représentativité | representation

After the murder of George Floyd almost two years ago, as racial reckonings across America exploded with unprecedented candor, I watched from my post-newsroom life in Dubai. Many sectors sought to address the Trump era’s theater of indignities with a renewed commitment to inclusion and justice. Within mainstream journalism, I was deeply moved by how many stories other reporters of color began to share about their own newsroom exclusions: ambitions interrupted, gaslighting, lack of mentorship, and narrowed expectations. Perhaps these were not acts of physical violence—but they were an extension of structural privilege and entrenched white supremacy. The stories were familiar and resonant. Editors, hiring managers, and recruiters pledged to do better, and some followed suit. But prescribed solutions can become a new kind of entrapment. In mainstream film writing, for example, diversity hires like myself are in danger of becoming the new desired and desirably diverse critics.