Rebecca Freer

Waiting to Bloom: finding your space in White-dominated industries

Since I was young, communication was something I thrived in. From creating cringey storytime videos on YouTube to studying journalism in college, connecting with people and telling stories became my passion. So, there I was, recently graduated and filled with ambition, hope, and the drive to make my dream job in communications a reality when the real world punched me right in the face. I’m talking right in the jaw.

Being a Black woman, I knew I’d have to work twice as hard as anyone else in the room. But the job market was so much worse than I expected. I finished an internship (unpaid) with a prominent daytime TV program only to wind up at the only job I could find, a call centre. No one in my industry gave me a shot. No one would hire me, even in an entry-level position.

It took me three years to get to do what I’ve always wanted. Today, I work as the Communications Specialist for a United Church in Brampton and I’m a part-time model. At work and most casting calls, I’m usually the only Black person.Being the only person who looks like you brings out strategies that, for me, have become instinctual. Not completely trusting my coworkers, code-switching to be taken seriously, shrinking my personality to something less vivacious and more whitewashed.

I want to be allowed to be authentically myself,talking with my hands, being overjoyed and outspoken but also want to be taken seriously when I share meaningful conversations or ideas.Unfortunately, for me–for us–Black people can’t seem to have both. Being respected and taken seriously meant forfeiting my authentic Black self. If you’re reading this, chances are you’ve faced this dilemma before too.

But it’s time we demand spaces to adapt to us instead of adapting ourselves for those spaces. It took me four years to find a workplace that accepted me fully and validated who I am. Working for North Bramalea United Church has allowed me to incorporate my faith and my passion into my responsibilities. When I started, I didn’t even have to look for strategies to establish my space, because a seat at the table was already prepared for me.

What is yours will never demand you to change who you are. Wait for that space and when you’re there, bloom.