On 26th August, Wednesday, staff at the Department for International Development (DfID) claimed to be working in a racist work atmosphere it has emerged.
Several black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) men at the Government department claim to have experienced prejudice at work, including racist jokes and doubts about their legality as UK citizens, The Guardian reported. According to the newspaper, an exclusive report commissioned by the Whitehall highlighted that the DfID has been criticised for allegedly signing off an anti-sexual harassment campaign which illustrated BAME men restraining white women.
The report was originally published on 21 March, the international day for the elimination of racial discrimination. It connects BAME staff and focuses on BAME men because their voices had been “silent’ in previous examinations of DfID’s attitude towards race. Titled “Coloureds Need Not Apply: the experiences of black Asian and minority ethnic men in DfID”, the report apparently noted,
“Whilst black male voices have largely been silent on the issue of race, that changed in August 2019 when an image was posted on the front page of Insight [DfID’s intranet] to publicise DfID’s new sexual harassment guidance, showing a black male aggressor’s hand over [the hand of] a white woman,” it claimed.
“This time, the BAME male voice spoke up and was amplified by the RN co-chairs and champions to the very top of the organisation,” the report said.
As part of the survey 20 BAME male staff were approached and asked whether their ethnicity had affected them at work. A majority said they had direct negative experiences, ranging from subtle behaviours such as exclusions from networks to sustained discrimination that halted their careers.
The report concludes that racism is endemic in DfID’s headquarters and a network of offices abroad. “At best it is denying equal rights to BAME staff and at worst enabling toxic and hostile environments,” it says.
“Whilst many BAME men reported a real commitment to the work of Dfid, they also reported feelings of fear, disillusionment, anger and damaging impacts on their confidence and mental health.
“Almost all respondents felt that the organisations’ work on diversity and inclusion had little or no impact and some felt it was going backwards.”
A department source claimed that since the report was published, the department had organised discussions with BAME men to determine possible changes and had created a working group to address racism and equality in the new Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).
The report emerges at a time when DfID is expected to merge with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO).
