By Naomi DeJesus-Rodriguez, SAA 2020
I attend housing meetings in attire that is comfortable, such as my penguin slippers. This detail will matter in a few, stay with me. My boss and I got to talking one day, and they knew I had a lot to say about professionalism because I mentioned it once in the summer, and asked me if I could expand on it, and as they said this, they took a big look at my penguin slippers like usual and giggled. My first response was, “Are you sure you want me to answer this right now? Cause….” and so, below will essentially sum up how that conversation evolved.
As per the Stanford Social Innovation Review, “Professionalism has become coded language for white favoritism in workplace practices […] white supremacy culture at an organizational level is in the belief that traditional standards and values are objective and unbiased”, pervasive in ways of dress, word choices, etc. (Gray, 2019).
I would really take a look at the article, it’ll be below.
When I hear “professionalism” I immediately get tense, a little hot, and a mixture of pre-defensive and ‘hold your horses’ inner dialogue getting started.
Flashback moment: I think of when I went to a high school in Jersey City, NJ; an urban area, a school rated 2/10, security systems, and a dominant population of Black/Dominican students. I was also part of a new co-op opportunity program in high school working for a BNY Mellon financial firm, a fortune 500 company, for half of my day after lunch *inserts money gif*. Therefore, this “professional” talk my counselors would give was always modeled and code for “you need to dress in such a way that no White man could ever sexualize you even if it means you need to go shopping for clothes you absolutely cannot afford and talk with their mannerisms as to be socially accepted and not feared as you all naturally are”. Being encouraged to straighten hair before an interview, coding it as “you want to look like you brushed your hair out”, etc. A great time. This sounds like a personal story, and part of it is, but the larger scope of it is representative of a much larger systemic issue of just about every “ism” that exists.
Fast forward to graduate school, I mean, I thought that was a pretty “professional” entity to be a part of within itself, no?
Working in housing means coming to training in July/August and being forced to train in largely unairconditioned spaces. Aside from a skin disability I don’t speak about often that heightens in mass heat, I was immediately annoyed with the dress requirements and confronted them from day one with my supervisor. I asked:
“Why is it in 92 degree weather (in Michigan humidity feeling like 98 degrees) that my wearing shorts to sit for a training is deemed “unprofessional”, could it be that in a field that focuses on dismantling a bunch of oppressive systems you’re forcing components of said system on me; And is the skin just above my knee showing an issue of me not being “professional” or an issue for the folks who sexualize me as a womxn because I am 100% sure I saw 5 of the men here with cargo shorts already?”
To which I was given the response of, “Um. Yeah I will definitely get back to you on that. Wear what you need for tomorrow and I’ll follow up”. Let’s just say, 2019’s training I was wearing only dresses to be able to breathe. Always advocate for yourself, especially in a field that prides itself on advocating for students and for trying to dismantle oppressive practices. A lot of people you’ll find discovering and mentioning a lot of “theory” in that regard, but do not be someone who fails to link it to very real “practice”.
POINT: Does my wearing penguin slippers, shorts cut above the knee, wavy hair, and talking in my own mannerisms ever deem me less capable of doing my job? No. Below is my succinct view of:
What professionalism is:
- Your ongoing commitment to competencies in your occupational field, for example, NASPA/ACPA competencies
- Seeking opportunities to grow in such competencies
- Being open to feedback and a team player
- Being considerate of others in your workplace settings
- Being aware of what could cause harm to others in your workplace setting and preventing that to your best capacity
- Being authentic and communicative as needed in the workplace
What professionalism is NOT:
- Adhering to the social/cultural norms of a dominant group
- Gender norms, racial norms, “traditional” norms, etc.
- Putting value on a set of vocabulary and syntax of a dominant group
- Accepting disparate/differential treatment
Therefore, no, I will not show up to any/all one on one meetings post-graduate school in penguin slippers. But, if I did, it doesn’t mean I can’t still do my job just as well, if not better than the next guy.
Great article I mentioned: https://ssir.org/articles/entry/the_bias_of_professionalism_standards#