Black Men in Corporate America & the Periphery
By Nyles Pollonais
Preface
While discussing Dr. Ibram X. Kendi’s adaptation of Zora Neale Hurston’s ‘Barracoon’ for children, the realities of the Black western plight then and now became increasingly apparent. This man, Oluale Kossola (slave name: Cudjo Lewis), stolen from his homeland with poignant memories as a young Yoruba boy in Benin, as a teenage Dahomey captive, as Captain Bill Foster’s human cargo across the Atlantic, as an enslaved person in Alabama, to one of the founders of Africa Town, AL, and finally to becoming a “free man” in the United States under Jim Crow, all within his lifetime, rejoiced when Ms. Hurston came to take an account of his life.
“Thankee Jesus! Somebody come ast about Cudjo! I want tellee somebody who I is, so maybe dey go in de Afficky soil someday and callee my name and somebody dere say, ‘Yeah, I know Kossula.’ I want you everywhere you go to tell everybody whut Cudjo say, and how come I in Americky soil since de 1859 and never see my people no mo’. I can’t talkee plain, you unnerstand me, but I calls it word by word for you so it won’t be too crooked for you.” (Barracoon, 31)
Ever so honest, ever so real, I have never read an account of an enslaved person so comprehensive as to say that this person was present for all of the ills and political turmoil of the United States’ slave history — a voice for the voiceless captives throughout generations of trauma. Not even Olaudah Equiano could tell this story, and he was the only other account the general collective has.
As we wrapped the conversation about the book, Ms. Kimberely and Dr. Ibram began to talk among themselves as they answered pre-written questions from the audience. Like being slapped with a brick, the continuous lines of struggle, racism, and survival ripped through the current of the audience from Kossola’s distant past when Kimberly mentioned that her book, written sometime in the 2010s, was on a county’s ‘banned books list.’ My face twisted, almost as if to ask, are we not in the 2020s? Were we not in some present time where compassion, understanding, healing, revelation, and apology existed? Obviously not.
And, in my opinion, this is why detailing one’s story, today, is ever so important. It is almost like leaving a trace or a marker to say, “Yes, I was here, and I can tell you my experience. I have agency in my story. Remember me — for your existence is not arbitrary, it is the direct result of the historical lineage that placed you here. There is still more work to be done.”
Part 1: Black Men in Corporate America
11 days in, and on my day off, I was fired from my remote job. My mistake? I took the advice of a white colleague on how to handle a logistical issue with a team member I did not know.
I wrote an entire post looking for the vindication of public opinion, and I was let down. I reached out to my manager to discuss the situation to no avail. The recruiter called me shocked, wondering what could have gone wrong. I aced all three interviews and met the team in person in Orlando. Yet more importantly, she called for me to remove the post from my LinkedIn feed. She expressed concerns that it would make me unhireable in the future, her real concern being the image of the company she worked for. I asked, “What if you told the women who’d been assaulted by Harvey Weinstein in the #MeToo movement to rescind their testimonies because they’d never act in Hollywood again?” The difference about all of this is that I was a Black man, and not a white woman. I removed the post. (Post at the end of the article).
As I get older, more qualified, and more accustomed to this system that is corporate America, the more I recognize it is (almost) impossible for me to break through, and how much further I get from being able to access it as the days pass. This is after post-secondary degrees, certifications, independent projects, and a network spanning the world. I used to think it was because I hadn’t done enough, then it became that I had done too much, and ultimately it’s at the point where I recognize neither are the real issues. It’s a “culture” thing. “Culture fit is the idea of recruiting individuals whose value systems, beliefs, and everyday behaviors align well with the hiring organization's to help keep the culture intact. While this might seem reasonable and harmless, hiring decisions based on an individual's perception of culture fit can be unfair and influenced by unconscious bias” (Gallup).
See, I know the potential abundance and access of the corporate world. I was raised by a unicorn. My mother, the first in her immigrant family to reach a six-figure salary in the '90s as a university-educated single mother of two boys, demonstrated, and more importantly, gave me access to, a world separate from the stereotypical world of my color, culture, and background. She worked in legal technology right around the time of the dot-com boom. Homes, cars, clothes, and money — all attained through a regular day job. She worked hard — well aware of her three strikes: Black, young, and a woman — twice as hard for half as much. Coming from Guyana via East New York Brooklyn, this was truly an abnormal yet magnificent feat for a woman to accomplish. Trust me, I knew this world all too well. So, it comes as no shock that I’d assume that I would enter and do just as well if not better because of the position she put me in — attending the same university, receiving the same degree, another degree, certifications, fraternal connections, and more. Yet, nearly 25 years later when I’m ready to start my career, I find no such luck.
“Just try harder…”
“Just do more…”
“Have you applied here…?”
(After attaining a master's degree) “You need to be specialized…”
“Maybe you shouldn’t look for such a prestigious (insert uppity or siddity) job, just do this…?”
“Your problem is experience…”
(While working in the service industry) “With all your degrees why do you work here? Hahaha.”
“What if you start your own business?”
“Become a creative. Sell your art. Go here…”
“Have you reached out to your big-name Universities?”
“You’re too aggressive…”
I have rejected the idea that I have some sort of innate deficiency that is keeping me from accessing a stable career. I have rejected the idea that becoming specialized would solve the issue. I have rejected the idea that at the old age of 28, I have become overqualified for anything. I have rejected the idea that my independent projects, works, and art are seen as anything other than me being an independently motivated, socially attuned, and economically aware individual. I have rejected the idea that it is just the economy or the job market that is keeping me away from this step. I have rejected the idea that I am not intelligent or capable enough. I have rejected the idea that it is anything other than me and my Blackness at this point.
It has gotten to the point where I have made the conscious decision to remove my profile picture from my Linkedin account and every picture of me, even my beloved graduation photos. I have changed my email address to only the first letter of my first name and my full last name because it has a bit of racial ambiguity. I have changed my resume name to Nathan and my Linkedin name to “N’, and decided to reapply to every position in my industry and outside of it. This is my attempt to check the temperature of what is actually going on right now. How I feel about this action is heartbreaking, to say the least, yet it is my present reality. See, this is no longer just a social experiment, this is also my life or my death.
I don’t write this for sympathy nor to be on the top of someone’s DEI blog. I only mention these things because I have to let it out (ironically enough, it’s Black History Month). I know for certain, I am not the only Black person who has faced hardship in corporate America, nor will I be the last. I have not had it the worst either, nor have I fully endured the complexities of Black life behind the walls of the corporate kingdom. I simply look at where I am in 2024 and mention frankly that I am tired of trying, fighting, pushing for entry into something that clearly does not want me there. And, for those of you who have made it to this point wondering why I don’t start my own business, I leave you with this. “In total, U.S. Black founders raised an estimated $2.254 billion out of the $215.9 billion in U.S. venture capital allocated last year [2022]. That’s about 1%, a slight drop from the 1.3% raised in 2021” (TechCrunch). I won’t even begin to argue the points about the mathematical significance of the diversity of thought for complex problem solving because I’m just too damn tired.
The LinkedIn Post from 06/23 which I eventually deleted:
Part 2: The Periphery
I got some rest and decided to rethink my disillusionment, social standing, and current experiences...
Inspired by an interview with Toni Morrison, but specifically by a question she had for Ralph Ellison’s The Invisible Man, I had to ask myself — not her question to him — “Invisible to who?” Rather… Corporate for who?”
What does corporate America love and value more than white men?
Money.
At the end of the day, the ultimate goal of the capitalist nature of this system is to keep itself alive. And white men are most often seen as the givers of life for this system, when in fact, it is only their proximity to and historical hoarding of (interpret this as inheritance) the wealth of this country that has made them the gatekeepers for venture capital, culture fit, and access to the corporate side of its beating heart, along with all the systems derived from this structure. Understanding this, I was left to ask myself, if Black men cannot get into corporate America, can we get above, across, against, along, among, around, at, before, beside, between, by, near, off, on, to, or toward it?
Metaphorically, if the gates of the kingdom are guarded by a certain group who only allow a few people to enter, can we go to the side? Can we go above the walls? Can we dig tunnels underneath? What if we fly over and parachute in? See, the prize is not the guards, nor the kingdom. The prize is the prince$$. Logically, I’m suggesting that there may be another way to challenge the nature of this beast, and it is crucial that Black men, people of color, and all who want change, see this possibility and challenge themselves to refute feelings of despair in hopes of alternative measures of survival in this corporate/capitalist system.
What does this mean? Is this creating Black business, banks, and other entrepreneurial endeavors? Is this suggesting Black men demonstrate some sort of higher-level understanding of markets, economics, and wealth for entrance into these systems? Is this creating Black economic ecosystems that generate capital and focus it on other areas?
I don’t know. What I do know is this is no longer my mother’s era where white men can pick and choose Black people and make them unicorns. We have at our disposal disruptive technologies, access to previously unreachable Pan-African markets and communities, as well as access to capital and Black people in higher positions than we have ever had before in this country across the board. “Millionaires are made off TikTok.” Imagine trying to explain that to someone in 1998. Why then do we think the same ancient rules and barriers to entry exist in the same fashion as they once had?
What I do know is any system created by Black people will not only be for Black people but will dismantle and reject any systematic design that only favors and hires potential candidates based on their culture, color, or appearance. Its sole purpose will be to employ those whose vision, future plans, and work ethic align with the entrepreneurial endeavor at hand.
In our present day, paying meticulous attention to detail is the most crucial contribution we can make for the next generation. We are no longer merely contending with cultural challenges. Now, we are grappling with deeply embedded inequalities within the technology that automates corporate America. Before one can even be considered for culture fit, they must navigate the stringent tests of the applicant tracking system. With artificial intelligence assuming an increasingly prevalent role in healthcare, policing, research, etc. it is imperative that we not only serve as subjects of this technology but also act as its trainers and guides. Though I may not possess the answers to tomorrow's hypotheticals, one thing is clear: we cannot permit arbitrary corporate culture to dictate the rules of technology as we entrust our livelihoods to the unalive.
Epilogue
This exacerbates the already-existing problem of the corporate job hunt and hiring process American professionals are actively experiencing, despite unemployment being at a record low and a multitude of positions being open. The following anecdotal video from CNBC examines this overarching problem. And they haven’t even addressed the intersectionalities of job hunters yet…
Cover image by Ketut Subiyanto
Meet the Writer
Currently living in SWFL, Nyles A. Pollonais is a man of many titles who spends most of his time engaging in healthy living, creative expression, communications, education, liberation, and critical thought. He holds a Bachelors of Arts in Political Science from New York University and a Masters of Arts in The Design and Technology for Learning from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Nyles is a longtime contributor to Audacity Magazine & Events and our most read writer of 2021. He has recently released his first EP, Seasons, under the stage name First Amiri and is working on furthering his artistic endeavors through various mediums. Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Nyles is never shy to discuss his Caribbean heritage and New Yorker identity and he just might cook you something to eat. Check out his YouTube channel under the handle @nnnyles.
