Mindspace Washington — Attraction in Washington

Mindspace is supposedly an intersection of collaborative workspaces and creativity. I work for a company that recently leased space at the Mindspace DC location. I was also considering leasing space for my own consultancy. I have attended nearly every event that had been held by Mindspace DC, as part of my effort to fully contribute to the community- and further vet it for my own business needs. After attending their event in honor of Black History Month, I can not recommend Mindspace to anyone of color nor to anyone who stands for cultural and racial tolerance and sensitivity in America. I will in fact be taking my experience and the experiences of my coworkers and other rminorities directly to as many news outlets as possible as it is 2019 and I must do my part to carry on the mantle of standing up for what is right and silencing racist/culturally insensitive actions. In honor of Black History Month, the Mindspace DC staff held a trivia event. The snack offered was popcorn in brown paper bags, which directly resembled cotton in cotton picking sacks that slaves were forced to fill. Please refer to my instagram story (@mchapli_). There was absolutely no need to try and make a black history month event “rustic” and popcorn has nothing to do with black history month, so it is very difficult for me to not see this as a direct insult towards the struggles of Black Americans. Moreover, the paper bags - which had not appeared at any other celebrations- spoke directly to the “paper bag test” which is a pain point of the Black experience in America and in some cases, abroad. Colorism is still an issue, today. When my Black female coworker approached the White female staff member (Her name is Katie) to explain the racist and culturally insensitive impact/effect of the event, Katie dismissed her. Katie’s comments were the epitome of ignorance and White Privelege as she told a black woman at a black history month event “not to make it bigger than what it was” and that she would “make the popcorn disappear by eating it,” while munching the racially charged snack in her face. Katie’s white privilege made what should have been a teachable moment yet another example of latent racism in the workplace.

To respond to the manager response below- Thank you for your response. All I can say is, I wish your staff had been as professional. Simply put, Katie should be fired if the brand of Mindspace is anything other than closeted racism and cultural insensitivity- which she displayed. I do not believe this is what Mindspace is about nor intended to represent, which is why she should be removed. I think this is a staffing issue. There is no excuse and for her to be so flippant about the issue when a customer (regardless of race) came to her and it speaks volumes of her inability to represent the Mindspace brand, to emphasize and support its clientele, and ultimately - to do her job. Whether a teachable moment about racial and cultural sensitivity was downplayed or simple feedback on an event was ignored - Katie was dismissive, insensitive, and insulting in a way that speaks to her personal experiences/views and it cannot be talked through. Several of the Mindspace community felt attacked, tears were shed, pain was experienced. She must be removed, or Mindspace is essentially condoning her actions and allowing her personal ignorance to impact its brand. I hope that doesn’t...

Initially I thought was the space to build upon a great work at our company. Overtime, my feelings have changed. The front desk staff come are hit or miss on being friendly and helpful. I feel like I’m bothering them when raising an issue or asking a question. I just let it go and moved on; however, today, I never have felt so disrespected in the workplace ever. In celebration of black history month they decided to play trivia and have some snacks. They often do happy hours around a theme. Today’s theme seemed friendly and innocent enough until I looked at the snacks and how they were displayed and packaged. Although it may seem minor to some, I immediately connected the imagery to cotton in a bag like when slaves picked cotton. I questioned whether I should say something because the imagery although “innocent” did not sit well with me so I said something to the front desk staff, Katie. She immediately caught an attitude and was like don’t make this a big deal. It is just popcorn and if you don’t like it I’ll eat it to remove it....wow. I’m hurt that she one would talk to a client that way and secondly my experience and how I feel about imagery shouldn’t bother me. The workplace should be sensitive and aware and open to different cultures and if someone of that racial make up is telling you the imagery doesn’t sit...

Our small nonprofit has been with Mindspace since 2019.

We first visited after a bad experience in 2018 at another well-known co-working space (our mail was mishandled, which impacted our donor relationships). The space felt chaotic with a frat-house vibe.

Over the years, we've consistently had an outstanding experience at Mindspace. The staff are warm and professional (front desk love!), the space is clean and warm, and the vibe strikes the perfect balance between polish, chic, and fun.

NOTE: I see comments regarding racial insensitivity pre-covid, as far back as 4 years ago. The staff took those complaints seriously, and made necessary changes. Diversity is one of the elements that makes it a rich and energizing environment, and part of why we value...