Self study
Updated
What Straight, White Guys Don’t Get About Diversity & Why
by Gregg Ward
What we don’t get about diversity is that American corporate culture is - at every level - the culture of the straight, white guy. From the railroad barons of the 19th century to the oil barons of the current one, the wealthiest, most powerful American corporations have always been dominated by straight, white males of western European origin. And our culture is one of fierce competitiveness, clubby, sports-centered machismo, and good-old-boy, golf course deal making. To claim otherwise would be laughable.
What we don’t get about diversity is that American corporate culture is - at every level - the culture of the straight, white guy. From the railroad barons of the 19th century to the oil barons of the current one, the wealthiest, most powerful American corporations have always been dominated by straight, white males of western European origin. And our culture is one of fierce competitiveness, clubby, sports-centered machismo, and good-old-boy, golf course deal making. To claim otherwise would be laughable.
Are there more women and people of color on corporate boards of directors than ever before? Sure, but at best, they’re pioneers a few brave, well-connected souls willing to stand out from the buttoned-down crowd. At worst, they are tokens; a select few who have been chosen by the powerful to make the board and by extension, the company, look like there’s a genuine commitment to diversity.
But we also don’t get that many white males are born into privilege and often escorted by dad or connections to a comfortable seat at the table. And for those of us who actually rose up through the ranks we don’t get that although we did work very, very hard - in many cases our gender, the color of our skin, and our heterosexual orientation were the unspoken deciding factors in our successes.
We think diversity is best handled by the folks in human resources; those warm and fuzzy types we pay to keep us out of trouble or clean up after us. We don't get that the vast majority of corporate leadership and their boards are made up of the same few white guys who share money and power only with a limited group of friends, many of whom are connected to each other through family, university, club and fraternity ties.
So, if we boil it all down, there are a lot of things about diversity that we straight, white guys don’t get, or at least don’t want to admit. I’m not saying we’re all racists or bigots – far from it. Most of the straight, white guys I know are good, decent men. But, that doesn’t mean we all get it about diversity; because we don’t. If we did, the leadership of our corporations would look very much different than they do. Clearly, I and my white brothers have a long, long way to go and much to learn about diversity.
Most women and people of color are afraid to talk about this reality too loudly because they’re not the ones in power, we are. They’re afraid of being labeled as angry or bitter or worse, not a team player. So, to paraphrase a cliché, it takes a white guy to know white guys and to speak the truth about who we are.
The sooner we straight, white men start getting it about ourselves, the sooner we can start getting down to business; to create inclusive work environments where diversity is really valued and leveraged. And when we finally get it and start doing these things, our companies will become far more successful than we ever thought possible.
This issue was produced by Priscila and Emerson, edited and published by Flávio Martins
2008