THE COLLISION

A retired systems engineer discusses her experiences with workplace discrimination in this memoir and guidebook for Black women.

West’s résumé speaks for itself. The author holds a doctorate in engineering, she’s led a multi-decade career in civil service with institutions spanning from NASA to the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command, she’s served as a project lead on multimillion dollar programs, and she’s one of the world’s leading experts on using pattern recognition and Bayesian probability theory in radar target identification. Yet, as she writes in this thoroughly documented work, at each stage of her career, she has been systematically excluded from leadership positions and retaliated against when she brought forth complaints. Her experiences, in part, led to the passage of the 2002 No FEAR Act, which strengthened anti-discrimination and whistleblower protection laws. In these pages, West emphasizes how her childhood experiences in segregated Memphis during the Civil Rights era provided her with the wisdom and strength to persevere. The author provides an overview of the discriminatory practices she confronted while working for the federal government and chronicles repeated attempts to marginalize and silence her, ranging from subtle procedural changes to overt violence (a male colleague once pushed her at the top of a flight of stairs). This detailed history undergirds the second half of the book, which serves as a handbook for Black women in the workplace. Comparing corporate, military, and laboratory settings to a chess board, West argues that the “Game is Rigged” against Black women (the queen on the board who “is the most capable piece”) in favor of white men (“The White King” who moves slowly and is rarely instrumental to the gameplay but is the most protected piece). The author launches a searing indictment against human resource policies and Equal Employment Opportunity mechanisms that “function less as corrective instruments and more as shock absorbers” that protect white male leadership. Drawing on her own experiences with mistreatment and her hyperattention to detail as an engineer, West provides practical, actionable advice for Black women, including best practices for interacting with fellow employees, guidance for navigating bureaucratic procedures, and tips on how to document and record their experiences.

A powerfully written indictment of discrimination in the modern workplace.