Opening * Frame for today: what women’s empowerment really means when you are the one most often left out of the room, and what changes when Black women are in charge. * For the men watching: “If you’re a man, think of your wife, your mother, your daughter, your sister as we talk today.” Bio: Zuri Stevens Zuri Stevens, “a sociologist without borders” (Stevens, n.d.-a, “Why Subscribe?” section), writes We Need A Black Woman In Charge on Substack for readers who want “another point of view... from a Black woman who has lived in North America, Africa, Europe and Asia” (Stevens, n.d.-a, “Why Subscribe?” section). Her premise: “when Black women are in charge, the world is a much better place” (Stevens, n.d.-b, homepage description). As a Black woman, she writes, she “can never afford to be that angry” (Stevens, 2026, subtitle). Social Media Links: We Need A Black Woman In Charge (Substack): Her main publication. X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/baselpoet. Posts as @baselpoet. Key Research * The first step up is hardest for Black women. For every 100 men promoted to manager last year, 93 women are promoted, but only 60 Black women (LeanIn.Org & McKinsey & Company, 2025). * Commitment is slipping. 67% of companies call diversity a high priority, down from 90% in 2021. About two in ten have stopped or scaled back bias training, and a similar share have cut diversity investment (LeanIn.Org & McKinsey & Company, 2025). * Sponsorship gap. 31% of entry-level women have a sponsor, compared with 45% of men at their level (LeanIn.Org & McKinsey & Company, 2025). * The anger penalty. In two experiments, Black women who expressed anger at work were rated as worse performers and weaker leaders than angry white women, Black men, or white men. Observers blamed her personality (Motro et al., 2022). * Code-switching costs. Black employees who code-switch are consistently seen as more professional. The authors argue the effort is draining and the pressure itself reflects bias (McCluney et al., 2021). * The glass cliff. Women and people of color are more likely to be promoted to the top during a crisis, when the risk of failure is highest. Later studies show mixed results, so present it as a pattern, not a rule (Cook & Glass, 2014; Ryan & Haslam, 2005). Audience Question “What’s one way you’ll make room for a Black woman’s voice, or your own, this week?” Closing Quote “My silences had not protected me. Your silence will not protect you.” (Lorde, 1977/2001, p. 302) References Cook, A., & Glass, C. (2014). Above the glass ceiling: When are women and racial/ethnic minorities promoted to CEO? Strategic Management Journal, 35(7), 1080–1089. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.2161 LeanIn.Org, & McKinsey & Company. (2025). Women in the workplace 2025. https://leanin.org/report/women-in-the-workplace/ Lorde, A. (2001). The transformation of silence into language and action. In J. Ritchie & K. Ronald (Eds.), Available means: An anthology of women’s rhetoric(s) (pp. 302–305). University of Pittsburgh Press. (Original work published 1977) McCluney, C. L., Durkee, M. I., Smith, R. E., II, Robotham, K. J., & Lee, S. S.-L. (2021). To be, or not to be…Black: The effects of racial codeswitching on perceived professionalism in the workplace. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 97, Article 104199. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2021.104199 Motro, D., Evans, J. B., Ellis, A. P. J., & Benson, L., III. (2022). Race and reactions to women’s expressions of anger at work: Examining the effects of the “angry Black woman” stereotype. Journal of Applied Psychology, 107(1), 142–152. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000884 Ryan, M. K., & Haslam, S. A. (2005). The glass cliff: Evidence that women are over-represented in precarious leadership positions. British Journal of Management, 16(2), 81–90. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8551.2005.00433.x Stevens, Z. (n.d.-a). About. We Need A Black Woman In Charge. https://weneedablackwomanincharge.substack.com/about Stevens, Z. (n.d.-b). We Need A Black Woman In Charge [Substack publication]. Stevens, Z. (2026, October 14). How Kelly Clarkson became an angry White woman. We Need A Black Woman In Charge. Thank you Mandy Ohman, Alissa Resch, EG, Millie Jones-Cowles, LeftieProf, A. Eevie Bateman, Chris Resists and many others for tuning into my live video with Zuri Stevens! Join me for my next live video in the app. Join Me: Want to be a guest on one of my Substack Live conversations? Book a Substack Live Pre-Interview on Zoom. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit substack.iprofessionalcoaching.com/subscribe
