Co-authored by Nyasha Mutembwa, 22, She/Her, Fourth Year Civil Engineering Student at University of Dundee & Rutendo Mhonda, 25, She/Her, Research Methods in Psychology (MSc), University of St. Andrews, Psychology and Counselling (BSc), Abertay University, First Class.
Nyasha
As we come to the end of celebrating Black History Month 2021, we hope to explore and open the conversation about the somewhat unheard and unspoken perspective that is of a black woman- furthermore a Black woman in STEM and the mental burden that comes with it. Black women are the most underrepresented in the UK STEM workforce, and with this comes some challenges. It’s a necessity to highlight this point of view so the rest of us can develop a better understanding, in such a vital field, as well as how we can enable positive changes to build representation for the future.
Many can argue the reasons behind this disproportionately is due to the lack of representation and role models in STEM, leading to an uncomfortable feeling of entering a sector that you can’t see yourself in or imagine someone like yourself in. An article published by stemwomen.co.uk called ‘Why Role Models are so Important for Black Women in STEM’ highlighted an undeniable phrase, ‘you can’t be what you can’t see’ and it is so true; as a Black woman, growing up I had no representation of myself beyond the careers of my own family and even then, the only engineer in my family was a male. My passion for STEM grew from various initiatives in high school that motivated me to become a role model for other little Black girls because there weren’t any for me, so I strived to be the first of many. Now I sit at age 22, being an over enthusiastic women in STEM advocate, on the committee at the University of Dundee and more so, a Black women in STEM advocate, as president of Afro-Caribbean Society; that strives to inspire at least one little Black girl’s world to pursue STEM.
The energy that is put into creating change for at least that one girl will always be limitless, in my opinion, but it does take its toll as we all know being women in a male-dominated field. Being one of few girls in a classroom full of boys can be difficult but I feel people forget the extra layer that Black women face, in this environment, of then being the one of one in your discipline. This can feel quite daunting and lonely in the reality of knowing that the only one you can fully relate to, is you. That’s it. Me, myself and I. This can manifest itself into pressure to do so well because you feel like so many, not only girls but young Black girls, are looking up to you and watching you so you can’t fail nor be average; you have to be exceptional.
You feel the need to go that extra mile, work harder, be more impressive just so you shine that bit brighter to be recognised past all the men and some women so that one Black woman can be the spark for that one Black girl. Or to get that recognition you know you deserve because the work weight isn’t valued the same as other counterparts in ‘their’ eyes when you know you are equally, if not more, deserving...but because of this superpower that is called being a Black woman in STEM, you’re made invisible to most praise or recognition on any level.
When I was younger, someone gave me the biggest and probably most influential reality check of my life, though quite depressing it was reality and in order to change it, I had to know what I was facing. They told me “as a woman you will have to work twice as hard as the man and as a Black person you will have to work twice as hard as your white counterparts. So, you as a Black woman, you will have to work four times as hard just to get your foot through the door”. Arguably, not the best advice to give an 8-year-old but for me to understand the reasons to why Black women are always so underrepresented in so many places it made sense that I had to be the best of the best, for people to notice me.
In turn, this has been the cause of some of the worst burn outs or imposter syndrome I’ve had in the lead up to starting my career, where not only was the pressure to do well, for those under me, overwhelming but lack of recognition in the big achievements I thought I had made, left me feeling low and undeserving of any of them therefore creating a very negative mental head space for my academics and future career ventures. This paired with the Black Lives Matter Movement, daily racism, daily sexism, working in a male dominated sector as well as any threat on women’s rights due to kidnappings, murders, spiking etc; you can see how it can become overwhelming for a Black woman in STEM, inside and outside the office.
This is why pages like @so.we.glow exist and make such a big impact in spaces like this, where direct conversation is made about the Black mental health space and how best to navigate yourself through it. It creates a safe space, where vulnerability is allowed to be shown. Rutendo, is a friend of mine who created the page @so.we.glow on instagram, and has been collaborating with me on this article therefore will now showcase her perspective and thoughts on the topic we are discussing.
Rutendo
So We Glow is a Black mental health awareness campaign which I founded in 2020 while in the final stages of completing my Psychology and Counselling degree. Through conducting research for my honours project investigating the role of the Strong Black Woman stereotype in stress, anxiety and depression, I gained knowledge about the adverse physical and mental effects of experiencing racial trauma and cumulative race-related stress (termed racial battle fatigue) in Predominantly White social spaces, e.g., in the workplace or in academic institutions. Such effects of being in environments with racial discrimination and microaggressions whether online or in person include inability to sleep, suppressed anger, loss of self-esteem and constant worrying.
Having heard key terms such as racial battle fatigue for the first time while writing my dissertation, I realised that there was an information gap, particularly in the UK, on pervasive mental health phenomenon such as racial trauma that are not often included in mainstream mental health campaigns and that I wish were taught on the Psychology undergraduate curriculum. Therefore, through So We Glow, I wanted to provide evidence-based education on such mental health problems that affect the Black community and ways to cope with these issues so people can use the information to reflect on how they are coping and then engage with licensed mental health services and professionals where necessary.
The platform is titled So We Glow as it was established with the idea of “glowing from within to heal” – that is, to celebrate the healing that Black people have done thus far from the painful effects of day-to-day racism and intergenerational racial trauma, and to acknowledge that healing is a continuous, non-linear journey. Mental health stigma within the Black community can affect someone’s willingness and ability to seek support for their mental health. So We Glow aims to discuss factors that can contribute to the stigma, such as that seeking therapy makes you weak, or the idea endorsed by some that you cannot practice your religion and seek therapy at the same time. So We Glow aims to create a community where we can have open conversations not only about how we can challenge the external systems in place that cause barriers to quality mental health care for Black people (e.g. a lack of culturally-adapted therapies available and disproportionate detention rates for Black people compared to their White counterparts) but also about how we can overcome internal challenges (e.g. stigma) within the Black community that obstruct our ability to thrive and heal.
As mentioned by Ash earlier, the effects of being a Black woman are multi-layered in the sense that you are navigating two aspects of your identity: being Black and being a woman, and I can relate some of the difficulties mentioned of trying to flourish in environments where it’s male-dominated or White-dominated. The crossover of multiple identities that affect how others perceive and treat you, and how you perceive yourself is referred to as intersectionality. The term intersectionality was coined in 1989 by Kimberlé Crenshaw, a Black lawyer and feminist scholar, to describe the combination of socio-political identities that together bring different layers of power, privilege and discrimination. Being a Black woman brings multifaceted discrimination in the form of gendered caretaking stereotypes attributed to women as well as stereotypes of being strong and resilient ascribed to Black people. While White women can face gendered discrimination, the discrimination is not multi-layered due to their race, and while Black men can face racism due to being Black, they are not disadvantaged due to their gender identity. Thus, the combination of caretaking and strength stereotypes embedded in gendered racism is unique to Black women.
It is thought that the Strong Black woman stereotype encompasses traits of unyielding strength, caretaking for others and self-sufficiency. Research has identified that unrealistic expectations placed on Black women by others and themselves to be strong while simultaneously taking care of others often leaves Black women feeling unable to express that they need psychological support if they are not coping, as they fear that others will regard them as being weak. Therefore, Black women who adhere to the Strong Black Woman traits often deal with overwhelming circumstances on their own.
In addition to pressures to exhibit strength in the face of adversity, when Black women finally do decide to express justified frustrations towards an occurrence that has upset or offended them, they are often labelled as being “aggressive” and “loudmouthed”, which are descriptions that align with the Angry Black Woman trope - another prominent stereotype attributed to Black women that can affect their mental wellbeing and self-esteem as their concerns are invalidated and dismissed. In Predominantly White social spaces, Black women may find themselves battling between voicing mistreatment and consequently being mislabelled as an Angry Black Woman, or keeping quiet and consequently adhering to the Strong Black Woman ideal. This internal battle can result in race-based stress and physical health deterioration. Studies have found traits of the Strong Black Woman stereotype to be linked to depressive symptoms (e.g., low mood), anxious symptoms (e.g., feeling panicked), stress, unhealthy eating habits etc. The results yielded from my honours project that internalising traits of the Strong Black Woman stereotype was linked to increased symptoms of depression, stress and anxiety supported findings of previous research. Therefore, it’s vital that Black women are aware that they may be internalising this stereotype and the detrimental effects this can have on their health. Additionally, it is imperative that medical and mental health practitioners are aware of such salient stereotypes that affect Black women as to have socio-culturally tailored interventions in place to support the women affected.
Despite the challenges that being a Black woman can bring, there is power in being a Black woman. As Black women, we have the ability to redefine strength for ourselves. That is, we can choose to reject society’s harmful prototype of a strong Black woman and choose to redefine strength for ourselves individually in ways that are more empowering and freeing. For example, as part of my research, I also gathered anecdotal data from a focus group that I conducted with six Black women attending University. The women discussed that they chose to redefine strength for themselves by equating strength with showing vulnerability, living authentically, choosing when to be calm and when to be fierce and not letting society dictate how they should live their lives.
Given the unrealistic expectations to be resilient while being there for others, it’s crucial for Black women to intentionally engage in acts of self-care. Self-care is basically any act(s) you do that contribute to improving your mood and overall health. For Black women, self-care can come in the form of setting boundaries by learning to say no to others when we do not have the capacity to help, accessing talking therapy, scheduling “me” time, joining support networks either online or virtually, journaling to process thoughts and feelings, meditation and time outdoors. This is not an exhaustive list of self-care acts and it’s good to remember people have different ways of coping and de-stressing.
From a Black woman writing to other Black women, I implore you to continuously remind yourself that you are worthy on arrival and being strong (in the traditional sense) is not a prerequisite for your existence. You can redefine strength for yourself in ways that allow you to live a fulfilling and healthy life, and to never apologise for occupying any space. You belong.
We also asked a few questions to some amazing influential Black women in STEM who have been so dedicated and inspirational in their craft. When we got in contact with them, we asked:
how do you stay motivated
who are your inspirations that you looked up to
how do you take care of your mental health from burn outs as well as imposter syndrome, if you've ever faced either.
Dr. Nike Folayan, who is an innovative and results-oriented chartered engineer and Fellow of the institution of Engineering and Technology said:
“I stay motivated by seeing others succeed. I'm motivated by seeing more people from my community excel.
I was lucky to come from a family that supported my goals; I looked up and still very much look up to my older brother Dr Ollie Folayan but also to a lot of women that have paved the way for many of us in the sector. Burn out happens when one takes too much on. It's about pacing yourself and understanding that you won't get it right all the time
I think most people face imposter syndrome. But I've learned to deal with it by identifying it and understanding the whys so I can cope with it.”
Michelle Watiki, who is a graduate engineer at Rolls-Royce said:
“I try to remember my 'why', my motivation for getting into engineering and my ultimate career goal. This especially helps me during low periods, where I don't have the
energy to do anything but my 9-5 even though I also juggle a lot of extra outside-of-work roles. Plus, I remind myself of how I'm currently in the position that I envisioned for myself 8 years ago; at a time where the future seemed so far away. It reminds me that even the slightest progress everyday will eventually add up in the long-run.
I really looked up to my parents and didn't realise till I got a lot older. Their work ethic was just inspirational (they brought us to this country and my mum started her studies when I was young and completed them while having 2 more kids on-top of a full-time job!). It wasn't until I moved out and had to be completely financially independent that I realised that I take a lot after them both.
I give myself periods to relapse and reset. I'm someone who naturally loves to keep busy and feel awful when I'm being idle however as a result, I do get burnt out from time to time. When this happens, I like to give myself the grace and time to switch off then attempt to re-motivate myself using some of the points I made in the first question. I like to think that the low points are just as equally important as my high points
which also grounds me.”
Haddy Davies, who is a Technical Process Lead & Titania Category Manager said:
“I stay motivated by ensuring that my work has purpose and meaning especially around enhancing people’s lives and protecting our planet.
My role model-in-chief is my mum. She has raised me to make do with little. She will say "Do not waste it!” This mindset has helped me to use JM resources as though they are mine. It is the heart of lean six sigma and central to my Business's strategy on circularity. This will be so crucial as we live in an uncertain, competitive world. I have also been inspired by colleagues and senior leaders across my company whose dedication and passion for a cleaner and healthier world is incredible.
I enjoy walking which really helps with my mental health and l do a bit of reflective journaling. I am blessed with a young family. My husband and I have two beautiful daughters and looking after them have been a huge blessing and having that #work-life balance. I also have our church community and I find volunteering in various settings help me to keep in check.”
Yewande Akinola, who is an award-winning Engineer and innovator said:
“In terms of motivation, I would say, I focus on the fact that engineering is about making the world a better place and making the lives of people that I’m designing for, better. But I also focus on the creativity that comes with engineering, which is a huge source of inspiration and motivation for me as I’m constantly seeing the progress that comes from being creative. Seeing the role creativity plays in our world is a really cool journey of watching the unfoldments from where you start and the eventual output.
I honestly look up to anybody who I think does some really cool stuff or if they’re really nice or something about the way that they interact with people. To me it doesn’t matter what their roles are or background, I’m just inspired by people who are interesting and kind. Having said that, there are people that I regard as my mentors, to name a few: Anne Richars (CEO of Fidelity), Nike Folayan, Anne-Marie Imafidon, David George and of course my darling mother.
Spirituality is a big one for me and that is what has saved me from the craziness that some of my days sometimes become, so it’s important for me to always go back to my faith to help me relax a little bit because there is so much pressure from different places so it’s important for me to remember and go back everyday to that spirituality for comfort. Imposter syndrome is one of those things that happen that I’ve had to learn to accept and that you have to deal with it. So a way for me to manage it is to make sure I’m dealing with it when it occurs and at times if I do have stuff to do, be it a meeting or task, I remind myself that I have a duty to contribute to it.”
Mo Oyetunji, who is a Subsea Lead Materials Engineer said:
“I stay motivated by taking note of not just my goals but my deliverables and keeping track of my progress. Additionally my mentors help.
My Mother who was widowed at 31 and 3 kids, pushed through her career becoming the first female Chairman of the Health Service Commission of Lagos State. She mentors young women and her strength and resilience inspires me. Kimberly Bryant, an electrical engineer, initially worked for electronics companies and later moved into biotechnology and then pharmaceutical companies. She's an entrepreneur and is passionate about encouraging young girls to get involved in STEM careers.
I care about my mental health to avoid burnouts by SWITCHING OFF! Taking time off groups, activities and even little things such as my phone, I’ve imposed an 11pm time limit for all apps to go off and I make sure I keep to it except if it's an emergency or inevitable.”
Alike to these inspirational black professionals, we also asked these questions to a black woman in stem student:
Theresa Namaalwa, a woman of Ugandan heritage who grew up in Glasgow and currently in her 4th year of medicine at the University of Dundee said:
“Remaining motivated on my demanding course has its challenges. Still, during this placement focused year, I am often inspired by grateful patients and excellent healthcare professionals. Happily, my ambitious and encouraging Mother is also just a phone call away to renew my efforts. As a success-driven person, I work hard to refine the balance between intense revision, meaningful volunteering, relaxing pastimes and socialising with family and friends. For me, this includes healthy time boundaries and a clear prioritisation of themed activities. For example, I only regularly participate in volleyball and fiddle playing.
Additionally, I recently left various leadership positions to better dedicate my energy to the role of Trustee at the grassroots Glasgow-based charity Afreshe. We are passionate about transforming lives for prosperity through embracing, reconnecting, and sharing heritage. I love the physical and emotional space I have carved to lead quality projects, such as The Spark! Career Stepping Stones. This activity is designed to help African families inspire and inspire through role models sharing their journeys with children and young people.
Generally, I am proactive about maintaining my mental health and wellbeing after a recent deterioration during the COVID-19 pandemic. With a fresh experience of burnout, I greatly value my counsellor, who helps me achieve outcomes and develop coping strategies. I enjoy my weekends, using them as an opportunity to explore new things (like paddle boarding) and step away from my devices. (If you are interested in digital minimalism, I would highly recommend altering your device screen settings to grayscale! Also, consider decluttering your home screen, so you need to search for apps and switch off most notifications!). Despite all these measures, I can still fall into bouts of imposter syndrome. Here, the Bible, the Holy scriptures of my Christian faith, is paramount in reviving and restoring confidence in my worth and ability. Furthermore, I have a church family that is consistently present in the highs and lows of life. Therefore, I sincerely thank the brothers and sisters at Gate Church International in Dundee and St. Mungo’s in Glasgow.”
As mentioned at the beginning, this article wasn’t intended to focus on the hardships of this community but more so to open a discussion and show how we all navigate this space and sector we are all in. It aims to somewhat highlight the detrimental reality of this group clearly; then explore how some women stay inspired and motivated nonetheless. It is evident that how their values shine onto those around them continues and cultivates the enthusiasm necessary to help create that progressive change we need. It aims to support those in our sector that are often shadowed by the majority hence why societies like Women in STEM and Afro-Caribbean Society exist to help uplift and motivate those communities that are often underrepresented, in order to move to a future with a more diverse setting. Thank you to all the Black women in STEM that inspire myself & others; you remind us to keep going everyday.