Tokenism describes the act of hiring or pictures which include a minority only in order to escape criticism, appearing diverse and promoting the false idea of fairness (this can be based on race, sex, disability, sexuality etc).
Why is tokenism a problem?
Tokenism is a way to mask inactivity within organisations and present diversity without any real inclusion. This evidently makes it an empty movement that has no real impact fighting racial inequality. It gives companies false accreditation and sense of achievement, making marginalized people into tokens denies them access to progress and instead dehumanises them.
When deciding whether a company is engaging in tokenism it is important to focus on intent. If a group only contains one candidate from an underrepresented minority it could be an instance of tokenism, it could be a company which has only recently begun its diversity efforts or past initiatives are preventing diversity.
Here are some examples:
And more for you to read:
To conclude tokenism is an underpinning of systemic oppression and maintain its function whilst appearing as if it is making progress.