‘They don’t really want me to have a voice’: Black women in PR say they feel isolated, held to different standards from their colleagues

By Kristina Monllos

Lisa (her name has been changed for this story to protect her anonymity) has dealt with “a degree of toxicity” at every agency she’s ever worked. As a Black public relations executive who has worked at major PR firms as well as inside ad agencies, Lisa has felt isolated and taken note of how she’s often held to different standards than that of her white colleagues.

“It’s really hard to thrive in those environments when there’s no one who will take you under their wing, show you the ropes and mentor you,” said Lisa of the isolation she’s felt throughout her career, adding that she’s witnessed executives mentor and befriend her white coworkers, inviting them over for the weekend or on vacation. “I’ve never had those experiences and it is hard.”

Without that mentorship, Lisa has felt isolated throughout her career in PR and believes she has not been given the same opportunities as her white colleagues even when she’s performing at the same level or better. She’s not alone in that feeling and observation. Digiday spoke with five Black women in public relations — one interview was previously published as part of our Confessions series — who say they’ve felt the same throughout their careers and believe that PR agencies need to reexamine internal culture as well as their hiring practices to become more inclusive.

“Diversity, equity and inclusion efforts are happening in advertising but it has not really been addressed at the PR level,” said a Black PR exec who requested anonymity. Throughout her career, the exec has dealt with biases and prejudices about who she is as a person as well as her ability to work on specific accounts based on her race.

“Working at PR agencies, I got a major education in code switching and I got a major education in being a ‘token,’” said the exec. “I don’t think I realized that I was a ‘token’ until I got deeper into my career. Then it was like, ‘Oh, they want me to have a seat at the table because it makes the table look better, but they don’t really want me to have a voice.’ And when they do want me to have a voice it’s only related to Black initiative, or for Black brands, Black companies, Black products, because I think the perception was, ‘Oh, she’s Black. She must know this stuff.’”

The exec also noted that when working on Black brands for PR agencies, she has often been left to handle a major account with little to no help from her white colleagues. Without the resources necessary for the size of the account, she’s felt overwhelmed, left to manage an unreasonable workload and realized she’s held to different standards than her white colleagues. When that’s been the case, finding a way to ask for the resources and help needed has also been a difficult task.

“[Sometimes you’re] not able to stand up for yourself because you don’t want to be seen …read more

Source:: Digiday