Being seen

Being seen is powerful. Growing up as a mixed-race adoptee meant uncomfortable questions from strangers about my birth family or ethnicity – the “What are you?” or offerings of “You don’t look Asian!” and “I knew you looked exotic!” often delivered as compliments. Note: They aren’t received that way. At 20, when a young bank teller asked me if I was part-Korean too, it took my breath away. It was the first time someone had questioned my ethnicity not to ‘other’ me but to bridge a connection.

Now an employer, I recognize that the barriers to attracting diverse talent to our state are real. Many firms are still located in second floor offices without elevators 32 years after ADA’s passage. Our actions speak volumes about our values to clients and employees alike.

In interviews I’ve heard from multiple candidates who spoke of principals in our community mocking staff’s accents and names. Another candidate described a partner showing them pornography in the workplace “just to check” that they were indeed gay. When the employee reported the incident, it was dismissed as an unbelievable claim. Who would do that?! Our colleagues. Leaders within our industry.

Outside our office doors, I’ve had code enforcement officers tell me I look “exotic.” I’ve experienced too many incidents of people using violent, gendered language to describe complaining and reminded too many why they should not call grown women “girls.” Advocating for staff to be seen and respected within firms and on job sites is imperative for our profession to attract and retain talented workers. Our employees should not bear the burden of defending themselves from repeated incidents. Our firms should reflect the communities we serve. Our state has a habit of othering – asking people where they are from and if they are a “real Mainer.” It is not a phrase used to identify native Wabanaki Confederation members; it typically connotes someone whose grandparents were born in Maine. It is an impossible hurdle for someone like me, whose grandmother fled war and immigrated to America. The insult of not being a real Mainer is often shrugged off with an eyeroll or headshake. It is a way to remind us that we will never belong.

This divisive language is often utilized professionally on firm websites portraying partners or staff as “proud native Mainers.” Those of us who are not “native Mainers” are considered “from away.” This insult was brought into a licensing board hearing recently, implying that someone “from away” is less deserving of practicing architecture here.

The comment, amidst rising violence against immigrants and Asian Americans, was chilling. More concerning was our licensing board’s lack of response to that comment in its reply. Instead of reprimanding the complainant against such harmful language, it ignored it.

Diversity within our industry must be seen, supported, and celebrated. It takes leaders at all levels of a firm to recognize and support colleagues against micro-aggressions and more serious forms of harassment. From interns and emerging leaders to associates and partners, each of us has the power to create change through our actions or inactions. Let’s each choose to take action – large and small - to support increasing diversity within our sphere. The next generation is counting on us.

Tracie Reed, NCARB, NOMA, AIA Reed is the founder of Dextrous Creative, a womxn-owned architecture firm in Portland, Maine. She is a domestic, mixed-race adoptee of Korean heritage.