From skin colour to toilets: Racism never dies

Designer: Monika Pobog-Malinowska
Pic courtesy: Stepinsidedesign.com

All of us have been victims of racism, at least once in our lives. Those who believe racism is all about skin colour, caste, creed or country need to rethink.

I recently came across something I would describe as ‘toilet racism.’ I was told by an office manager not to use a particular wash room as it an exclusive toilet for the company’s directors. General staff and visitors must use the other one. I didn’t, but I wanted to ask ‘why’. Why should there be a different and an unclean toilet for the staff? I find this approach awfully cheap. It is probably just another gift of colonialism.

These precedents are plentiful in India. Though I have never been to the US, I believe these prejudices are less there. US companies operating in India testify my idea. One should go and check out AOL’s (America Online) Bangalore office. From the company’s top management to junior-most staff - all are treated in the same manner. They eat together in the same canteen, drink coffee from the same machine, travel in the same office bus and of course, use the same toilet.

We Indians take excessive pride in shallow things like job designation. We don’t envy or get inspired by each others skills; we envy our colleague’s designation. The more I try to keep myself away from corporate grading system, the more it follows me. My issue with grading system is that it brings disparity.