Our Feature Series on The Work We Didn’t Do—reflections on times when we failed to intervene or act for equity and inclusion—was inspired in part by a post from a friend of mine on social media. In it, she shared an anecdote representative of a larger trend she had recognized in which she failed to intervene as a bystander and later regretted her lack of involvement.
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Throughout this series my colleagues have shared moments and experiences when they felt they didn’t “do the work.” In some situations, “the work” would have been speaking up in the face of injustice, engaging with someone who had a different perspective, challenging a learning community to go “deeper” in their work, or owning and honoring one’s own truth. I have learned a lot from Leigh, Mary-Frances, Valda, Kevin, and Travis through reading their posts.
Read MoreSeveral years ago, after the election of Trump made political polarization explicit and unavoidable, I remember several think-pieces surfaced on the “Dos,” “Don’ts,” and best practices around blocking or deleting your friends from your social media. The suggestions ranged from blocking to protect yourself in the spirit of self-care, to resisting blocking in the spirit of dialogue and change.
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As we know, DEI work is complex, can be polarizing, and, I would add, delicate. This is why I feel strongly that we must assess learners’ readiness and take a developmental approach. The risk of shutting down the opportunity for learning is high when we don’t consider the learner’s capacity to comprehend and process certain concepts. I encountered a situation about 15 years ago where a client representative insisted that her leadership team was ready to have deep discussions about racial injustices, even though they had not done any previous DEI work.
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While I cannot recall a time when I failed to intervene to prevent or address an overt injustice, I recall moments as a facilitator when I did not put in place the norms and mechanisms necessary for all people to experience the psychological safety needed to share their truths and experiences around being part of a marginalized or subordinated group.
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I went from moving my car because (in my mind) he was a racist Trump supporter, to being really reflective. Here, I had attributed so many negative character traits to a man I had never met, all because he had a few hats on his dashboard. I was quickly realizing that, he may be none of the things I was allowing myself to believe and that he was probably just a regular guy, who, like me, enjoys a good Target run.
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As Catalina Pinto introduced last week, this feature series will explore...
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At The Winters Group—and in the diversity, equity, inclusion (DEI) field at large—we...
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