Tokenism: Impact of Tokenization

Tokenism (or tokenization) is the act of prioritizing diversity only symbolically, often by including only a small number of people from marginalized groups as a way to appear diverse without actually striving for it. Examples of tokenism include using a quota system to hire a certain number of diversity hires or singling out a marginalized individual as a representative of their entire group.

Tokenism is a form of covert prejudice and only reinforces existing hierarchical power structures. It affects all marginalized groups—including people of color, LGBTQ+ individuals, disabled individuals, and women—and it exists in all systems, including workplaces and hiring practices, media representation, cultural influencers, education and academia, and politics.

The term “tokenism” first rose to prominence in the 1950s in the speeches of Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. Both civil rights leaders denounced tokenism as a form of hypocrisy in the fight against racial segregation in the United States, arguing that the practice strives for only a minimal acceptance of marginalized groups within mainstream society, especially the experiences of Black people within a white majority group.

Tokenism has a significant negative impact on systems because it:

• Crowds out diverse thought. Tokenism has significant negative consequences on an organization or society as a whole because it ignores the differences in thought, ideas, opinion, and choice that come from a more diverse group of people—which lead to more innovation. Instead, it supports the idea of homogeneity and creates a culture of sameness.
• Forgets about intersectionality. Tokenism often reduces individuals to one single characteristic of their identity—like their race or ethnicity, gender, or sexual orientation—and ignores everything else. This often overlooks important facets of intersectionality in a person’s identity—for instance, the unique experiences of being a Black woman rather than a Black man, or being a queer person with a disability.
• Ignores qualified candidates from marginalized groups. Tokenism’s approach to diversity within a system often relies on a “quota system”—allowing in only a few people from each underrepresented group (“token hires”) while maintaining the predominantly privileged majority. This system disempowers other qualified candidates because once an organization fills its perceived “quota” for diverse demographics, they might ignore marginalized candidates in favor of privileged ones.
• Puts undue stress on tokenized individuals. For the marginalized individuals who make it into the organization, there is an unreasonable amount of pressure for them to both perform at exceptional levels and to be a representative of their entire marginalized group (for instance, the entire BIPOC community). This can have a major impact on the tokenized individuals’ mental health and can lead to exhaustion and burnout.
• Reinforces existing power structures. The most systemic problem with tokenism is that it resists real change—by admitting only a handful of marginalized individuals into the existing privilege system, it reduces their ability to make changes to the organization that would make it friendlier and more inclusive to other marginalized individuals. In addition, it perpetuates the falsehood that because this handful of people “made it,” that other marginalized individuals will encounter fewer obstacles to being successful, as well.

Here are a few ways to prevent tokenism in workplaces, media, and other systems:

• Avoid placing unreasonable expectations on marginalized groups. Token employees and individuals experience significant pressure to outperform their privileged peers and represent their entire group. Make sure your systems for evaluation don’t expect higher performance from marginalized individuals than their privileged peers, and avoid treating individuals as stand-ins for an entire race, culture, gender, or sexual orientation. In addition and where appropriate, avoid more generalized terms (like Asian or Black American) in favor of more specific terms (like Chinese or Nigerian American).
• Be genuine in your desire for inclusion and change. Tokenism comes from an ungenuine, perfunctory desire to fulfill an expectation; on the other hand, real inclusion comes from a genuine desire to change the systems of privilege and listen to more voices. Avoid opting for diversity as a symbolic effort of social justice efforts.
• Celebrate diversity year-round. One regular form of tokenism in media is the celebration of short diversity initiatives like Black History Month, in which Black creators receive more features for only a short period of time before an organization returns to its mostly white programming. Avoid extreme cycles like this by working harder to center marginalized groups regularly year-round.
• Evaluate the system, not just the people within it. Tokenism works to maintain the existing power system by simply admitting marginalized individuals into it; however, these individuals often struggle to find success in these positions because they must follow the rules and expectations of the privileged class while experiencing microaggressions or other hostility. To truly increase diversity and inclusion in an organization, evaluate the existing systems and work to create an open system that enthusiastically listens to different opinions and underrepresented voices in decision-making.

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