If we are going to operationalize justice in organizations, we will have to start hiring and promoting into power positions those who understand what a justice-centered approach entails and are not afraid to work through the resistance, conflict and discomfort that will surely be a part of the process. A number of past Inclusion Solution posts have questioned the sincerity of the commitment that organizations made to racial justice in the wake of last year’s Black Lives Matter protests. It did not take long before we started to experience backpedaling from the forceful declarations many organizations made to become anti-racist organizations.
I am finding that organizational leaders, in their quest to placate the dominant group (those with systemic power, privilege and social status), are taking the path of least resistance. They are hearing from those who have their ear that “this anti-racism stuff is going too far. What about me and my group?” They are also being influenced by accounts of white people feeling uncomfortable, targeted and attacked. In some organizations, leaders are expressing anger and resentment about engaging in anti-racism work. I was reviewing the results of an equity audit that The Winters Group conducted for a client and one of the essential findings was that there were key stakeholders (leaders) who were against and even hostile about diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the organization.
As a result of the resistance, we are being asked to expand learning content to include other historically marginalized groups beyond Black/African Americans and to use language that is more palatable to white people. In essence, we are being asked, as usual, to center the feelings of the dominant group (white people). I have no problem including content on other marginalized groups beyond Black/African Americans. However, every racial and ethnic group has had a unique history of oppression. We actually do a disservice, and it is disrespectful to people of color when we “lump” everybody together as if the experiences are all the same — and to boot, do it in a 90-minute session. As a result of the events of last summer, organizations vowed to specifically address anti-Black racism. This does not mean that other forms of racism are less important and do not demand attention; the recent rise in anti-Asian racism is a prime example. We believe that a focus on anti-Black racism — which is a response to the unique ways the U.S. was built on anti-Blackness and continues to perpetuate these compounded inequities — will also benefit our understanding of other forms of racism and actions that can mitigate them too. We encourage organizations to give appropriate attention to each “-ism” separately.
A focus on anti-Black racism - which is a response to the unique ways the U.S. was built on and continues to perpetuate anti-Blackness - will also benefit our understanding of other forms of racism and actions that can mitigate… Click To TweetIt is one thing to espouse anti-racist values and another to live them. Espousal is an important first step. Prior to last year’s racial reawakening, most organizations did not even use the term “anti-racism.” And still it is rare that this language is included in communications. As Zoe King pointed out in her post last week, 45% of Black workers and 30% of white workers report that their workplace actively discourages discussion of racial justice issues in the workplace.
Anti-racism is new territory for many leaders. Some may not have fully understood what they were signing up for when they vowed to address anti-Black racism. Now that we are almost a year since George Floyd’s murder and the Black Lives Matter protests that erupted around the globe as a result, leaders are needing to make good on the declarations they made, and they are running into resistance. While pushback was to be expected, I don’t think that leaders gave enough attention to how they were going to address it.
Anti-racism is new territory for many leaders. Some may not have fully understood what they were signing up for when they vowed to address anti-Black racism, and I don’t think they gave enough attention to how they were going to… Click To TweetI was recently piloting a learning experience on racism with the CEO and direct reports of a major organization. We introduced the concept of white supremacy culture, and there was indeed major pushback. One of the leaders said that they needed to reevaluate how to brand this as inclusion training and not use the term racism or white supremacy culture so as not to make participants too uncomfortable. I reminded them that it might be too late to sanitize the language and “soften” the content, as they had committed publicly to engage in anti-racism training. The leader seemed surprised that such a commitment had been made. I explained that anti-racism education is very different from diversity, inclusion and belonging training. Anti-racism work is based on a specific body of research and ideologies that have not been introduced in many corporate spaces. Core to anti-racism education is understanding concepts such as white supremacy culture.
The Winters Group has recently introduced 5 leadership commitments that we think are critical to creating anti-racist organizations.
1.) Recognize that systemic inequity, injustice and exclusion are real and exist everywhere.
Some leaders are still skeptical that racism is as insidious as it is, especially in their own organization. If you don’t believe that it exists, obviously you will not give it the attention that it deserves. When you believe it, it is easier to embrace the ideologies and language that help us understand it and dismantle it.
I have been asked by several leaders lately if they should organize listening and/or healing type sessions every time some injustice occurs, as such events are happening daily around the world. As a practical way to operationalize justice and acknowledge the reality of the unjust world that we exist in, I recommend institutionalizing space for listening and discussion on a regular cadence where people can opt in as they choose. For example, schedule monthly virtual conversations in different parts of the world for sharing and healing.
2.) Know you (leader) are responsible and accountable for creating and sustaining equity and justice.
Leaders must stand up to the resistors and be willing to take action — including parting ways with those who are not on board. I talked with a potential client recently who is asking us to coach a leader who made some racist comments. The HR lead said, “We are not going to fire him. This is just the way he is and I don’t think he really means it.” I learned that the incident happened in 2019, and people in the organization experience this leader as bombastic and arrogant. Why is he still there if the organization is committed to being anti-racist? If you are serious about anti-racism, some really hard decisions will have to be made about who gets to be a leader. It starts with who you hire and promote. Do you assess potential leaders on their perspectives about diversity, equity and inclusion? Do you emphasize your commitment to anti-racism and expected behaviors?
If you're serious about anti-racism, hard decisions will have to be made about who gets to be a leader. Do you assess potential leaders on their perspectives about DEI? Do you emphasize your commitment to anti-racism and expected… Click To Tweet
As an example of leadership commitment, The Winters Group was recently invited to present our solution to a very large tech firm as a part of their selection process for a consulting partner. The CEO participated in the interview along with the DEI team. He was very engaged, asked probing questions and demonstrated his interest in ensuring that they picked the right partner. Leaders need to be visible and engaged and hold others accountable.
3.) Be willing to engage in your own reflection and learning, recognizing personal work is necessary to drive broader change.
Leaders too often think that anti-racism learning should be focused on their teams and not them. They come late and leave early from the training sessions, or don’t show up at all. While I acknowledge that leaders are busy and unexpected concerns may come up, it is imperative that they prioritize their own learning. As an example of engaging in learning, one of our clients has engaged us to meet for one hour every other week for a year with him and his direct reports in a developmental learning journey where we unpack concepts like white supremacy culture. I am also coaching the CEO monthly.
Too often leaders think that anti-racism learning should be focused on their teams and not them. They come late and leave early from the training sessions, or don’t show up at all. It is imperative that they prioritize their own… Click To Tweet
4.) Prioritize and allocate ample resources to sustain this work.
Too often we hear from the DEI lead that there is “limited budget” for this work. We also know that often the DEI office is understaffed. Additionally, people who have no background in DEI are tapped to do this work as “volunteers” just because they are Black. We are working with such an organization who pulled someone from the manufacturing floor to coordinate inclusion. He asked me recently how he could better manage the immense stress and toll attempting to perform in a role for which he has limited experience. This should not be his responsibility. Do not equate someone’s identity with qualification to effectively lead DEIJ work, and do not expect BIPOC to take on extra work without appropriate compensation.
Do not equate someone’s identity with qualification to effectively lead DEIJ work, and do not expect BIPOC to take on extra work without appropriate compensation. Click To Tweet
5.) Accept resistance, conflict and discomfort as requisite to progress.
Be proactive in anticipating resistance and develop effective strategies to address it. Here is a process to follow:
- Senior most leaders should establish expectations for all other leaders and employees. Tie them to existing values in your organization.
- Communicate nonnegotiables such as, “We will use the anti-racism language. Training and education will be mandatory, and we expect you to be supportive and willing to learn.”
- Establish real consequences for not demonstrating behaviors previously communicated and supported by the organization’s values.
Not everything that is faced can be changed but nothing can change until it is faced. — James Baldwin
Senior leaders should establish expectations. Communicate non-negotiables like 'We use anti-racism language. Training & education will be mandatory and we expect you to be supportive.' Establish consequences for not… Click To Tweet
