Sihle Bolani: We Are The Ones We Need

The Cheeky Natives

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“But I’ve had time now to really think about the issue of racism, abuse, and discrimination against black professionals in the workplace, as a system, because that’s exactly what it is. A system. Designed to maintain the status quo, this system ensures that power imbalance remains unchanged.” – Sihle Bolani Sihle Bolani invited us into her life in a deeply personal way. She tells a story about her time in corporate. Her book written in the first person, in a journal/diary-like way, a method she intentionally chooses. She delves into the challenges faced by her and what she believes many Black professionals in South Africa’s corporate environment experience as well.Her book focuses on themes that include structural racism in organisations; the role executives play in sustaining discriminatory practices; pay discrimination; the emotional and psychological trauma suffered by Black professionals as a result of corporate abuse and the suppression of black talent, especially Black womxn.In this podcast, we sat down with Sihle to speak about her book. We spoke about the method of writing the book, white womxn in corporate, bullying, constructive dismissal, racism, sexism. We spoke about the role of Black executives and their complicity in perpetuating inequality. Sihle also offers us her way forward, a call to action. We spoke about some elements of the call to action. She believes that these actions can go a long way to dismantle systems of oppression.A deeply insightful, personal conversation filled with ‘aha’ moments. This episode continues conversations about racism, sexism and the workplace and how we can continue to fight to dismantle them.

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