#Work in silence plus#

#Work in silence plus#

In my 25 plus years in the business, I have yet to receive a single call while holding parking in a Black community of a resident screaming they have been threatened or verbally disrespected. I have seen white privilege used so many times, and every time the Parking PA is viewed to be in the wrong. Unfortunately, in the cases I’ve dealt with, there was not a video, and the resident’s privilege won. Thankfully, there was video, and we all had the chance to see the truth. She attempted to use her privilege to get this man arrested. Now, I want you to take a moment and think about the white woman just last week in Central Park with her dog and the black gentleman bird watching. They can no longer provide for their family based on a single phone call, or more honestly, based on the color of their skin. The Parking PA can no longer work on this production. I must then call my Parking PA and send them home.

There’s no video, so of course, the white resident is right. Keep in mind once again it’s a phone call from a white resident about a black or Hispanic Parking PA yelling at them or threatening their lives while working on that resident’s block. The UPM or location manager deems the phone call legitimate, and swift action must happen. “Send the Parking PA home immediately!” Mind you this is all based on a mere phone call into the production office or location manager.

When I receive the phone call, the majority of the time, my Parking PA is in the wrong. I can recall countless times I have received phone calls about how one of my Parking PA’s was out of line with a resident or supposedly cursed out a white resident in an affluent neighborhood. Yes, 99% persons of color, while the other members of the film crew in other departments are 85% or more white. Now think about what the minority worker has to deal with knowing all of this.Īs the Parking Coordinator, I have to manage a Parking PA crew of fifty or more workers. Since I’ve been in the industry, this has been common practice. The saddest part is everyone in the industry knows it. The NY Film and Television world lacks diversity, is entrenched in racism, shows overt classism, and requires minority growth. There has never been a platform where I would be comfortable enough to speak up until now. The sad part is I would have been right in screaming or just speaking up, but I couldn’t. The room would view me as an angry black man, and no way did I want that perception placed upon me. I have countless stories of how I wanted to scream but couldn’t in fear of being viewed a certain way by my colleagues or losing employment based on just speaking out - speaking my mind. It has been a fantastic experience to work and be a part of the projects I’ve been a part of in both the film and television worlds, but did you know I’ve done this while working in silence? As a Black man in a predominantly white workplace, I’ve had to work and be silent at the same time.

The Parking Coordinator & The Parking PA: They say you do not know what anyone has to deal with until you walk in their shoes. While this is a hot topic, and it seems okay to have this discussion, I wanted to share some insight into what I and others have to deal with daily. The discussion of race and racism is at the forefront of everyone’s mind today. The world is truly changing right before my eyes. The moment George Floyd took his last breath, I cannot imagine he knew he would change the world.