How the Design Industry Can Be a Better Ally to the Black Community

今年夏天,黑Interior Designers Network (BIDN) launched an allyshipcampaigncreated, in part, to empower non-Black members of the design world to combat systemic racism within theindustry. AD PRO investigates several resources aimed at helping designers and other pros to become what activists are calling “actively anti-racist.”

Get educated

How can you fight something if you don’t understand it first? Resources abound for education on systemic racism. Consider starting with historian Ibram X. Kendi’sHow to Be an Antiracistor anti-racist educator Robin DiAngelo’sWhite Fragility. You can find more recommendations of notable books, films, and other resources via organizations likeNAACPor the forthcomingNational Antiracist Book Festival. Avoid influencers’ reading lists, unless the influencer also doubles as an expert in the field.

Closer to home, industry brands and organizations are hosting educational panels and seminars with a focus on perspective-sharing. Schumacher kicked off a webinar series earlier this summer aimed to “make our industry a truly inclusive place,” while theSustainable Furnishings Councilheld a panel last week that focused on the intersection of human rights and environmental justice, hosted by ambassadorsCorey Damen Jenkins,Libby Langdon, andThom Filicia.

Organizations like theNational Organization of Minority Architects,Black Females in Architecture,Organization of Black Designers, and many others offer myriad educational resources, seminars, and ways to get involved specific to the A&D industry.

Recognize influence

Education also applies to aesthetics. One of the most design-focused calls-to-action of BIDN’s allyship program is “Stop pushing Eurocentric design as the design blueprint.” For non-Black designers, editors, and other industry pros, that means due diligence on the materials, products, and themes appearing in their interiors. “Designers can begin thoroughly researching the pieces they use in their spaces, appropriately crediting designers or cultural artifacts that may have inspired them to incorporate the African style into their designs. Some terms that imply African or Asian design but do not properly credit African or Asian design are [termed] ‘exotic’ or ‘worldly.’ We want you to do the research, learn the history of the piece you are using, and celebrate the African or Asian talent that created the style or aesthetic that originated it,” saysKeia McSwain, president of the network and principal ofKimberly and Cameron Interiors.

“I’d love to see designers refrain from pushing the superiority of Eurocentric design while promoting the cultural design as if it is seasonal,” continues McSwain. “Juju hats, Bamileke stools, Senegalese beads, kudu horns, mud and Kuba cloths, and tribal prints and motifs are some of my favorite African-originated artifacts that I regularly incorporate into my designs.”

Combat color blindness

Color blindness—for example, someone saying that they simply do not notice another person’s race—is a problem on the rise, says McSwain. “‘I don’t see race or color’ is becoming a commonly used phrase, and it’s exhausting. Color blindness is amicroaggression. It seems to be used more prominently now than it ever has before. Many sociologists suggest that claiming not to see race is a way of ignoring discrimination. [This Harvard Business School study]shows“种族发生rapidl知觉差异y—in less than one seventh of a second—and it emerges as early as six months of age.’ We want you to recognize and celebrate differences, not ignore them,” explains McSwain.

Learn moreabout microaggressions so that you can help spot them and call them out—whether on a job site, in a design center, or within your own office.

Hire, promote, and include BIPOC

Underrepresentation within design-center walls is not new. Artist and designerMalene Barnettcalled outthe programming of a major design center and founded the Black Artists + Designers Guild, a directory of Black makers that has since grown into a creative movement of its own, in part as a response to the exclusion of Black designers. (BADG will host theObsidian Virtual Concept House, a virtual showhouse that imagines a Black family’s future home, later this year.)

“We will focus on a common practice: the lack of BIPOC representation at the top levels throughout the overall design industry,” says cofounder Cristina Casañas-Judd ofMe and General Design公司参与的黑曜石浓缩的ept house. She says that lack of representation is the most urgent of needs when it comes to allyship. “This has created the lack of inclusivity for all BIPOC. We see the same 5 to 10 designers—mainly white with maybe the one BIPOC represented—rotating within the same circle: the circle of interior designers who are predominately seen on the cover of publications and winning awards, et cetera. If more BIPOC are in leading roles and making decisions within the various outlets that govern the interior design industry, there would be more equal representation for the work being generated as a whole.”

Ways to combat underrepresentation include hiring BIPOC and cultivating relationships at every level of an organization. Such actions should include asking BIPOC designers to speak on panels, inviting them to industry events, and representing them in editorial coverage—particularly those that arenotfocused on diversity. Business leaders should get educated on the often-invisible and insidious impact of systemic racism. Organizations like Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) have resources applicable for hiring managers and business owners alike, includingTogether Forward @ Work, a new racial-equity initiative.

“The ‘ask’ for all allies is to step up and dig deep within themselves to acknowledge the injustice, then use their current power to empower the same opportunities for members of organizations such asBADG,” explains Casañas-Judd. “Ideally not because of the current movement or a fad, but for the talent they bring to the table. It will take white culture to recognize their fears. Fears that have allowed the unfairness of systemic racism to be driven deep for so long.”

Create and participate in long-term opportunities

A number of campaigns have emerged within the design world to amplify Black voices using a range of social platforms. But activists say that long-term change needs to center around inclusivity across all areas of design—not just so-called ‘diverse’ programming.

“In an industry as wide and vast as this, allyship is going to look differently depending on your role,” says Albie Buabeng, who created theShare the Mic: Home Edition campaign, pairing Black designers and influencers with non-Black counterparts. “It has to be both horizontal and vertical. [The] silence of non-Black professionals indicates [their] complacency with the system. Interior designers and architects within the industry have to be willing to unlearn normalized behaviors and be acutely aware of spaces that are discriminatory.”

That means becoming proactive. “If you’re speaking on a panel, question its diversity—and challenge the organizers if it isn’t [diverse]. Showrooms, markets, and other industry events are supposed to cater to the entire industry yet perpetuate many of society’s biases by way of hiring practices and public-facing opportunities,” says Buabeng.

“Include Black designers in features, panels, and events that aren’t exclusively about race; hire diverse brand ambassadors that reflect the industry at large; re-examine buy-in minimums and create more equity for designers at all levels that serve clientele of all types,” she says, in a directive that echoes the BIDN’s call to stop discriminatory account minimums. “Often allies have their value system but don’t hold the spaces they occupy to those same standards. So how will the gatekeepers and decision-makers know that their behavior is no longer acceptable if every day is business as usual?”

Commit to the process

This kind of work is ongoing and requires a continued commitment. “Yes, we have seen positivity in the outpouring, and interest in the Black design community has noticeably increased,” says Me and General Design cofounder General Judd, noting Grace Bonney of Design Sponge’s initiative to “share the mic” beyond the length of the formal campaign as an example. “The key to it all will be to keep this frequency high and to not let go until huge change has actually taken place. [The goal is to reach a point] where BIPOC are fairly employed in positions of power,” he says, “to maintain an equal distribution of talent from all walks of life, in the same room, pitching for the same project because they are justthatgood.”