On Pay Equity: Part 1 of 3. I'm Black in Historic Preservation (+ Architecture)
of course, when I see something, I say something in the name of pay equity
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Welcome to the Inaugural Black in Historic Preservation Substack Essay!
The lore goes that the White European men who developed the foundation of the US did so with the intent of liberty and justice for all, freedom of speech, etc., etc. They codified these beliefs in the country’s constitution, and Black people, and other people of color, and LGBTQIA+ people, White people of low income, etc., have been a measure of accountability for the adherence to this Constitution to this day.
What happens when someone challenges the adherence to the foundation of this country within the ranks of one’s profession, specifically one’s professional membership organization? Black in Historic Preservation’s founder, k. kennedy Whiters, AIA, LEED GA, did so last year with the American Institute of Architects’ New York City Chapter (AIANY). Read about what happened in the inaugural essay in Black in Historic Preservation’s Substack. It’s multi-part, “The New Yorker”-esque, as one reviewer commented.
Members may submit essays for publication by emailing blackinhistpres@wrkshapkilowatt.com. This essay includes a Call to Action for the reader to participate in AIANY’s strategic planning survey. So, keep reading, and thanks!
Disclaimer from the author: Shaming is not in my toolkit for change. However, it is important to hold people and institutions accountable for their behavior that is a barrier for the change we need and seek for a just and equitable society. With this in mind, while I mentioned members of the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIANY) leadership/staff/consultants by title or AIANY, the non-profit, I do so to share my experience as a former AIANY member and to tell a fuller story for equity and healing of myself and others.
Even with my attempts not to shame people in telling my story, I realize that some might perceive that I am. This attempt to tell fuller histories about the traumatic lived experiences of Black people, like slavery and redlining, and a more honest (hi)story of the United States in general, is one that people view as shaming White people. However, at some point, for the equitable society that most people want, critical thinking with discernment on whose comfort takes priority in storytelling about the past is key.
As the incident of Nov. 9 is now my second experience of aggression at the official home for architects in New York, the Center for Architecture, I feel it is important to share one of the more egregious experiences as a Black woman in architecture as a teachable moment for AIANY and the profession at large on conflict and post-conflict restoration. Throughout my architecture career and education, I have felt like someone’s or an institution’s teachable moment – and the one I describe in this article might be the biggest one.
Also, the details within are of verbal abuse and trauma that some readers might find difficult to experience. Proceed with care with your well-being in mind. Thank you.
As I finished writing this article, approximately two weeks had passed since a founder of the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects Civic Leadership Program (AIANY CLP) attempted to publicly shame me with “know your place aggression” because I chose to publicly highlight AIANY’s lack of pay equity for the CLP program, of which I had been a cohort member for the past five months, since June 2023. A new awareness of the “passion tax” also fueled this request for accountability, something I learned of in a workshop on equitable professional practices for public history professionals at the 2023 National Council on Public History Conference.
More on that later, but first …
“2023 marks the 100th year that The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has included African American members. That first member in 1923 was Architect Paul Revere Williams.”
AIA National President-Elect Kimberly Dowdell, AIA, NOMAC, began her 2023 Juneteenth post with the two sentences above. Reading them was the first time I learned this tidbit of architectural history. Ms. Dowdell will be the first Black woman elected to the position.
Rewriting the two opening sentences to convey the significance of this history even more, as I say, “unredactedly” in my (un)Redact the Facts history communications/storytelling initiative, in a direct way to explicitly state who did what to whom to get to why and prevent why from repeating, i.e., “history from repeating,” I would say:
“In 1923, the AIA’s all-White members granted membership to its first African American member, Architect Paul Revere Williams.”
The purpose of the aforementioned (un)redaction is to prevent the history of excluding people from membership in professional organizations from repeating.
With this information, I am curious as to why Paul Revere Williams, why him, why 1923?
Before Williams, there were many Black architects in the US. Beverly Greene (1915 - 1957) was the first African American woman architect licensed to practice in the U.S.
In 2021, two Columbia professors prefaced their presentation about Greene with “a historical background that introduced three Black women who were documented practicing architects before Greene entered the field: Elizabeth Carter Brooks (1867–1951), Amaza Lee Meredith (1895–1984), and Ethel Madison Furman (1893–1976).”
It is safe to assume, because men of all races discriminated against women of all races during their careers, that the majority, White members of the AIA would deny their membership. However, again, I question why Paul Revere Williams, why him, why 1923? The “why” is important because it helps us to prevent why from repeating. In her LinkedIn post, Kimberly Dowdell mentioned a comparison between Paul Revere Williams and Jackie Robinson – both the first Black people whom White people admitted to their respective all-White clubs. For Paul, it was architecture. For Jackie, it was baseball.
In January 2023, I read the announcement of another “first Black person,” and I thought about Jackie Robinson. These thoughts, I shared where any 21st C. person would do …. on X fka Twitter: https://x.com/unRedacTheFacts/status/1611078358217166848?s=20
In summary, he wasn’t the first. Yet, the story we live with today is that he was.
Fast-forward to 2023. Wouldn’t it be nice if the AIA waived membership fees to its Black members for discriminating against Black architects for, let’s see, 1923 minus its founding in 1857 is … 66 years? In 2023, I paid approximately $800.00 annually for AIA membership: national membership, local membership at the state and county levels, and associate membership for AIANY, which is the Manhattan/New York City chapter.
Instead of expecting volunteer hours from Black members, compensate them for their active participation in the organization. These gestures would make up for decades and generations of exclusion that has not only harmed Black people but has harmed the profession in general via the loss of Black people’s contributions to the profession as architects.
Photographs by Janna Ireland of Williams’ work were on display in AIANY’s Center for Architecture, July 13, 2023 - October 31, 2023. While AIANY’s exhibit program description does mention that Williams was “the first Black member of the American Institute of Architects,” framing it in the context of the AIA excluding Black architects as members before 1923, the year they granted membership to Williams, would tell a fuller story about the organization and a fuller story about the profession of architecture. Doing so might explain why the profession continues to have low numbers of matriculation and retention of Black architects.
….
A Call to Action for AIANY and the architecture profession at-large
I am an architect, a Black woman, and I have been a member of the American Institute of Architects on and off since graduate school, where I earned dual degrees in architecture and urban planning. In total, I earned and paid for five college degrees and two licenses to practice architecture. I have done all of these accomplishments to be of service, primarily with communities that have experienced historical neglect, i.e., underserved/underrepresented/underresourced/historically neglected by their governments and institutions, the majority of whom are White-led.
On Thurs., Nov. 9, 2023, I took to task AIANY’s contribution to the trend of unpaid labor in architecture, a form of exploitation, especially of the profession’s younger/emerging architects and designers. I did so in the concluding Call to Action to the first of two Public Events produced by the 2023 AIANY Civic Leadership Program, of which I am a 2023 cohort member, one of ten. The theme for the night that my cohort members and I picked was Storytelling in Architecture.
For six months, the ten cohort members planned five development sessions and two public events for AIANY. We have also written five articles and would complete seven articles at the conclusion, one for each Public Event, and written our own biographies that mention our employers, all of which AIANY has posted to their website. And, per the Speaker Agreement we signed to participate in the program, AIANY uses our image and likeness, the deliverables we produced in perpetuity. Based on my own record keeping of hours spent planning what has been, in essence, AIANY programming, I would invoice AIANY $10,000.00 for my services.
The Call to Action, a Call that I prefaced by stating that contrary to how I might have appeared that night, I was in pain all day and evening with menstrual cramps:
If I had told a story tonight
I would have told
A tale of how architecture
Has made me feel exploited,
Oops, that didn’t rhyme
Maybe next time
Too many stories to share,
including this very experience in AIANY’s CLP
For, since June, although I am grateful for the opportunity
of reciprocal learning and teaching among new friends
Too many emails to ignore
Sent after hours by my fellow cohort members at
10:00pm, 11:00pm,
and on weekends, too.
In the name of Civic Leadership,
they say
planning two AIANY public events and
five development sessions
Our compensation for this labor?
The “Passion Tax”
Experience, social capital, and CEUs (if approved by AIA National)
that my landlord
definitely,
absolutely accepts as
rent
Payment!
And, fellow cohort members’ employers
receive free advertising on AIANY’s
website and social media
from their emerging and mid-career leader’s unpaid labor
in CLP
For levity, I would have told you about the times
That architecture made me cry …
Tears of joy
Tales of my times,
Wait for it,
In thee Guggenheim
Ahh, that rhymes!
Sooo, my call to action, in addition to reflecting on tonight’s wonderful storytelling
Is, to do one of two, or all the things,
pay attention to the screen:
One: Related to storytelling, take my survey on grammar and language choices in stories. How do they make you feel? Since 2021, through my initiative called (un)Redact the Facts I have been advocating for the active voice instead of the passive voice, and more.
And Two: In the name of pay equity, something that architects often talk about:
Sign this petition to ask AIANY to increase its budget for the CLP.
For, next week, they [for this article, stating here for clarity, the Center for Architecture] open an exhibit for a residency in which they are paying three residents $10,000.00 each. And, Rightly so.
However, don’t you think they can revisit its budget for the Civic Leadership Program, aka CLP?
With a 2020 net asset report of $9.2M
Perhaps they can afford
To pay the planners of their programs
That bring in $2.4M dollars. (as reported to the IRS in 2020)
And, CLP’s total honorarium budget of $400.00. Speaking from experience, not enough, not a standard honorarium budget. This line item, for pay equity, AIANY should raise, too.
CLP has asked for our feedback and I’d like to do that with some support!
So, thank you for coming,
you could’ve been anywhere else, and you chose to be here,
be kind to yourselves and others,
Sleep well,
and good night!
In response, a founder of AIANY’s CLP attempted to put me in my place and publicly shame me for framing CLP as unpaid labor and another example of many exploitative pay equity issues in the architecture profession. He stated, and rightly so, that I was discussing an issue of economics.
Some attendees contacted me and my fellow cohort members with feedback on what transpired. One attendee and one of the night’s storytellers, who asked to remain anonymous, said, “Kudos for callin' AIA out on this … y’all are putting in programming work. Not everyone has a corporate arch gig to have time to work, and it seems appropriate as a member to be critical of the budget.” This comment speaks to the elitism that unpaid labor in professions supports – the practice excludes those who cannot afford to commit to additional labor that does not come with financial compensation.
Another attendee who asked to remain anonymous shared:
“I found the (directors?) comments at the end, frankly, a bit strange for the environment. He described the constituents of the AIA as "us/we," I would beg to differ. I think that is like conflating critique of an institution (say, like our government) with an unwillingness to participate in the institution itself. Donations from the (working class) members of the AIA (as he suggested) are much farther away from the demands/critiques of kennedy/other AIA members, and suggest that there is nothing wrong with the internal workings of the institution itself.”
My cohort members who are, like me, AIA members and some who are both AIA members and members of the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) observed the rebuttal and shared their observations with me on the Call to Action I gave on Nov. 9. I am sharing with their permission, anonymously:
“I saw a brave performance (with assistance from [names redacted to protect their anonymity]). I heard a lot of cogent grievances against the AIA and CLP, along with promotion of unRedact the Facts. I felt a mixture of admiration for kennedy and I felt uncomfortable hearing all of these grievances in a public forum, and feeling embarrassed for [Names redacted by kennedy to protect herself, a member of a vulnerable community, from accusations of public shaming]. Now, 12 days later, I feel embarrassed with the CLP for its silence.”
“I perceived this as an exciting moment for a civic leader taking advantage of a unique opportunity to voice her concern about an issue she cares about. I saw support from the witnesses in their body language. At first, it made me a little uncomfortable because 1) kennedy's speech was unannounced and I worried she would not deliver the way she would have wanted; 2) the Center For Architecture was minutes from closing time and I was worried that she would be interrupted. However, the discomfort quickly dissipated and I came away feeling excited.”
“It was a surprise; but frankly that doesn't matter. It was right, and professionally written and delivered as an invitation to elevate the program and its influence. I felt heavy air, but I also felt inspired and vindicated in the message.
The Call to Action was a brave statement. In the moment, it appeared to be an official closing to the public event – one planned by the AIANY CLP fellows who organized the evening’s (lovely) program. kennedy’s thoughtful performance (in verse!) resonated with some of my own feelings about the AIANY CLP program, and immediately after it was delivered I was excited about the conversations and work that could follow with the AIANY CLP cohort and leadership in imagining its future.”
Their reflections on the impromptu response from the CLP co-founder:
“I saw and heard an emotional and personal response, leaning heavy on the origins of the CLP and his role in it. I heard a public rebuke, and the phrase, ‘We are the AIA and if we want more money we need to go out and raise that money.’ He was defensive, and presented himself as the speaker of the CLP and the AIA. He did not represent either group in a positive light.”
“The optics-- that is, the 10,000 foot view-- at first didn't seem noteworthy. I perceived it to be a ‘piggyback’ response, a building on what kennedy had just said. But soon it became clear that this was a different kind of speech with only thin connection to kennedy's points. I heard otherwise valid points about ‘being pissed [off] together’ and rallying architects for a common political cause being used for fundraising for the AIA more broadly. I heard that the "we are the AIA", which is true only to a point, and not at the core of the Call to Action.
I also saw irony, in a CLP founder/emeritus AIA member seeking the stage in an event in which the architects were meant to step back and allow others to speak. Later I learned that kennedy felt physically threatened by where [Name redacted by kennedy to protect herself, a member of a vulnerable community, from accusations of public shaming] stood, which I didn't notice at first, since there was limited space in the "stage" area to begin with. I felt awkward most of the time.”
“Absolutely unnecessary, personally-driven projection, unprofessional, awkward; and while Kennedy had a formal role, Esteban did not. And it was not a good look. tainted the mood built over the course of the night. defensive is never a good look. And that reflects on all CLP.
When I saw the AIANY CLP co-founder approach the stage, I worried that his reaction might be defensive, and it was. Considering the theme of the event, I had hoped that space would be held for kennedy’s feedback which I received as an invitation for imagining the improvement of the AIANY CLP program, not a rejection of it, and was disappointed that the event ended with his final statement.”
Coincidentally, hours before I gave these closing remarks and the rebuttal ensued, I received an email from AIANY to renew my membership. Other coincidences: the day before (Nov. 8), AIANY announced that it raised $1.8M at its annual Common Bond fundraiser, and AIANY’s New York City collaborator, the Center for Architecture in Greenwich Village, does compensate program providers called residents, $10,000.00 each, and rightly so, as I mentioned in the Call to Action. The exhibit at AIANY’s Center for Architecture, prepared by the three Center for Architecture Lab residents, opened on Nov. 16.
And, even more coincidentally, two days after I, an introvert, gave one of the bravest statements I have ever given in my life, the New York Times published a profile about the first Black woman president of the AIA, Kimberly Dowdell. The article coupled this news with the usual statistics: the low percentage of Black architects and the even lower percentage of Black women architects, less than 1%. It also provided the reasons I have seen published in many articles: the expense of architecture school being one of them.
Therefore, as I mentioned earlier, in relation to unpaid labor for AIANY’s CLP program, an economic inaccessibility issue contributes to the low percentage of Black architects. It is also important to compensate architects and designers for their labor—even the AIA and its chapters must be accountable to do so. Race aside, unpaid labor in the profession contributes to an ethos of elitism. It undermines the pleas of architects who advocate for the “value of the architect” to the outside world, advocacy that I witnessed at the Center for Architecture earlier this year in one of their public programs.
….
So what, now what?
Stay tuned for Part 2 of 3, where I share AIANY’s response …. In the meantime, AIANY is asking for feedback on its organization for its strategic plan. I invite you, the reader, to ask AIANY, in their survey to financially compensate their Civic Leadership Program participants: click here.
Suggested text for the question, “Which of the following initiatives and offerings should AIA New York and Center for Architecture prioritize in the next five years? (Select all that apply.)”:
Other: “Financially compensate Civic Leadership Program participants”
Suggested text to add to the question: “Anything else to share? Please provide any other comment here about AIA New York/Center for Architecture programming.”
Increase the AIANY Civic Leadership Program's Budget to include a stipend for each CLP cohort member. A suggested stipend per member is $10,000.00.
:: At a billable rate of $100.00/hr, that's $10,000.00 per cohort member labor.
:: For reference, AIANY's Center for Architecture Lab pays three residents $10,000.00 for a 6-month residency.
:: Cohort members do not receive a stipend for their participation in CLP. Instead, they receive a potential, maximum of 29 CEUs.
:: On average, the cohort members spend 100 hours planning two (2) AIANY programs in CLP over 6-months:
(1) a Development Session and
(2) a Public Event.
for a total of seven chapter programs and seven articles for the AIANY newsletter about each program, written by the cohort members.
:: Cohort members do not receive time from their employers during typical working hours to plan the AIANY programs that are components of the CLP. Therefore, they are planning the programs late at night, and during the weekends. Labor like this, unpaid, continues to be a common expectation of the architecture profession, especially for early career professionals and students.
:: Unpaid internships and fellowships are known for supporting elitism in a profession by restricting who can participate in programs such as AIANY CLP.
Thank you for planning and offering this enrichment program. And, thank you for practicing integrity by valuing architects via financially compensating architects, planners, and designers who plan your private and public programs via the CLP.
Thank you for reading, reflecting, and taking action. Enjoy the day of your choosing.
Part 2:
k. kennedy Whiters, AIA (she/her), is a New York-based architect, social scientist, published writer, and guest speaker. She is the founder of two historic preservation studios: (1) studio kW Architecture, PLLC that serves NY-based clients and (2) wrkSHäp | kiloWatt, home to three initiatives she founded to support racial equity: Black in Historic Preservation (BiHP), Beyond Integrity in (X), and (un)Redact the Facts. kennedy has been featured by the Advisory Council of Historic Preservation (ACHP) and on the UK/Canada-based podcast "The Allusionist.”
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