Thread by @groove_sdc

After reading a powerful thread by @IEMcElroy I contemplated sharing one of my stories. Because when Black folks do inevitably people will call us liars. That being said I wanted to speak on the weaponization of white women tears. Not in an academic setting but a professional one

Several years ago I was working for a regional bank and I was doing well. I was eventually promoted into an understaffed department with an older white woman. We joined a younger Black woman who had just had a child. She'd been in the department for years.

Almost immediately -- remember we just got there -- the white woman decided she wanted to manage the department. As I said earlier, the Black woman had all the experience. We had just got there. Nevertheless she set her sights on the vacant director role.

As part of our responsibilities, we had to teach classes to incoming sales associates and bank tellers. During these classes part of our obligations were to observe each other and give feedback to each other. We were also to observe the newly hired and report observations as well

The first thing I noticed was how vindictive she was. She would turn the air conditioning down to freeze out girls who were skirts she thought was too short. She'd grumble about full-bodied Black girls. "She's thinks what she's wearing is cute but it's not," she say.

Now remember. Our job is to make observations. The banking industry dresses conservatively. So we had to monitor that as well. But our responsibilities were not to be the fashion police. Or tell Black women with hips and ass they had to somehow "cover up" something they can't.

I also noticed how dismissive she was of my observations. She would object to all of them. If I said a student was smart, she argue he wasn't. If I said a student was meticulous, she'd argue he wasn't. She worked hard to make sure only her observations made it onto our reports.

Then I begin to notice how she treated Black students in her classrooms. Especially Black men. She once patted a Black man on the head -- like a dog -- after a right answer during gameplay. I didn't want to snap so I waited until after the class. That's when I approached her.

I wasn't angry. Didn't raise my voice. But I told her in no uncertain terms that was inappropriate. Black men aren't puppies. You don't scratch our bellies. You don't pet us. She nodded her head. Remember this is part of our responsibilities. To give each other feedback.

I started to noticed other things. She was constantly in the Black woman's ear. She'd just had a baby. She was depressed about her weight and the job. The white woman's solution? You should quit. It'll make you happy. Some real Machiavellian sh*t to take over the department.

I noticed other things. Like we'd occasionally stage corporate lunches for branch managers and bank executives. I controlled the budget for these things but they'd have to be approved by operations. Once we got that approval, we'd buy supplies and pay for catering. Routine stuff

Well apparently she didn't think I should have that responsibility. She'd interject and demand fealty.

"Do you really need to spend that much money?" she'd say.

"Do we really want our Vice President eating McDonald's when our yearly profits are in the billions?" I'd respond.

It got to the point where she eventually went behind my back and secretly got the approval herself. Operations allocated X amount of dollars. She gave me significantly less than what they allocated to "keep me under budget." Again this is not her responsibility. I reported her.

Despite her machinations, I tried to help her. I tried to get her to spellcheck her work. She refused. She'd demand I do clerical work for her. Again we're peers. She's not my supervisor. I'd tell her sure but I have other things I need to get to first. She'd walk away in a huff.

So as things come to a head I go to my supervisor about it. He says let's have a team meeting and I agree. And that's when it happened -- totally and complete waterworks. She cried through that whole damn meeting.

But peep it. As she's crying, I find out she's been telling my supervisor all kinds of sh*t. Told him she felt threatened when I told her not to address her Black students inappropriately. Said I refused to help her. That I wasn't giving feedback to her. Just straight up lying.

Then she goes on and on about her late husband being Black and how she hasn't gotten over his death. And how she has Black stepchildren and that's how she treats them. Again crying the whole time. And I'm like why is this sh*t even relevant?

Here's the catch though. After the meeting? My supervisor comes to me and tells me I've been transferred to another department. I'm like wha? What the f*ck did I do? Why am I being punished? He says it's not a demotion because my pay will remain the same but I see what's going on

That chick was so messy she ended up being transferred from the department to another one. I eventually left that job to get a better paying one at a larger national bank but I was still stuck by the consequences of that white woman crying in that meeting.

I was struck by how unbelievable and how unconvincing her performance was in that meeting. But because of her crying that day, my whole trajectory in that corporation changed. Immediately. It was wild.

This woman had overstepped her boundaries. She'd been trying to manipulate the department. She was messy and unprofessional. She'd lied to our operations department. Misappropriated funds. And none of that mattered once she started crying.

@threadreaderapp unroll

Please read the original thread that inspired this one.

https://twitter.com/IEMcElroy/status/1420371521181265920?s=20