Why You Can’t Find BIPOC to Hire in Your Private Practice 

How does the June, 2023 Supreme Court ruling to end affirmative action impact leaders who hope to maintain diversity, equity and inclusion practices? The ruling maintains a “colorblind” admission process (Kohn, 2013; Obama, 2023) and leaders are wondering what this means for their initiatives in their organizations. First, we have to examine the unconscious beliefs involved in the hiring practices and then analyze and improve the culture of belonging in the company.

During a consultation with the owners of a private practice, one member stated, “I find it challenging to hire BIPOC (BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) and especially Black clinicians. They don’t apply to the job.”

The business partner agreed with them, “When interviewing, I am looking for a certain spark. Then I know the person will be able to work with clients.”

The supervising clinician said, “We tried reducing the qualifications, but that didn’t work either.” All the leaders in this particular organization identify as white. Most of the staff is white. Many of the clients this organization serves are white, but an increasing number of them identify as Black or Brown, and/or they are in relation with BIPOC (romantically or through adoption). The private practice leaders are hoping to hire more BIPOC clinicians and/or help their clinicians retain their BIPOC clientele.

Unfortunately, their statements are common sentiments and can be said even by people who identify as BIPOC. We are taught these beliefs at a very young age through socialization in the United States and we are not aware how these ideas show up in our work. We make assumptions about ability and access, and unless we see various groups succeeding, we stay unaware. "Seeing is believing," but we are still in a segregated society (Beckett, 2021), so it is hard to see people outside of our identity markers. Many people, including those in leadership roles, are not aware of the thousands of competent, skilled and interested BIPOC available for hire.

The statements said by these directors are rooted in deficit thinking. They are harmful, and they maintain a very white, very racially colorblind or racially color evasive place to work. They value BIPOC who have proximity to particular ways of being—to specific class experiences, speech, and values.

We want to find certain qualities and characteristics in interviewees, but the truth is, these can vary for many reasons, such as context, environment, and political climate. We also tend to value a specific way of acting, and diversions from this are not accepted in homogeneous settings.

For example, a Black Latinx clinician arrives at an interview in an unfamiliar neighborhood, not too far from where they reside. While parking, a member of the community who was also parking, called out to the clinician and questioned if the clinician was lost and demanded to know where they were going. The interaction was experienced by the clinician as re-triggering both their personal and ancestral trauma. The day prior, a Black person had been killed for showing up at the wrong door. This was weighing heavily on the clinician's mind and spirit. The stranger was communicating that the clinician did not belong in this area and could not possibly be in the right place due to identity, class, and worth. The clinician tried to shake off the interaction in order to succeed in the interview, but knew they were not well.

I shared this scenario with the private practice leaders: “How do you think this might impact the clinician during your meeting with them? Could something like that happen here?”

The practice leaders thought about it. “Well, it is related because our organization is in a very insular neighborhood. We are in NYC, but everyone knows each other on this block. And most people share a similar identity and even the same ethnoreligion.”

Another chimed in, “That 'spark' I was looking for might be dimmed by that bad interaction earlier for the interviewee. If the stranger resembled me in racial identity, the interviewee could be hesitant to connect.”

Context is important. Intergenerational understanding is vital. Our chances are different, which is why affirmative action provides experiences for those who might miss them.

We reflected on how this clinician could arrive at the interview and put down their unconscious worries about experiencing further triggers.

What is on the walls of the practice? Can interviewees see people who look like them? What books are on display? Do any relate to the interviewee or other clientele’s experiences? What quotes, values and opportunities relate to BIPOC? How might a job description, locale, or website turn off a clinician from applying to a position? Do any leadership identities reflect the identities of the staff and clientele? What does that say about who is valued for their insight and power?

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Once there is a true culture of belonging and an effort to ensure psychological safety for those who differ in identity and ability in an organization, we can start to think about where job postings are placed. Contacting universities and their cultural student unions and reaching out to diversity recruiters (Jopwell or OnRamps for example) can impact who sees the opportunity and applies. Studying how these organizations write their job postings can provide insight for what offers and language to use.

Hiring BIPOC with the hopes of them staying at your organization requires effort and care. Organizations may state “Everyone is welcome.” But this is a very different atmosphere from, “This place is designed with you in mind. And, we'd love to share the power.” This is the key to substantial equity and inclusion.