29 June 2020

As a Black woman, the movie Hidden Figures elicited a number of emotions while I watched it. I was thrilled to see a movie celebrating the contributions of a group of Black women who, through the power of a camera lens, became known to so many people.

My emotions also fell many times during the movie. I felt very deeply the depictions of Katherine Johnson's experiences of having her knowledge and expertise (and her person) being deemed as less valuable than her white peers, who should have been her allies.

However, my primary takeaway was that The United States would have been first in the space race had all Americans been invited to the table to contribute.

Implicit and explicit discrimination affects everyone in business---beyond the obvious economic losses. When Black and other employees, contractors and customers are excluded, not allowed to contribute fully or treated with blatant disdain and microaggressions, the organization and its people lose.

Organizational allies can be gatekeepers to keep the playing field fair. Most often they are Human Resources, Purchasing and department managers, floor supervisors, apprenticeship coordinators, and anyone charged with screening, interviewing, hiring, training, mentoring, promoting employees and contractors.

A final thought: Katherine Johnson's story might not be considered so remarkable (nor likely made into a movie) if she was not Black.