Have you heard the phrase vicarious discrimination before? Vicarious discrimination is when you witness either first or second-hand discrimination against another individual that belongs to the same underrepresented community that you do. So, for example, if you are helping someone with an accommodations request you both belong to the same underrepresented community (people with disabilities) and if they are wrongly denied an accommodation, you feel that pain.
You were there for it. You saw the impact on the person you were trying to help. That’s vicarious discrimination. When an employee of an organization discriminates against one person with a disability, the truth is they are discriminating against ALL employees (or applicants) with disabilities. Word gets around. Just look at Fishbowl or GlassDoor.
Alt: Vicarious discrimination contributes to the high rate of burnout in the accessibility professionals’ field.