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A Missouri sociologist looks at why workplaces are still failing at racial equality

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Sean Garcia
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Adia Harvey Wingfield
Wingfield told KCUR it’s the social, relational and cultural parts of a job — what she’s termed “gray areas” — that have perpetuated racial inequity in the workplace.

In her new book “Gray Areas: How the Way We Work Perpetuates Racism and What We Can Do to Fix It,” sociologist Adia Harvey Wingfield at Washington University in St. Louis lays out actionable items employers and colleagues can take to truly support Black employees.

In “Gray Areas: How the Way We Work Perpetuates Racism and What We Can Do to Fix It,” author Adia Harvey Wingfield takes a close look at why, despite a multibillion-dollar diversity industry, Black employees still struggle in their jobs.

Wingfield, who teaches sociology at Washington University in St. Louis, told KCUR it’s the social, relational and cultural parts of a job — what she’s termed “gray areas” — that have perpetuated racial inequity in the workplace.

“For Black employees, these issues of race and racial inequality aren't things that they can check at the door,” she said. “And I found that for many Black workers, when they tried to bring up these issues and talk about how they were present or how they even created different experiences for them, organizations and their colleagues often had a really hard time hearing, listening and responding.”

Wingfield's book offers up a checklist of actions that managers, HR specialists and colleagues can take immediately to address how gray areas may be impacting Black employees in their own workplace.

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When I host Up To Date each morning at 9, my aim is to engage the community in conversations about the Kansas City area’s challenges, hopes and opportunities. I try to ask the questions that listeners want answered about the day’s most pressing issues and provide a place for residents to engage directly with newsmakers. Reach me at steve@kcur.org or on Twitter @stevekraske.
Claudia Brancart is an Up To Date producer for KCUR 89.3. She graduated from Pitzer College in Los Angeles where she majored in World Literature and Studio Art. You can reach her at claudiab@kcur.org.
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