That woman, wearing a blue shirt, isn't someone that I'd reasonably expect to blend into a black chair, even with a room darkened to make a projector more visible and a half-blind manager.
Keep in mind that the author had also spoken up earlier in the meeting, offering to take on another supervisor's project during his vacation.
To me, they key point is that "Kelly" did not apologize. If she had honestly failed to notice the author, she would have been mortified of the faux pas, and would have apologized during the meeting or in person soon afterwards. The lack of remorse, even during the later meeting with HR, makes a deliberate racist snub by far the more likely explanation.
That said, there are circumstances where a person with dark skin tone is hard to see. I once came very close to running over a pedestrian with dark pants, dark jacket, dark hat, and dark skin crossing a poorly-lit suburban street on a dark winter's evening; fortunately for both of us, the roadway was dry.
To me, they key point is that "Kelly" did not apologize.
I'll agree. Mistakes can be made in the moment, but they're worse if they aren't corrected after some reflection.
That said, there are circumstances where a person with dark skin tone is hard to see.
My wife is darker than the author seems to be, based on her photo. At night, if she's (my wife) wearing dark clothes and comes out of a dark room unexpectedly...well, we'll say that she has startled me a few times. Several circumstances have to come together at the same time for that to happen that I don't usually associate with sitting in a conference room for a meeting, though. So while the statement's true, it's hard to imagine a work situation that it'd apply to.
Comments
- The chair was black. We know what various black chairs look like.
- The author's skin tone: http://amelielamont.com/about/
That woman, wearing a blue shirt, isn't someone that I'd reasonably expect to blend into a black chair, even with a room darkened to make a projector more visible and a half-blind manager.
Keep in mind that the author had also spoken up earlier in the meeting, offering to take on another supervisor's project during his vacation.
To me, they key point is that "Kelly" did not apologize. If she had honestly failed to notice the author, she would have been mortified of the faux pas, and would have apologized during the meeting or in person soon afterwards. The lack of remorse, even during the later meeting with HR, makes a deliberate racist snub by far the more likely explanation.
That said, there are circumstances where a person with dark skin tone is hard to see. I once came very close to running over a pedestrian with dark pants, dark jacket, dark hat, and dark skin crossing a poorly-lit suburban street on a dark winter's evening; fortunately for both of us, the roadway was dry.
I'll agree. Mistakes can be made in the moment, but they're worse if they aren't corrected after some reflection.
My wife is darker than the author seems to be, based on her photo. At night, if she's (my wife) wearing dark clothes and comes out of a dark room unexpectedly...well, we'll say that she has startled me a few times. Several circumstances have to come together at the same time for that to happen that I don't usually associate with sitting in a conference room for a meeting, though. So while the statement's true, it's hard to imagine a work situation that it'd apply to.