NaDiRa short study: Racism in science

Who stays? A Pilot Study on the Career Paths of Black Scholars and Scholars of Colour in Integration, Migration and Racism Research

National Monitoring of Discrimination and Racism (NaDiRa)

Project team members: Prof. Dr. Ali Konyali ,  Dr. Hanna Hoa Anh Mai

Project team:

• Dimitra Dermitzaki
• Nuriani Hamdan
• Ali Konyalı
• Hanna May
• Saboura Naqshband
• Bahar Oghalai
• Alina Goldbach

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Project description:

Within the framework of racism monitoring, we also examine our own institutional structures. Our pilot study analyses the professional careers of academics of colour and black academics in racism, integration and migration research. What factors influence their careers? What is the relationship between underrepresented and established groups? What does their career tell us about institutional racism in a field that is considered progressive? How do their experiences affect research in the field?

Results:

We conducted a total of 19 guided (telephone) interviews with researchers. The experiences of the interviewees are diverse - both in terms of how they deal with their own experiences of racism and in terms of their satisfaction with their own professional position and working environment. But there are also commonalities. For example, most respondents state that they have to navigate power relations in academia. Also, many participants note that while racist structures in research are named, they are insufficiently addressed in their perception in research institutes themselves. 

Surprising insights:

It was mainly women scientists who responded to the call. They report that their intertwined experiences of racism and sexism trigger insecurities and make it difficult to address problems within an institution. The interviewees also frequently took up the aspect of "going abroad" and compared the experiences of racism "here" and "there". We elaborate further on the complex role of "leaving" one academic environment for another, the role of "returning" and of "being in between" in a research note.

Media reports:

Dimitra Dermitzaki and Dr Ali Konyali on racism in science. MeltingPod - Migration in Dialogue: the podcast of the Young Researchers Network of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Integration and Migration Research at the University of Duisburg-Essen, 15.08.2021 (in German)

Short studies in preparation of the Racism Monitor:

In order to prepare a comprehensive racism monitor, DeZIM called on academics* from the DeZIM research community in 2020 to develop innovative study ideas. These should extend existing research projects, pursue new and innovative approaches or build an infrastructure to research racism. By 2021, more than 120 researchers at the six locations of the DeZIM research community had conducted a total of 34 short studies. These are divided into six thematic priorities:

• Health system
• Education system and labour market
• Institutional racism
• Dealing with experiences of racism
• Participation and the media
• Racist ideologies and attitudes

Funding: Federal Ministry for Education, Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (Third-party funding)