In Baratunde Thurston's TED Talk, "How to Deconstruct Racism, One Headline at a Time," he talks about the concept of white supremacy. Too often we automatically correlate white supremacy with neo-nazism or the alt-right. But, like in Lawrence Ross's book and lecture series, "Blackballed," he talks about white supremacy as a system of privilege.
Our systems, companies and institutions are structured so that minorities cannot get ahead. As Baratunde Thurston said, "Structure is what makes them systemic." While many claim to be non-racist or pro-diversity, it is not enough to passively believe in these ideals. All of the TED Talks featured by Diversity Best Practices tackle the issue of being actively inclusive.
As a student who has attended primarily white institutions (PWIs) my entire life, I have seen how these systems of power and privilege negatively affect students of all different marginalized backgrounds.
Lawrence Ross specifically came to Syracuse University to talk to members of Greek Life and that structures of white supremacy on college campuses and among Greek organizations. Greek organizations and institutions of higher education have historically discriminated against women, the LGBTQ community, people of color, disabled people, the lower class, and many other groups.
While it is not my fault personally that there is discrimination on campus, these structures have systemically worked against marginalized groups since the foundation of the United States. Therefore, people of equal talent and potential are often not given equal opportunity.
It is imperative for leadership teams to break this cycle and diversify their institutions. However, diversity is not enough. Inclusion and equity practices must also be put in place to overcome our deep-seated biases and encourage further progress.
According to Rocío Lorenzo and her team at BCG Milan, "diversity makes teams more innovative." Lorenzo says she doesn't know whether this is correlation or causation, but more diverse companies have been shown to be more innovative. This means that diversity and inclusion are legitimate business ventures beyond just being "the right thing to do."
It is also ignorant to assume as Rocío Lorenzo did, that this diversity would take place over time. Her studies showed that as education and workplace experience increased for women, their leadership roles did not show a similar incline. This is because we stay complicit and do not speak up when injustice or bigotry takes place.
As Vernā Myers said in her TED Talk, "How to Overcome our Biases? Walk Boldly Toward Them," "you're not going to get comfortable before you get uncomfortable." It is hard work to deconstruct the systems that have brought so many of us down for so long. But it starts when we all "expand [our] social and professional circles."
Assess the organizations, institutions and companies you are a part of. Who has a seat at the table and who doesn't? It's on us to hold each other accountable and include more of the groups that have been discluded. Diversity and inclusion are the only ways we can become a more innovative society.
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