Ongoing events like the spread of COVID-19 and #BlackLivesMatter have recently made inequities in our healthcare, educational, correctional, and other systems more obvious on a national level. Fortunately, we’ve seen many nonprofits revisit their Diversity / Equity / Inclusion (DEI) policies (or build completely new ones from scratch) as a result. This week on the Nonprofit Jenni Show, Jenni speaks again with thought leader and advocate Jon Royal to discuss an example of how your nonprofit can promote equity and racial justice in your community. This episode is Part 1 of 2 -- look for Part 2 next week!
Guidelines for Conversations About Race and Equity in the Nonprofit Workplace
Back in January, my good friend and thought leader Jon Royal came on my podcast to explain the difference between equity and equality. We had a great conversation, but we ran out of time to talk about specific strategies nonprofit leaders can use to promote equity within their organizations.
This week on the Nonprofit Jenni Show, Jon offers some guidelines to navigate your internal conversations about race:
1. Don’t assume any specific person of color wants to lead a professional conversation about race.
Jon explains that it’s normal and good to want to have conversations about race with your trusted and close friends, especially if they are a person of color who has experienced racism and you want to support them.
However, at an institutional level, it is not appropriate to approach an employee of color and ask them to speak to the rest of your team as a representative of their racial or ethnic group. People of color do not have an inherent duty to speak about their personal experiences related to race in their place of work.
Here are some examples of tasks you should not assign to a person of color only because they are a person of color:
Attending diversity, equity, and inclusion DEI trainings on behalf of your organization
Serving on an “equity commission” or similar type of internal body meant to promote better DEI policies
Creating or informing new DEI policies
Formally or informally leading internal DEI conversations
2. Don’t assume any specific person of color is qualified to lead a professional conversation about race.
Jon reminds us that racial injustice in the US didn’t begin with George Floyd’s death, or even with the 2016 election. Systemic racism has been built up over literally hundreds of years, and it’s unrealistic to expect every person of color to be an expert on this topic. Even a person of color who is willing to share their story with your staff is not necessarily qualified to facilitate group discussions about race or help inform new DEI policies.
Additionally, Jon explains that “just because you are black doesn’t mean you aren’t operating under racist ideas...because that’s just the society that we’re living in.” People of color can and do live under systems built by white supremacists, and can be just as impacted by racist ideas as white people.
It’s important to make sure your nonprofit leaders identify facilitators to help guide your DEI conversations who are well-educated in DEI issues.
3. Remember: People of color may have shared experiences with their racial or ethnic community, but they also have unique identities.
Jon talks about how it’s possible for anyone to make a snap judgment about someone’s racial or ethnic identity--even about someone of the same race or ethnicity. For example, Jon is Black, and has sometimes caught himself thinking that another Black person isn’t “really” Black because they may have a different perspective, behavior, or characteristic than Jon typically associates with Black people. I am part-Asian, and I have to check my internal biases to make sure I don’t mentally exclude someone from my Asian community just because they grew up with a different set of values.
4. As your team discusses ways you can promote equity in your community, remember that your efforts will be stronger in cooperation with other local organizations.
In our podcast conversation, Jon and I talk about how individual voices are stronger when they join forces. This is why rallies, honk-a-thons, phone call campaigns, and other initiatives are so effective: Leaders and legislators are more able to see and hear the needs of your community when people organize and work through a large, united group to advocate for change.
Ready-Made Resources to Help You Start Conversations About Race and Equity at Your Organization
Since my last podcast interview with Jon, a lot of tragic, racist events have occurred which have sparked new conversations about race and equity in the nonprofit sector. In an effort to support nonprofit leaders through these discussions, I created a Racial Injustice Awareness Kit with ready-made communications resources.
However, the national conversation about race has quieted recently. Many people feel uncomfortable talking about race again. They’re afraid of saying the wrong thing and becoming the subject of fiery criticism, or simply don’t feel educated enough about racial injustice to continue advocating for change.
This is why I asked Jon to review my Racial Injustice Awareness Kit so I could appropriately update the information, imagery, and specific verbiage of the included resources. You can hear all of his feedback in this week’s podcast episode, and download the newly updated version of the awareness kit. There are two options to choose from:
1. The free version of the Racial Injustice Awareness Kit, which includes:
A flyer, infographic, and image album breaking down the topic of racial injustice into manageable, bite-size pieces of information
Space on all three resources to include your logo and ask for donations
2. The full version of the Racial Injustice Awareness Kit, which costs $49 and includes:
Editable versions of all three resources listed above, so you can update them with your nonprofit’s preferred colors, fonts, and more
Instructions on how to edit the resources, in case you need suggestions
Sample copy to use in your social media posts, email newsletters, and blog posts alongside the visual resources
Additional Resources to Help Educate Yourself About Racial Injustice
Jon offers recommendations for a few resources you can use to learn more about issues related to race and equity:
Chenjerai Kumanyika’s Twitter feed
Richard Rothstein’s The Color of Law
Get Professional Help Deciding Your Next Steps
Do you feel like you need one-on-one support to strengthen your nonprofit’s team and processes? Schedule a free initial consultation call to chat with me about your challenges. I would love to help you figure out the best next steps to take to promote your organization and mission. Also, don’t forget to subscribe to the Nonprofit Jenni Show for free so you won’t miss any new episodes about nonprofit management, marketing, and development!
Also, I want to thank Little Green Light for sponsoring this episode! Little Green Light is my favorite donor management system because it was built by nonprofit development professionals who know what features and metrics nonprofits really need for their fundraising and relationship building. LGL is also extremely affordable for small nonprofits and offers free fundraising resources for my podcast listeners! Visit www.littlegreenlight.com/jenni for free ebooks like “How to Retain Donors After Your Giving Day”, “Six Steps to a Successful Appeal”, and more.