Comments on: Can white people be diversity leaders?

By: Lauren

Lauren — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 15:36:37 +0000

“whites generally haven’t had the same direct experience of being marginalized, categorized, segregated and stereotyped that people with other dimensions of diversity have had.” unless you’re gay, poor, uneducated, disabled, the list goes on and on.

Look beyond skin color, and you will always find differences in members of every race.

http://tasteslikechicken2me.wordpress.com/2009/05/19/the-power-of-subculture-affiliation/

By: Anna

Anna — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 11:51:29 +0000

Robert and Windrose: Thank you for your thoughtful comments! In particular I agree that whites NEED to talk about diversity, because it needs to be understood that some of us get it. And I believe we need to bring some peer pressure to bear on those who don’t get it.

By: Robert Williams

Robert Williams — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 21:30:29 +0000

The question if whites can be diversity leaders adds to the stereotypes we treasure in America. Some whites as well as non-majority members cannot teach diversity because of a lack of self-awareness not because of a physical trait.

Diversity teaching and training has a disposition that the trainer is aware of their own cultural identity as well as others.

If a person is compassionate and empathetic diversity teaching will not be a problem. This question needs to be raised to a higher consciousness than inquisitive collective group stereotyping.

As you mentioned, whites have not had much reason to investigate ethnic sharing of other cultures and values. Whites do lack public creditability in ethnic sharing and non-majority groups rightly so should be apprehensive.

However, one cannot define an entire group by a few individuals and so neither should non-majority members concerning white diversity trainers.

By: Windrose Training and Coaching

Windrose Training and Coaching — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 12:58:34 +0000

After teaching at a major university at which it was once thought that only people of color could teach diversity and only people of color could discuss diversity, it has become evident that Whites can talk about diversity. Unfortunately, we often think of diversity in terms of Blacks and Whites. In reality, diversity includes Blacks, Whites, Moslems, Jews, disabled, the elderly, gays and lesbians, and a plethora of other individuals and groups that do not neatly fit into the White, heterosexual, Protestant male-dominated culture of the U.S.

Whites NEED to talk about diversity. Others need to know that Whites “get it.” It is no longer acceptable to just be a white person who goes about his or her life oblivious to the diversity that surrounds us. By talking about diversity, Whites can be an “ally” to those who do not fit neatly and can help bring light to the discussion. By including diversity issues in our training we can, hopefully, bridge the remaining gaps between Whites and individuals and groups from other cultural backgrounds. Of course, saying that we “get it” and living that can be completely separate concepts.

It will only be a few more years until Whites are no the dominant group in the U.S. If we’re going to “get it,” we had better “get it” soon!

For folks who haven’t read this article about uncertainty and diversity, it might be a beginning:

http://www.examiner.com/x-14801-Workplace-Issues-Examiner~y2010m1d7-First-Contact-Reducing-intercultural-uncertainty