October 30 - November 5, 2020
On June 19, 2020, I made a commitment to educate myself on the
lingering effects of racism, discrimination, and bias in America. Every
day through June 18, 2021, I will read an article or book chapter,
listen to a
podcast, watch a movie or documentary, view a webinar, or do something
substantive to educate myself in these areas. As part of that
commitment, I will post to this blog each Friday with a list of what
I've done over the past week as well as any pertinent thoughts or
reflections.
Today's post covers the week of October 30 - November 5, 2020.
Ithaca College President Shirley Collado shares her roadmap for building a diverse staff during her first three years at the institution. She discusses how to be inclusive in the search process even if it's confidential, and how she made herself personally accountable for delivering the diverse leadership team she had envisioned.
Cognitive neuroscientist Frida Polli pens this brief article for the Harvard Business Review. The deepest-rooted source of bias in artificial intelligence is the human behavior it is
simulating. AI needs to be designed so it can be audited and
the bias found in it can be removed. If AI is built without bias, it can lead to greater employment opportunity for marginalized groups, because it can automate a top-of-funnel process and expand the
initial pipeline of qualified applicants.
This short, PBS Point of View documentary follows poet Lamar Wilson around the town of Marianna, Florida. A few years ago, Wilson began an annual run from the home of Claude Neal to the Jackson County Courthouse to bring recognition to the lynching of Neal in 1934. Wilson, his childhood friend and attorney Ladray Gilbert, and local couple George and Pam Little are interviewed about the legacy of that lynching and the current racial climate in the community.
Andrea Collier writes about the history of storytelling in Black America and finding her own voice. For centuries, slaves were not allowed to learn how to read and write, so history was passed orally from generation to generation. This tradition persists to the present day, and Collier speaks to the cathartic nature of speaking your own truth.
Janet Stovall, executive speech writer for UPS, gives this TED Talk about the power of businesses to dismantle racism. Since the US has more than 165 million people engaged in the workforce, and because the average American spends 1/3 of her life at work, structuring businesses to be diverse and inclusive would have profound effects on how people treat each other outside of work. Furthermore, studies show that more diverse workplaces have greater worker satisfaction and higher productivity.
This article from the New York Times discusses the construction of a mixed-income housing development in New Berlin, Wisconsin. While residents initially objected the development on the grounds that crime would increase in their suburb, most now believe the housing has been good for their town. Statistics show that property values have not declined around the development, and crime has not increased in New Berlin.
Jerry Seib of the Wall Street Journal writes about the opportunity created this summer to have real discussions about how systemic racism exists in America. Seib claims that while the lens through which we see racism depends largely on our own experiences, we can also acknowledge both the progress of the Civil Rights movement and the specific work left to be done. He discusses post World War II housing programs as an example of how racist policies linger in the system and keep the accumulation of wealth away from people of color.
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