Written by It is time for leaders in all organisations to move away from the sound bites and token gestures and take some serious action. Three recent and shameful episodes in English football highlight the fact that racism in the UK is still alive and kicking. The first, and most concerning, was the deluge of racial abuse that was directed at Marcus Rashford on social media after Manchester United lost to Villareal in the Europa League Final in May. This young man has done more than most young people in the UK to address inequality and yet he has to suffer this disgraceful behaviour from so called football fans – they are not!
The second two episodes relate to the booing of players ‘Taking the Knee’ (TTK) at the FA Cup Final in May and England’s friendly international match against Austria in June. Unfortunately, when mere sound bites associated with ‘Black Lives Matter’ (BLM) are used with token gestures, like TTK, the inaction of organisational and political leaders is masked. Their wilful blindness is hidden beneath a cloak of apathy and it is time that they start to look much harder at themselves – that is, if we are to emerge from this toxic poison in our society. Whilst the booing is mainly directed towards an extreme left wing political party and not the act of kneeling itself, the effect nevertheless is to diffuse what we should all be against – deeply embedded racism in our society.
In my early career working for the General Post Office in the 1960s the vast majority of engineers and managers were white and male. There were signs prominently displayed in local boarding houses – ‘No Blacks or Irish.’ Popular comedians made their fortunes telling racially motivated jokes about anybody who was not English. When I left employment thirty five years later all of that overt stupidity had gone. However, covert elements of racism still exist and it is the responsibility of leaders from all sections of society to recognise it and to do something about it. It has taken sporting leaders here in the UK 53 years to recognise our first female black Olympian.
Anita Neil was Britain’s first black female athlete to represent her country at the 1968 and 1972 Olympic Games. She was only 16 years of age at the time but who remembers the name now? Anita wanted to carry on and compete at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games but lack of interest and follow up from sporting leaders denied her the opportunity. She said: “Nobody chased me up and I disappeared into oblivion.” There have been dramatic improvements within most sports, without a doubt, but there is still a lot more that leaders can do if we are to eradicate this social disease.
Leaders in all organisations need to recognise that it is not just the operational responsibilities they have that are important. They also have a moral obligation to ensure all their stakeholders feel at home and are treated equally. Cultures are established top down and not bottom up. If the corporate culture is toxic it is more likely that the organisational culture will follow the lead. Toxic leaders tend to recruit others that align with their value system and beliefs, hence a team of toxic followers becomes inevitable. Great leaders ensure that there is a golden moral thread that runs through corporate, organisational and personal cultures.
All decisions made by the leadership should be from behind a veil of ignorance as advocated by John Rawls. It is not enough to conduct educational workshops on diversity and inclusivity, leaders have to lead by example – they have to be active in the process. The veil offers a range of useful reflective questions for leaders: ‘How would I feel about this if I was black?…Would I feel at home here if I was gay?…” and so on. It is also important for leaders to follow the brave example of Marcus Rashford and call out these behaviours from wherever they emerge.
Changing culture is the most challenging project for any leader to undertake and one that cannot be avoided – the buck stops at the top. Creating a culture to be proud of requires a leader to address belief and value systems reflected in how people behave and what they say. Factors that affect culture derive out of telling stories to ourselves about ourselves, artefacts, the rituals and routines together with symbols that reveal our values, influencing relationships and structures. There is a need to involve everyone in these elements not just a select few. If people feel alienated they will be.
It is time for the silent majority to give voice to their disapproval of any discrimination they witness. Organisational leaders need to engage with the silent majority and encourage people to speak out. Those in positions of authority within social media platforms and the press have a major part to play in exposing toxic behaviours. It is also the duty of government to hold these leaders accountable. If in society we can encourage all to follow the advice of Carl Rogers and treat everyone with non-judgemental positive regard and speak up when it is needed we may start to win this battle.