🅰🅻🅸🅲🅴 on Nostr: I have to share this. So my partner is on the DEI board for a nonprofit org, which ...
I have to share this. So my partner is on the DEI board for a nonprofit org, which consists of my partner, a gay black woman, a Latina woman, and a straight white guy.
I was working from the other room and overhead some of their meeting.
The guy, (Fred? Doug? Something like that. Let's say Fred), had coopted the meeting for the last hour. He was going on about how he didn't think the org needed a DEI committee...it went something like:
"Race is an outdated social construct."
"I don't see color or gender."
"If everyone was just chill like me, there wouldn't be an issue."
And so on.
I heard my partner trying to gently reign in his monopoly on the discussion:
"Maybe we should hear from one of the other members about their lived experiences?"
He kept going; transitioning into the topic of "handout programs":
"I mean, the opportunities are there. Maybe the story was different in the past, but now they just have to work for it like anyone else."
Note: my partner was (nearly still)born into poverty, abuse, a broken child welfare system, and has multiple chronic conditions.
I could hear the frustration in my partner's voice. No one else spoke up.
My partner got up and left the call for a bit. Fred didn't seem to notice, as I could hear him still talking away in the background.
Eventually the meeting ended.
The other two women said they thought they got a lot out of the meeting, and that Fred brought up some good points (though I must of missed those ones from the other room).
My partner came into my office and recapped the meeting in one looong sentence (they were rather agitated).
So what's the moral of this story?
If you don't know why diversity, equity, and inclusion are necessary, then you're probably the reason.
If you refer to inclusion and social systems as "handout programs" then you have probably lived a priveledged fucking life.
If you're sitting on a DEI board full of LGBTQIA+/BIPOC people and none of those letters apply to you, then you'd better pay close attention to the collective lived experiences and perspectives of those other members.
If all the above apply to you, then you're probably Fred (and feeling pretty called out).
Don't be Fred.
#DEI #LGBTQIA #BIPOC #Rant #Privelege #DiversityEquityInclusion
I was working from the other room and overhead some of their meeting.
The guy, (Fred? Doug? Something like that. Let's say Fred), had coopted the meeting for the last hour. He was going on about how he didn't think the org needed a DEI committee...it went something like:
"Race is an outdated social construct."
"I don't see color or gender."
"If everyone was just chill like me, there wouldn't be an issue."
And so on.
I heard my partner trying to gently reign in his monopoly on the discussion:
"Maybe we should hear from one of the other members about their lived experiences?"
He kept going; transitioning into the topic of "handout programs":
"I mean, the opportunities are there. Maybe the story was different in the past, but now they just have to work for it like anyone else."
Note: my partner was (nearly still)born into poverty, abuse, a broken child welfare system, and has multiple chronic conditions.
I could hear the frustration in my partner's voice. No one else spoke up.
My partner got up and left the call for a bit. Fred didn't seem to notice, as I could hear him still talking away in the background.
Eventually the meeting ended.
The other two women said they thought they got a lot out of the meeting, and that Fred brought up some good points (though I must of missed those ones from the other room).
My partner came into my office and recapped the meeting in one looong sentence (they were rather agitated).
So what's the moral of this story?
If you don't know why diversity, equity, and inclusion are necessary, then you're probably the reason.
If you refer to inclusion and social systems as "handout programs" then you have probably lived a priveledged fucking life.
If you're sitting on a DEI board full of LGBTQIA+/BIPOC people and none of those letters apply to you, then you'd better pay close attention to the collective lived experiences and perspectives of those other members.
If all the above apply to you, then you're probably Fred (and feeling pretty called out).
Don't be Fred.
#DEI #LGBTQIA #BIPOC #Rant #Privelege #DiversityEquityInclusion