A Great Example of Inclusion

About a week ago I read part of an article in the newspaper (which I can no longer find, sadly) about a restaurant owner who had made the decision to serve Halal meat in his establishment.

He is not Muslim. But there are members of the Islamic community who live in the area of his restaurant, and he decided that serving Halal meat made sense because it would mean that his restaurant could be a choice for more people.

Brilliant.

This is a great example of inclusion because his decision means exactly what he hoped: that more community members can enjoy his food. Without thinking. Without having to check. It makes his restaurant more accessible.

His business will likely profit from this choice.  But possibly even more important than that is the message that it sends – that all are welcome, that the needs of a variety of community members have been considered, that some of these needs have been taken into account.

Simple, right?

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copyright 2013 Annemarie Shrouder
Author, Speaker and Facilitator on issues of Diversity and Inclusion.
www.beeing.ca

Biracial Cheerios…?

If you’re not a TV watcher, you may have missed the new Cheerios ad that is causing quite a stir.
It features a biracial kid and her white mom and black dad – gasp!

I would have loved to see ads like this when I was a kid – ads that showed a family that looked like mine. Never mind, I would love to see these ads now! It means someone cares to acknowledge that families (in this case) can look all different ways.

It’s important for kids to see themselves reflected in the world around them: ads, school curriculum, professionals, role models, etc. It lets them know they are not alone, and it teaches all kids that not everyone is the same and that we all matter. We learn what and who has value not just by commission but also by omission. If we did a better job at this, we wouldn’t have the backlash that Cheerios is experiencing because of this ad.

Clearly we still have long way to go. But if we start doing a better job now, maybe my daughter’s generation will expect these kinds of representations, rather than write blogs about them because they are so rare.

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copyright 2013 Annemarie Shrouder

Author, speaker and facilitator on issues of diversity and inclusion.
http://www.beeing.ca

The Similarities and Differences of Diversity

Last week I did a D&I workshop for TAVA (Toronto Association for Volunteer Administrators). The focus was on managing a diverse group of volunteers with an eye to inclusion. It was a great group. One of the participants brought up a point that I hear often – that she focuses on the similarities rather than the differences.

Today I bought a book on a clearance table: To Bee or Not to Bee by John Penberthy (ok, the bee theme caught my attention). One of the passages that has struck me so far is this:

“The power of the mind lies in perceiving differences; the power of the heart lies in perceiving similarities.”

My usual response to the statement made by the workshop participant is that of course there are more similarities than differences in groups, since we are all human, and that celebrating those similarities is wonderful. And, because we are different, we also may have different needs, experiences and contexts that also must be acknowledged if we are serious about building inclusive spaces.

After my serendipitous purchase, however, I may have to add that we need to use both our mind and our hearts to create inclusive environments where people can thrive because of (not in spite of) their diversity.

See more. Bee more.

copyright 2013 Annemarie Shrouder
Author, Speaker and Facilitator on issues of Diversity and Inclusion
Www.beeing.ca

Considering the Canadian Census – part 1

The recent census data is out. I’m sitting on my living room floor with the newspaper spread out all around me. There is so much I want to write about, I think I will have to dedicate a few posts to this topic.

For today, two first impressions to provide some food for thought:

- It strikes me as interesting that under the big bold title of “Who We Are”, the Toronto Star article has photos of people they interviewed who represent the 13 ethnic origins that 22 million people in Canada identify with. Of these photos, only 2 are of people of colour. Hmmm…

- Markham is the most diverse city in Canada where 72.3 percent of the population are visible minorities…which makes me wonder why we are still using the term visible minority? (that’s a rhetorical wondering of course. More on that in another blog)

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copyright 2013 Annemarie Shrouder

Author, Speaker and Facilitator on issues of diversity and inclusion.
www.beeing.ca

Coming out in Sports

Of course this week I have to write about Jason Collins. If you missed it, he is the first gay athlete to come out while playing. He is in the NBA and is now a free agent.

His article in Sports Illustrated made me smile. It’s nice to hear someone talk about wanting to be authentic, how sharing more of who they are helps them sleep better at night, and how we can’t wait for everything to be perfect (whatever that is) to be who we are. Fear is a terrible thing to live with – it robs us of choice, of a full life, and of dreams. It also undermines relationships and the reaching of our potential.

One day, I hope that being a gay athlete doesn’t cause the stir Jason Collins’ coming out did. But until then, I applaud his courage to be the first, and therefore a role model for gay kids everywhere.

Inclusive spaces allow us to be authentic. Being authentic allows people to see who we are, and to reconsider their stereotypes and assumptions. Being our whole selves out loud allows us to connect and build real relationships. This is just as important in the workplace (where studies show that people work better with people they know even just a little bit) as it is in our personal lives. Inclusive spaces create the safety required for people to consider coming out. It’s always a personal choice if and when to come out, but the clues an inclusive space offers (language, visual cues, policies, etc) make it easier to be authentic when one is ready.

Ironically I was at TD branch this week and saw this ad
It’s a great example of a visual clue for safe space.

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Copyright 2013 Annemarie Shrouder

Author, Speaker and Facilitator on issues of Diversity and Inclusion
ww.beeing.ca

Religious Accommodation

One of the things that I hear about a lot working with organizations is how difficult religious accommodation feels.

Passover begins next week and in the spirit of things, I thought I’d share a success story that I just heard about.

B&H is a photo, video and audio company in the USA. They have a superstore in New York City as well as an online store. And the owners are of the Jewish Orthodox faith.

“So what?”  you may say.
The ‘so what’ is that the store is closed for the Sabbath (Saturday in this case). In fact the store closes at 2pm on the Friday. This also applies to their online store: you can browse, but you can’t purchase anything on the Sabbath.
AND – and this is the really great part – the store and online store are closed for Passover (March 25 – April 2 this year). A whole 9 days!!

What a great example of how faith can be part of what is valued in a workplace and still have your company be profitable.  For those who are finding giving employees time off to observe (note: not closing their entire organization) as part of their commitment to inclusion, I say think again.

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copyright 2013 Annemarie Shrouder
Author, Speaker and Facilitator on issues of Diversity and Inclusion
www.beeing.ca

A Black History Month Insight

Ah Black History Month….

I have just returned from a vacation in Barbados with my family. There is an election going on and one of the newspaper articles while we were there was about why there were no White people running this time.

In contrast, on our first day back I was listening to G98 on the radio in the car and heard one of their Black History Moments. These are meant to highlight a Black person and their achievements in the present or in history. That day it was about the first Black female preacher in Ontario.

It made me think: we can tell a group has been marginalized when we talk about firsts. When was the last time you heard “the first man to…” or “the first white person who….”.
Um, never. When these occur it’s usually just about the accomplishment, but not with a caveat about the person’s identity.

Subtle messages like these, if we listen closely, tell us a lot about where we are at as a society and how much further we have to go.

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copyright 2013 Annemarie Shrouder
Speaker, Writer and Facilitator on issues of Diversity and Inclusion
www.beeing.ca