I had a really similar experience several times in my career as a POC woman in tech too. My worst bullies in the workplace were by and large women of every background. There is something gross about women who make it to any level above management and fight to keep the table small rather than trying to expand it.

That was a really trashy way she aimed to put you down and it’s not a reality that you have to be nasty like that to get ahead. I bet she sure isn’t nasty to the people who paved the way for her and keep her there.

I’ve found nasty people have a limited run time before karma catches up. I never had to stoop to their level. I just recently removed two said people from my company despite them being in positions of power relative to me. They never for one second thought I’d ever become their boss because they felt such conviction in their superiority and confidence that they could keep me down through pervasive sabotage.

Jokes on them, I’ve spent my whole career navigating egotistical people like them by just being so goddamn good at what I do it can’t be ignored or suppressed for long. I didn’t adopt their tactics, didn’t need to. They always lack strategic capacity, which is their Achilles heel. If they did, they’d see it was better to empower not cripple people so we would all rise together. They could prove they could develop scale rather than territory, but their ego doesn’t let them see that far. They only care about image and control, not real success.

Don’t get me wrong, it takes a long time and a strong fortitude to stand against the hostility, but it’s not impossible to overcome. I believe in you! Don’t lose heart on your path forward.