LinkedIn’s uncomfortable town hall

Racism Score: 1.7

Here is an uncomfortable reality. In the white community and Black community, some people believe Black on Black crime is a bigger problem than police violence.

Those who dare mention the disproportionate number of killings between Black on Black violent crime (i.e. gang violence, random acts of violence, etc.) are instantly cast as racist.

LinkedIn held a town hall to discuss in June to discuss racial injustice in the wake of George Floyd’s murder by police. The dialogue was supposed to be how employees can come together to support one another.

The Verge reports the conversation turned contentious when anonymous comments in the chat centered around Black on Black violence being a bigger issue.  

Plenty of LinkedIn employees in attendance were shocked by the comments.

CEO Ryan Roslansky sent an internal note to staff and shared the note publicly to apologize for the forum, noting the allowance of anonymous comments was a mistake.

This is a very important topic that is difficult for people to discuss. However, just because the topic is provocative does not mean conversations about Black on Black violent crime and gang violence should be avoided. In addition, the insensitivity does not automatically make someone a racist.  

The conversation is very nuanced which can turn emotional. The conversation also requires facts and stats for objectivity. Either way, the topic is not going away and we all stand to lose if we do not listen to one another with an open mind.