Black women in technology – 06/30/2023 – Politics and Justice

Although women are the majority in higher education according to MEC (Ministry of Education) and IBGE (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics) data, they are still a minority in exact sciences and engineering – and these numbers funnel even more when we evaluate the intersectionality between gender and race.

A recent survey (2022) by Pretalab shows that black women occupy only 11% of positions in the technology industry. A study by #QuemCodaBR showed data on the diversity of tech teams in Brazil: 32.7% of respondents said they do not have black people on their work teams.

These data are reflections of the social inequality that we have in our country. Given this context, questions arise such as: Why do we have such a small number of black women in tech? What are the challenges for companies? How important is reversing this scenario?

Diversity in terms of gender and race is still a challenge for the technology industry, traditionally dominated by white men. As slow and arduous as it may be, black women are consolidating their permanence in careers related to science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), challenging organizational cultures, stereotypes and breaking down barriers.

The inclusion of black women in the technology industry is essential, not only for the sake of social justice and representation, but also for its innovative character. The diversity of perspectives, stories, experiences and experiences brought by black women enriches the sector, even boosting the development of new products and services that are more inclusive and relevant to a plural society.

Reversing this scenario is somewhat challenging, after all, the obstacles already start in high school, where many black students are discouraged from pursuing a STEM career, often due to the lack of a reference model. This becomes even more serious in the North and Northeast regions of the country and in peripheral areas, where educational advances in terms of gender have not yet reached all women.

And to consolidate the sense of belonging and help their careers grow, mentoring programs that connect black women, as well as training for the development of technical, socio-emotional skills and mental health care are essential.

It is extremely important that industry and technology companies have a formal commitment to promoting gender/race equity in opportunities, and that all organizational hierarchical levels have representation of these women. In order to consolidate these policies, it is important to create increasingly welcoming environments, with an active listening process, and a commitment so that the selection processes ensure that hiring is not just symbolic. A survey carried out by McKinsey in 2020 in more than 15 countries reveals that there is a direct link between the level of inclusion and diversity existing in a company and its financial return, and that this relationship is in the level of belonging and engagement.

I am a black woman, engineer and academic, who knows how challenging it is to face the sexism and racism often implicit in our society. I come with this article to emphasize the importance of raising awareness of this issue, but also the need not to face these facts and data with conformism, but with awareness, planning, change and consolidation of diversity policies for black women, guaranteeing their belonging and encouraging evolution in the tech career.

The editor, Michael França, asks each participant of the space “Politics and Justice” of the Sheet suggest a song to the readers. In this text, the one chosen by Bruna Arruda was “Stand Up”, by Cynthia Erivo.

PRESENT LINK: Did you like this text? Subscriber can release five free hits of any link per day. Just click the blue F below.