EP 446: You Will Be Assimilated with Charlie Gilkey
Oct 5, 2023
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Charlie Gilkey, an expert in speculative fiction and its relation to social and professional norms, discusses the harms of imperialism and how supremacy culture forms the basis of professionalism. They explore indigenous futurism and challenging Western systems, as well as the importance of team habits in creating inclusive work environments. A thought-provoking episode on imagining new ways of working.
The podcast emphasizes the importance of inclusive workplaces and challenges the norms of cultural assimilation, highlighting the need for non-dominant cultures to be valued and accepted.
The podcast discusses the concept of indigenous futurism, showcasing how it offers unique perspectives that challenge Western taxonomic systems of thought and expand our understanding of valuable knowledge.
Deep dives
Bias and Discrimination in the Workplace
The podcast episode highlights the experiences of marginalized individuals, such as Black knowledge workers, disabled, queer, and neurodivergent people, who have found relief from office politics, discrimination, and microaggressions during the pandemic. It emphasizes that returning to pre-pandemic norms holds little interest for these individuals due to the lack of inclusivity and understanding in the workplace. The episode raises the issue of cultural assimilation in the workplace and the need for non-dominant cultures to adapt in order to belong. Through examples from Anne Lecky's Imperial Rach trilogy, it explores the repercussions of a dominant culture imposing its etiquette and customs on others, leading to the subjugation of different cultures.
Indigenous Futurism and Reimagining Reality
The podcast discusses the concept of indigenous futurism, which focuses on centering indigenous people in art, literature, and music that reimagines the past, present, and future. It highlights the importance of indigenous perspectives that challenge Western taxonomic systems of thought and provide alternative ways of knowing and understanding reality. By sharing examples from indigenous writers like Grace Dylan and Chelsea Vau, the podcast showcases how indigenous futurism connects science, ceremony, and art, offering unique perspectives that communicate diverse values and ethics. It emphasizes the significance of these narratives in expanding our understanding of what is considered scientific or valuable knowledge.
Professionalism as White Supremacy Culture
The podcast explores the concept of professionalism as a tool for enforcing white supremacy culture in the workplace. It discusses characteristics of white supremacy culture, such as perfectionism, individualism, and belief in one right way, and how these characteristics are embedded in societal institutions. The episode challenges the notion that professionalism is neutral, highlighting its role in perpetuating power imbalances and maintaining the status quo. It suggests that cultivating a culture of belonging requires dismantling and reimagining the systems and habits that uphold professionalism, and instead focusing on fostering open communication, embracing diverse perspectives, and recognizing the humanity of coworkers.
This is the 4th installment in Strange New Work, a special series from What Works that explores how speculative fiction can help us imagine new ways of working.
Social and professional norms aren't natural or innate. They're political. Those in power exert their preferences on those who aren't, and throughout history, have exerted social, cultural, and physical violence to either force subjugated people to assimilate or drive them out of society altogether.
Speculative fiction is rife with tales of imperial conquest and colonization. And it's helpful for identifying the kinds of control and domination that we deal with daily, even though many of us never notice it. Speculative fiction can help us see harm for what it is, recognize the damage done by colonizers, and imagine forms of resistance.
In today's episode, I dive into the harms of imperialism, how supremacy culture forms the basis of professionalism, how Indigenous futurism gives us a way to "imagine otherwise," and what coach and author Charlie Gilkey recommends for creating a culture of belonging at work through team habits.
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