without lowering the university's high academic standards.
Stories
During an annual appraisal, I disclosed that I was pregnant and will be off for 2 terms (Sept - March). My line manager (white, male, prof) then put aside the appraisal form and said 'then there's no need to do one'. There was no appraisal submitted and when it come to the next round of appraisals, I was asked why I hadn't done one (he had gone by then). That next line manager (white, female, prof) then told me that I should be 'lucky' that I have a husband (ie, not a single mother) and how I should be kind (I WAS kind/nice/normal) to a colleague who had 'no support' (because she was a single mother). I'm not sure why that was even mentioned because I was friendly with that colleague and there was no 'beef' between us. That was when I found out that line manager was herself a 'single mother' - perhaps that was my problem, that I wasn't a 'single mother'.
I was chosen to attend an external development programme for Ethnic Minorities leaders (or emerging leaders). I am not black but I am from an ethnic minority. It was funded by my institution and we had to go through an application process. I was pleased to have been chosen. When I got there, within the first meeting, I was informed that I was 'not black enough' (I never claimed to be black).
Black staff and students are often profiled on entry to my department and asked by the front of house staff to show ID. The white staff and students have never been asked to do this.
I was lecturing on my optional module, and was being observed for teaching peer review by my director of learning and teaching. The review form, when shared, contained only one comment which read “generally competent but how any students tolerate that accent all term is baffling”. There was nothing else in the comment box. I’d always been proud of being a northern lass with northern roots until I read that comment.
I applied for a permanent position at my then institution while on a fixed term contract. It was my first academic job. The permanent position arose 6 months after I started. When I was not invited for interview, my Head of School told me I was “too young and impatient” and that “women like you need to earn their turn”. I left 12 weeks later.
When I was in my first month of my first academic job, still finishing my phd, the module chair of a large core module was discussing teaching splits with the module team (myself, a lecturer, and himself as a senior lecturer). When the meeting finished he wrapped up by asking for a word with my colleague. As I left the room, the module chair asked if my colleague was ok with the lecture split in the allocation because, as module chair, he was conscious that not all of the staff delivering lectures had the “right gravitas” for lecturing on his module. I was the only other staff member lecturing, and the only woman.
My department generally feels like a safe space for queer folks. There are multiple out queer members of staff at various levels of seniority, and we have a pride flag hanging in the hallway. I am a queer woman, and I feel Much more comfortable being out there than I have in previous institutions. But in the first year of my PhD, my supervisor (an older, straight white man) dropped multiple hints about having “good gaydar” and at some point said to my face that he “didn’t think I was gay.”
When I started in my PhD I was the only woman in my laboratory. Mostly, it was fine, especially as one of the post-docs went out of his way to be an ally. But there were still some uncomfortable moments; for instance, one time I came a few minutes late to lab meeting and everyone else (all men) were discussing/joking about porn star names.
I have an autoimmune condition and everyone treated me like I was weird for masking during COVID. When my university decided to make us return to in-person teaching, my "risk assessment" consisted of a discussion with my head of department informing me that we were all returning to in-person teaching and that I should just sign the form.
One of my colleagues regularly looks at my chest when he’s talking to me.
I was organising a conference in my department, and it was very well known that I was junior, had recently joined the university, and was organising in a purely administrative capacity. When a colleague's abstract wasn't selected by the scientific committee, they sent me a really horrible email attacking my credibility, and began telling other people in the department that they had a personal issue with me. I felt really upset and scared to go into work for weeks after.
I was told at a conference that I wasn’t ‘qualified’ to speak about race in academia because I’m mixed race and ‘not black enough’
One of my senior male colleagues made a joke in the office that made assumptions about my sex life and use of birth control.
When I arrived at my now-university to start my PhD, I was the only Black person in the room at my induction. As I was looking for somewhere to sit I heard another student say they had mentioned decolonial methodologies in their proposal because “it’s the only way anyone gets funding”. I immediately felt like I had made a massive mistake and would be looked at like a diversity hire for the next three years.