The racism disconnect
- TAGS:African-Americans, racism
- IT TOPICS:Careers, Management
Two e-mails that I received in response to my most recent editorial about the race issue in IT, titled "Destructive Labels," highlight the disconnect that exists between people who have dramatically different outlooks with respect to racism.
The first e-mail came from a reader who holds the view that my columns on the subject, which have advocated a healthy discussion of the race issue in light of the experiences of many African-Americans in IT, "play into the hands of those too lazy to work for what they want" (lightly edited for readability):
"You have turned Computerworld into a piece of crap. Your columns reflect your own bigotry and pandering. I am sick and tired of hearing about African-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, etc. I am 50% Native American and 50% Irish, but I don't go around calling myself anything but an American. If they don't want to be anything but 100% Americans then maybe they should go somewhere else. I am also sick and tired of hearing about how bad they have it and how they are discriminated against. That is a reflection of the 'give me so I don't have to work for it' attitude. I heard Jesse Jackson bemoaning the fact that the number of blacks was decreasing in Major League Baseball, but he failed to say that the cause was that a lot of players of other races had better attitudes, were more cooperative, produced better and were willing to negotiate. How many black millionaires are there in basketball, football, baseball, Hollywood, etc.? You are so naive that you continue to play into the hands of those too lazy to work for what they want."
The second one came from Dr. Victor Onafuye, president of Pixel Information Technology Corp. in Homewood, Ill. (lightly edited for readability):
"I want to respond to your comment regarding racism and discrimination in IT. I can tell you from my over 20 years of experience in IT that racism is alive and well in IT. As an African-American IT worker, I have experienced first-hand and have seen racism in hiring black IT professionals for line jobs and especially middle- to upper-management positions. I have experienced and have seen discrimination in promotion of black IT professionals. Even in the areas of contracting for black IT companies, there is ample discrimination in getting business. I agree that we need to talk about these issues to solve them and make IT a better industry for all Americans."
Both e-mails are exemplary of other e-mails and online comments I've received from readers who hold these vastly divergent views. That the disconnect is so stark should make it obvious why an open, frank discussion of racism in the IT profession is so vital.
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