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Hundreds of Arabs and Muslims file discrimination reports each year at Wall Street and Essma Bengasbia is among the several who unapologetically reported her workplace discrimination and sexual harassment.
As one of the first hijab-wearing women to work on the trading floors of the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock, Essma Bengasbia was excited to leave her mark in the financial world.
Bengasbia was hired at BlackRock in 2018 as an analyst at the age of 23, having graduated from the renowned NYU Stern School of Business.
“When I came into the company, I was the only person who looked the way I looked on the trading floor” she claimed in a recent interview with USA Today. “I recognized I was very much charting new territory and trailblazing for women who look like me.”
However, Bengabsia explained that her workplace quickly turned into a hostile environment as she experienced frequent discrimination for her gender, race, and religion.
In a first-person essay she wrote for Medium.com last month, she detailed her allegations and titled it “#MeToo at BlackRock”.
BlackRock released a statement subsequently denying any findings related to Bengabsia being the subject of harassment or discrimination.
“BlackRock has acted to address employee misconduct before and will do so again wherever necessary to maintain an inclusive work environment,” said a BlackRock spokesperson as the company refused to further discuss the specifics of the accusations.
Advocates claim that the discrimination reports continue to mount predominantly due to the volatile political climate in which hatred and prejudice against Arabs, Muslims, and immigrants has become more freely expressed as it gains ground in the workplace.
Although accounting for only 1% of the United States population, nearly a quarter of the religious discrimination reports were filled by Muslims. In fact, in 2017, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission documented 802 complaints alleging anti-Muslim discrimination in the workplace, and in 2016, more than 1,000 reports were lodged.
Shortly after Bengabsia was hired she had faced several discriminatory incidents, receiving prejudiced comments, and being questioned about the authenticity of her American status.
In one case, the 23-year-old analyst was allegedly called out for opting to not wear a Christmas-themed sweater at a work party. She was considered to be not wanting to be a part of the team and asked by a senior investor, “Why don’t you just be American for once?”
In another case, Bengasbia claimed to have been mocked by a managing director at the firm for addressing calls with her parents with the common Muslim greeting “Assalamu Alaikum”.
The discrimination mounted in her workplace and Bengasbia proceeded to file a report with human resources where she provided a detailed spreadsheet of each incident with information regarding the dates, times, and witnesses.
In response, human resources sent an individual to investigate the matter and ensure the expansion of diversity training in Bengasbia’s workplace division.
“I’m a woman of my values, and if I see injustice continue and see the opportunity to take action, I will,” she said.
Now working as a senior associate at a financial firm focusing on sustainable and impact investing, Benegsabia launched a petition calling upon BlackRock to take matters at hand and hire an independent firm to address the harassment reports in the workplace and tackle racism.
