A worrying number of black staffers from the White House have reportedly started leaving or have stated plans to leave from President Joe Biden’s administration since late last year, issuing statements that highlight a White House that refused to support them or offer them decent promotion opportunities.
A few of the black Biden staffers have started to use the term “Blaxit” to talk about this mass exodus from the administration, stated both a former White House official and a current White House official to Politico. This is happening despite the administration’s repeated statements that it prides itself on its open talks and extreme focus on racial issues.
A group of current and former black White House officials, nine strong, who spoke anonymously out of fear of reprisal, stated to the publication that the “Blaxit” event has decimated the morale of the administration — “compounding problems that exist elsewhere,” stated a report from Politico. These officials have stated that promotions, or even mentorships, were “exceptionally rare,” within the administration according to the outlet.
“We’re here and we’re doing a lot of work but we’re not decision-makers and there’s no real path towards becoming decision-makers,” claimed a current black White House official to the outlet. “There is no real feedback and there’s no clear path to any kind of promotions.”
A different former black White House official stated that quite a few “people have not had the best experiences and a lot of that has to do with the dearth of Black leadership.”
“Think about any workplace,” claimed that official in a statement. “Black folks need some person to go to, to strategize and be a mentor, and we just don’t have as many folks who can be mentors to us.”
“They brought in a ton of Black people generally to start without ever establishing an infrastructure to retain them or help them be successful,” yet another black White House official, current this time, stated to Politico. “If there is no clear infrastructure of how to be successful, you become just as invisible in this space than you would be if you were not in it.”
The publication issued a report that a few black White House staffers constantly fear that the mass departure of black staffers will expose the White House’s larger issues.
“They gave us a mandate to execute on all the things that we promised and not only are we not delivering on that front, but then we’re not also delivering to the staff that came in on the basis of that promise,” one current official stated to Politico. “People go home to their families or their communities, and what can they point to specifically? They can’t even point to their own experiences as positive.”
In response to the alleged “Blaxit,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre attempted to give assurances to Politico that Biden is “incredibly proud to have built what continues to be the most diverse White House staff in history, and he is committed to continuing historic representation for Black staff and all communities.”
“This is a normal time for turnover across the board in any administration and Black staff have been promoted at a higher rate than staff who are not diverse,” concluded Jean-Pierre.
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