How do we meet people where they are at while pushing for change?: Encompass’ “All Aboard” chat session debrief
October 13, 2021
On October 12, we hosted our third “All Aboard!” chat of 2021 with Aryenish Birdie, Executive Director of Encompass, and Paul Gorski, the founder of the Equity Literacy Institute.
We created this series to have space to informally share our thoughts on pressing racial equity issues of our day. And we call it “All Aboard!” because it takes everyone—in all of our unique positions—to make racial equity a reality.
During this chat, we discussed centering the needs of Black, Indigenous, and people of the global majority (BIPGM) in this work and how whiteness gets in the way. You can watch the entire conversation here (30 minutes).
Here are the highlights:
Who determines the pace of antiracist work at an organization?
Antiracism efforts should move at the pace of the people who are experiencing racism, those who are most desperate for change; not necessarily those in leadership positions or those who want to maintain the status quo.
Make an institutional commitment to be antiracist even if not all individuals are ready—don’t wait for consensus.
Put pressure on organizational leaders that this has to be the new normal.
Check out Paul’s short article on 4 common equity detours and 5 principles of equity literacy.
We must demystify the conversation around race
Don’t wait to have conversations about racism in the workplace until something happens. Conversations about race take practice and longevity.
Speaking about racism within the organization may feel “negative” to some (mostly white people), but people experiencing the racism will most likely see this as a positive step. Even if you are naming difficult things that seem “negative” remember the end goal is to build a bigger movement, this is positive.
Remember: hard things for white people to hear aren’t harder than people experiencing racism.
Is your organization centering the needs of white people above the needs of Black, Indigenous, and people of the global majority (BIPGM)?
Move past fluffy inclusion and diversity tactics
Animal protection spaces are often made up of “good liberals” with a mindset of learning about culture, celebrating diversity, sharing food from other cultures, etc. This has nothing to do with racism and won’t make an organization antiracist
Organize with others within your organization and outside of it to put pressure on the movement to consistently be antiracist.
Shift from a liberal mindset to a critical mindset: one that is informed by how power, privilege, and oppression are operating and addressing that as the problem, rather than fluffy goals.
Now is the time to tend to the well-being of BIPGM activists
Root out racism at your organization. It isn’t enough to take care of BIPGM after we’ve experienced racism; organizations must be proactive. One way is in the hiring process, check out Paul’s Instagram and Twitter posts on possible job interview questions.
Incorporate structures to avoid and manage burnout. Such as 4-day work weeks, sabbaticals, reasonable workloads, contingency plans, and fair pay.
In organizations that are predominately white, consider paying BIPGM for their emotional labor when they do extra work like sitting on committees.
We hope you have learned from our All Aboard! chat series and it has supported you in making antiracist efforts in your own life. If you missed our other two sessions, read about them on our blog or watch the full videos on our YouTube channel.
Special thanks to Michelle Rojas-Soto, Shayna Rowbotham, Doris Quintanilla, and Paul Gorski for sharing their brilliance with us during this series!