The Only Black Guy in the Office
Knock Knock, Corporate America — It’s Me, a Black Professional
A new LEVEL series about the trials and tribulations of a Black man navigating company life
Update 6/7/22: Level has a new home. You can read this article and other new articles by visiting LEVELMAN.com.
There’s nothing quite like the look on a White recruiter’s face when I walk in for a job interview.
The phone screening that comes first is always fine. My name is generic enough to belong to any race, and all they get is my voice — which, real talk, delivers great conversation and a killer vocab. Then, when I walk in, they’re like, “Oh, hi.” They’re shocked. Some are better at covering it up than others, but I always see it.
The thing is, at that point, I either know I’m getting the job, or I know I’m not. And somehow I appreciate the reaction. I don’t have anything to hide. This is me, this is my name, and this is what I have to offer.
Where are you from? The ugliest kind of compliment. When I’m working in White environments, of course, everything’s going to sound different.
