I had a whole other topic planned and written for this week, but Harry and Meghan’s announcement has given me pause. When I heard the news that they would be stepping down from Royal duties (and that the Queen hadn’t been consulted first) I was with my daughter. As I explained it so she could …
[Continue reading] Forging a New Path – Harry, Meghan and D&I
Allyship is a word we hear and use often in reference to LGBTQ communities and LGBTQ inclusion – but it’s not specific to that group. Today I’m going to explore what the word means and why it’s important for furthering inclusion, equity, diversity and social justice. To be an ally …
This past week I have been thinking a lot about resistance, and how it manifests itself in both overt and covert ways. Often when we are afraid, we resist. It’s a defence mechanism designed to keep us safe. But the result is that we can miss opportunities for learning, growth and …
Last week we explored taking up space. This week we’ll explore the ways we use our privilege to discount others (and impose our needs on them). I was recently facilitating a workshop. Right away, during the introduction, one of the participants indicated that he was aware of his privileges …
[Continue reading] What’s Privilege got to do with it? – Part 3
I’m sure you’ve been in situations like this – the ones where someone is talking way more than anyone else in the group. Maybe you were at a party, maybe it’s a group of friends, or perhaps it happens at work. Share the Air In workshops, we always have an agreement about sharing the air. I explain …
[Continue reading] What’s Privilege got to do with it? – Part 2
I finally watched Meryl Streep’s acceptance speech for her Lifetime Achievement Award at the Golden Globes. Wow... If you haven’t seen it yet, watch it or read it. It’s powerful. And so important. It's also heartwarming and inspiring to see someone use their position and privilege to make …
I'm mulling over an experience I had last week. Maybe it's because I'm a workshop facilitator, and a teacher before that. Maybe it's because I was facilitating a workshop when it happened. Maybe it's because the workshop was on creating LGBTQ safe space. Whatever the reason, when one workshop …
One of the workshops I attended at the Nov. 9th Diversity@Work conference put on by Skills for Change was by Nadir Shirazi. He spoke about dedicated spaces in offices for quiet time, prayer, meditation etc. Nadir’s presentation was very interesting; he shared the challenge for companies to name …