Feeling like you have to leave your true Self at the door when arriving at the office? In today’s episode, I am excited to speak with Dr. Kumea Shorter-Gooden about how Black women shift to respond to and cope with racial and gender bias in the workplace. Dr. Shorter-Gooden is a clinical/community psychologist with a focus on African American women, identity, and psychotherapy in diverse populations. She is also the co-author of the captivating book, Shifting: The Double Lives of Black Women in America. 

Topics Covered:

• Her experience integrating an all girls school in the South
• Intersection of race and gender in shaping Black women’s experiences
• How Black women shift to respond to and cope with racial and gender bias
• Dispelling myths about Black women 
• How stereotypes impact our work relationships
• Leadership as a Black woman professional
• Naming discrimination, bias, power, and privilege
• Assimilation and authenticity in the workplace

Highlights:

• “The problem with stereotypes is that they narrow our range of being. They narrow the parameters of our lives if we take them in.” 
• “We can’t always be strong. This is a myth. We can’t hold up the world singlehandedly. And to do that means to sacrifice a lot internally in terms of our emotional health and our mental health.”
• “As a Black person, you know a lot about white culture. And yet, people from dominant groups don’t have to know much about us. It’s really important for people from dominant groups to hear from and know how people from marginalized groups shift.”

Connect with Kumea: 

On her website: https://www.shorter-goodenconsulting.com/ 

E-mail: kumea@shorter-goodenconsulting.com 

Other References: 

• @CharisseJones
•  #metoomvmt

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