How is it fair for companies to create race or gender specific advocacy groups?

[The Reverend Bob]

What should I do about this

You do not nothing about it and just collect your paycheck or you can leave and start your own company and implement the policies you want

 

[Nakosis]

What should I do about this and does anyone feel the same way at their company?

Realize that life is not fair. Sometimes the situation works in your favor, sometimes it doesn't.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

And how does this exactly help?

By discriminating against white people therein lies the answer?

And how long is this supposed to last?

Advocacy for and awareness of less privileged groups isn't discrimination. Such as, a campaign to focus on the abilities of those with physical handicaps is most certainly not discriminating against the able-bodied.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

Current ideologically-based policies seem to be based around the idea that the more we get people to be hyper-aware of these markers of identity, the less we will discriminate. I am highly sceptical that this is the correct way to approach the problem.

Where the niavety comes into play is believing things like affirmative action help non-white ethnicities. Its actually helped white women far more than any other group.
As for the OP, as far as I know such things typically do focus on inclusive things (as normalizing is a goal), but by default there is going to be something that isn't equally applicable.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

First of all i've never had a dominant position in western society and most white men haven't.

I didnt say YOU specifically. But, as a group, from the Romans to the British Empire to the US, white men are dominate in Western society.

 

[Brickjectivity]

What should I do about this and does anyone feel the same way at their company?

Its about pay negotiation. Companies strategize on how to negotiate with you at pay raise time. Part of this is asking you to support their favorite charities or cheer them on, because this gives them sparkly clean teeth at the negotiation table. Its not really in your best interest to make noise about it, but if you do -- nothing will happen unless you make a lot of noise. You'll have to convince them you are genuinely unhappy (not just a little unhappy), unhappy enough that its going to somehow make pay or other costs go up, keeping in mind donations are tax deductible but not pay raises. General employee unhappiness costs at raise time. This will not make you popular, so don't. Its a terrible gamble. At most drop an anonymous suggestion into the suggestion box. Never admit you had any problem with the companies choices, either. For all practical purposes appear delighted about what the company is doing to help people.

 

[sun rise]

That may have been the case during the 20th century, but as of 2019 that simplyisn't true.

As @ImmortalFlame noted in detail, it still is true. It's true that things are changing but much too slowly as the number of news stories about discrimination and even death due to skin color illustrate.

And I don't deserve to be punished based on my skin color because other white people in the past were racist.

If racism were not so prevalent now, I'd agree.

The more you focus on inclusive markers of identity, at the expense of exclusive ones (race, gender, etc) the less people discriminate along these lines.

I agree that this is the ideal. But sometimes we must focus on the problem and that means acknowledging existing structural discrimination.

 

[Augustus]

I agree that this is the ideal. But sometimes we must focus on the problem and that means acknowledging existing structural discrimination.

This assumes that hyper-focus on markers of diversity actually functions in removing whatever structural discrimination exists, which is certainly not a given. It also tends to assume that any differences between groups can only be as a result of discrimination, which is a highly flawed line of thinking.

Once tangible barriers against diversity are removed, the issues become far more complex and difficult to remedy as the causes become far less clear cut.

 

[Audie]

T

Once tangible barriers against diversity are removed, the issues become far more complex and difficult to remedy as the causes become far less clear cut.

You think so? I hope not.
Social engineering attempts such as all this
diversity-diversity may betimes do less than
any good.
It looks to me as if the arc of civilization is
away from "discrimination" and toward
something a lot better.
And some day people will look back at
our time, and shake their heads at all the
weirdness in the used-to-be.

 

[Augustus]

You think so? I hope not.
Social engineering attempts such as all this
diversity-diversity may betimes do less than
any good.
It looks to me as if the arc of civilization is
away from "discrimination" and toward
something a lot better.
And some day people will look back at
our time, and shake their heads at all the
weirdness in the used-to-be.

That's sort of what I was saying. Tangible barriers have generally been removed, yet it is fair to say that some degree of discrimination still exists. Might well be that the best remedy for this last bit is simply let nature take its course as you can't necessarily engineer it away and attempts to do so may well be counterproductive at times.

 

[Revoltingest]

The company I work for brags about how progressive it is. It has numerous advocacy groups including a native american group, an african american group, an asian group, a women group, a latino group, an lgbt group, a disabled group, etc. Basically any minority or supposedly oppressed group you can think of.

As a straight white male this feels like discrimination due to the fact that these groups host events with the leadership team to advance diversity in the workplace. That includes promotions, special work programs and more. The company, for example, is really striving hard to increase the number of women and POC in upper management. There is no advocacy group for me. And i'm not saying that these POC and women aren't deserving; many of them are and are extremely qualified, but it does seem to help if you have a lot of victimhood points.

Of course I can't complain because then I'd be called a privileged cis white supremacist racist homophobe or some nonsense. This is despite the fact that i'm none of these things. I came from a poor family in a poor area and had to get student loans and work hard. Now I can't receive the same benefits because I have some supposed priviledge? Where do I cash in this priviledge again?

Anyways the company constantly talks about how diverse it is and always mentions it has hired X number of women and POC which is really starting to bother me. Its not "we hired X people with strong skills and abilities", its we increased diversity by Y amount!

What should I do about this and does anyone feel the same way at their company?

Hey, at least your company doesn't have any outright bans on SWMs (straight white males).
Back in the 70s, that happened at times in some companies (Ford) & universities (UofM).
So do your job (ideally better than others), hold your tongue, & cope.

 

[sun rise]

Hey, at least your company doesn't have any outright bans on SWMs (straight white males).
Back in the 70s, that happened at times in some companies (Ford) & universities (UofM).
So do your job (ideally better than others), hold your tongue, & cope.

Cite for your assertion?

 

[sun rise]

It looks to me as if the arc of civilization is
away from "discrimination" and toward
something a lot better.

I agree. The transition is neither swift nor linear, however.

 

[Revoltingest]

Cite for your assertion?

Experience.

 

[sun rise]

Experience.

So you generalized utterly from experience with no real evidence to back you up.

 

[sun rise]

One story which illustrates that the problem is not solved and that discrimination against non-straight white males is still alive. There are many many such stories

Woman describes homophobic attack on London bus that left couple covered in blood

 

[Revoltingest]

So you generalized utterly from experience with no real evidence to back you up.

I generalized nothing.
My father was required to hire no white guys at Ford for a while.
U of M's Phoenix Memorial Reactor turned me down as a reactor
operator, with the manager (Gary Cook, as I recall) saying they
were under orders to hire only women & minorities.
There are more examples.
But you want to believe it didn't happen (as indicated by your
petulant & presumptive reaction), so that's all the effort you get.

 

[Audie]

One story which illustrates that the problem is not solved and that discrimination against non-straight white males is still alive. There are many many such stories

Woman describes homophobic attack on London bus that left couple covered in blood

And when a whitey strays into S Chicago?
Dont talk as if it is just swm picking on everyone
else. That is very far from true.

In the event, I'd wait a bit on this London story.
Find out what really happened.