Hurt People, Hurt People

Diversity Matters' Friends & Colleagues,

On last week’s show we briefly mentioned CBS’s firing of Don Imus in our discussion about the tension between social justice and the business imperative with respect to diversity and inclusion efforts. Last week Newsweek, Time and Oprah covered the Imus story and the ensuing national dialogue about racism, censorship, hip-hop culture and the like. Judy and I received lots of emails and comments from folks saying things like “the current Imus flap gives you guys good fodder for the show.” Then the headlines became overshadowed with another national tragedy, the shootings at Virginia Tech.

It would be easy to think, that the “Imus story” has lost its shelf life and now we’re on to the next “story.” But I don’t think these stories are only about Imus, or a troubled young man in Virginia. They are all connected. We are all connected.

At the 4th Annual Chief Diversity Officer’s Forum recently someone shared a quote that has stuck with me for weeks – “Hurt people, hurt people.” Think about this – “Hurt people, HURT people.” I don’t know enough about Cho Seung-Hui, the 23 year old man from South Korea, but I know he hurt people. Don Imus’s words hurt people. For some it was hurting a wound that has been there for a while. For others, the hurt is the pain and discomfort of not knowing what to do to heal the hurt and make a difference.

At Diversity Matters, we are committed to providing a vehicle to share stories, resources and tools so that individuals, communities and organizations can make a difference. Our mission is about giving voice - hearing from, learning from and understanding those ideas, perspectives and experiences that help us achieve our common goals. With his comments about the Scarlet Knights, Rutgers University’s women’s basketball team – shock jock Don Imus turned up the heat on a national dialogue regarding diversity and inclusion.

We believe this conversation is important – an interesting and challenging “meta-conversation” – can we discuss “the undiscussable?” If so, how? Are there certain things that just shouldn’t be said in the public sphere? On today’s episode of Diversity Matters, Judy and I brought forth the voices of past guests and offered our voices to this national conversation.

If we’re here to provide voice, “diversity,” by definition means that those voices won’t all sound alike, say the same things or even belong to people with whom we agree. If inclusion is about creating a climate where everybody truly feels like they matter, how do we do that in a way that allows us to hear from, learn from and dialogue with folks whose perspectives not only vastly differ from our own, but may even “cross the line” with respect to what’s “discussable?” These were some of the questions we navigate in our work at Diversity Matters and became the focus for this week’s radio show.

Ironically, Imus made his comments about the Scarlet Knights on April 4th, the 39th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King. Earlier this year, we were honored to have Yolanda King, author, actor, speaker, producer and first born daughter of Martin Luther King and Coretta Scott King on Diversity Matters and hear her voice as she talked about the importance of believing in and living for “the dream.”

In order to achieve the dream, she talked about the importance of “reaching across the table” – the racial table, the religious table, the economic table and with grace discover our common ground and our common humanity. She spoke about the importance of disagreeing without being disagreeable in our families, in our communities and in our workplaces. Yolanda King’s voice reminds us that we have to stay at the table, reach across it, seek to understand that different voice and uncover our common ground, shared purpose and shared humanity.

I believe we HAVE TO create a climate where differences, especially vast differences can come together for a common purpose. This coming together fuels creativity, innovation and growth. But a key component of this is FOR A COMMON PURPOSE. In my opinion Imus’s tactic, like those of many shock jocks, overshadowed his purpose.

In my opinion this is toxic media and while I believe in the purpose of entertainment and media as a source of information, expression and the exchange of ideas, when the provocative or “shock” becomes THE PURPOSE, I think the content of the message or art is lost. Toxicity and mean-spiritedness in the guise of entertainment is not OK.

Newsweek described Imus as “The coolest bully on the playground, the outlaw kid others wanted to be seen with …Imus made his guest feel honored to be insulted by him.” Hurt people, hurt people. My values don’t support “supporting” the bully on the playground in this way. We must understand the bully, mentor the bully, and invite the bully to find other ways to inspire and lead rather than with fists, verbal or otherwise.

While I agree with NBC’s decision to fire Imus, I am not advocating censorship. While fired, he need not be silenced, nor will he remain silent. “The Bully” will always find a bully pulpit. Censoring costs the culture it’s artists, it’s greatest thinkers and while perhaps silencing those you disagree with, it will also silence you and me.

However, Imus’s platform was supported by millions of dollars in advertising revenue and many high profile politicians, authors and thought leaders came on the show as part of their platform. A voice I found interesting in the conversation this past week was that of editorial-page editor Cynthia Tucker of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. She argued that politicians and entertainment celebrities who appeared on Imus’s show were not offended enough by his racial stereotypes to turn down a little airtime. She said, “I think I know hos when I see them.”

In addressing this question of platform, Newsweek editor Jon Meacham, a regular on the Imus show who has now reconsidered this decision says of himself and other guests, “Are we being hypocritical… Perhaps; for too long too many of us looked the other way when it suited our purposes. To continue to do the wrong thing because we have done the wrong thing in the past, however, is senseless, and if being charged with hypocrisy is the price of ending up in the right place, then it is a price worth paying.”

Imus’s words have re-energized the conversation, now we have to keep the dialogue going, forge partnerships - even uncomfortable ones, and move from reaction to action. New York City Council for example took action by banning the “N” word. While largely symbolic, they took a stance on the power of language. While not necessarily what I would argue as the “best action” it is an interesting one. Dr. Johnnetta Cole recently said, we must be careful not to lose our “civility” as we engage in spirited debate and dialogue. At Diversity Matters, we believe rather than drawing lines in the sand (since diversity means we all draw lines in different places), we must have the ability to talk with both CANDOR and CARE.

As Yolanda King said, we must reach across the table and LISTEN to voices we don’t agree with so we can discover our common ground. We must also stand up, with courage and dignity like the women of Rutgers’ Scarlet Knights and give feedback, name our experience, and be heard. Part of the power of these young women came from their civility and grace in the face of Imus’s shock jock style. It was their deportment, especially compared to his that got the nation’s attention. Unless you’re willing to see these exceptional women as exceptions, Imus’s descriptors have to be understood as prejudicial stereotypes that disparage, hurt and function to elevate one class of people at the expense of another.

Finally, we all have a responsibility to know when our words are going to violate the ethic of care. We must get educated and stay informed by moving out of our comfort zones and staying “in the know.” Imus should have known better.

Together these commitments to live consciously, “in the know” and be skillful with the sort of connected conversation which at Diversity Matters we call “strategic discourse” are tools we can all learn and use to take action. These are the actions we should take at an individual level.At an organizational level, it also requires a type of leadership and organizational structure through policies, practices and values that support and reinforce a culture that values diversity and where inclusion thrives. None of this is easy, and it’s a process that’s never complete. Individual and organizational action takes a collective will to stay the course, as people, circumstances and organizations change. At my core I’m an optimist. I believe we can and will stay the course as we struggle together, learn together and laugh together so that we are transformed by each other’s experience to achieve our common purpose – inclusion.

Stay tuned,

Richard Friend, Ph.D.
Co-Founder & Co-Host

Diversity Matters' Partners Program: Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility

Friends and Colleagues -

On today's episode of Diversity Matters we discussed the "tension" between diversity and inclusion efforts that operate out of a social justice paradigm and those that operate out of a competitive advantage paradigm; and grappled with the question of whether an organization has to choose between the investing in inclusion because "it's the right thing to do" or because "it's the smart thing to do."

While we're clearly of the opinion that the best answer is both/and rather than either/or, in our experience so often organizations speak about the ethical imperative of justice, but invest considerably more time, money and resources in the business imperative. While the pendulum may vary by industry and leader, creating a strategy that helps sustain the right balance between both/and is a tremendous service to society and the business. On the show we talked about strategic corporate responsibility as a deliberate approach to reconciling this tension and living in the intersection of BOTH an ethical stance to address an important social need AND simultaneously addressing a business need.

Microsoft for example has chosen to take a stance that supports digital literacy and prepares the next generation of critical thinkers who are capable of solving complex problems and fluent in the adaptable use of technology by sponsoring Philadelphia's School of the Future and it's partnership with the American Association of Community Colleges. This stance not only supports a societal need by helping young people in the United States develop the technology knowledge, skills and resilience with which young people throughout India and China are already infused, it also addresses Microsoft’s business need of a shortage of I.T. workers in the United States. As stated in a recent Harvard Business Review article (December 2006) on the link between competitive advantage and corporate social responsibility, “The most important thing a corporation can do for society, and for any community, is to contribute to a prosperous economy.”

At Diversity Matters™ we are in the process of developing a program to catalyze this relationship between business need and social need, by finding shared value propositions between our corporate clients and the not for profit and community based organizations which we serve. It’s called the Diversity Matters’™ Partners Program.

Diversity Matters’™ Partners Program
Our model of strategic corporate social responsibility is to reinforce corporate diversity and inclusion strategies by advancing social conditions. While corporate philanthropy and sponsorship of programs and events is important, we work with our for profit clients to build a coordinated approach which includes a strong corporate social responsibility component to their diversity and inclusion strategy. Our Partners Program is a key example of this strategic approach to corporate social responsibility

An Exchange Between Businesses and Communities
Diversity Matters™ is committed to building an exchange between businesses and communities to share resources, ideas and talent that promotes inclusion. Through our Partners Program, for-profit business clients are invited to invest a percentage of their contracted services to build a partnership with not for profit and/or community based organizations by funding education, training and consulting services that these organizations would otherwise not be able to afford. Our model of strategic corporate social responsibility works to foster the partnership between organizations whose missions align and for whom such a relationship will strategically address a social need AND address a business need.

This partnership not only supplies needed economic resources to not for profit and/or community based organizations, but provides a vehicle for the exchange of best practices. Community based organizations benefit from access to the lessons learned and best practices of the for-profit world, and corporate clients learn from the grass roots efforts of not for profit enterprises.

Developing the Next Generation of Diversity and Inclusion Practitioners
In addition, Diversity Matters’™ Partners Program matches students in the field of Diversity and Inclusion with seasoned practitioners in the facilitation of this exchange and the delivery of services. This element of the partnership provides experience to skilled and committed practitioners who are new to the field while meeting the needs of organizations that might not otherwise be in a position to afford these services. It also supports both the corporate social responsibility and competitive advantage of the sponsoring partner by both “giving back” and learning from the partnership exchange. The Diversity Matters™ Partners Program is a win-win-win-win. The community wins, the new practitioners win, the sponsoring business wins and Diversity Matters™ wins by providing this inclusiveness building conduit.

Everyone we’ve spoken with about this program – corporate partners, community based leaders etc… are very excited. We would love to hear your ideas as well as discuss the opportunity for you to participate in this program to inspire inclusive partnerships across organizations and communities.

Stay connected,

Richard Friend, Ph.D.
Co-Founder & Co-Host

The Business Imperative vs. The Ethical Imperative: Do Organizations Have to Choose?

Dear Friends & Colleagues,

In many workplaces, inclusion efforts are fueled primarily by strategies to increase organizational effectiveness through being the organization of choice for the best talent, tapping new markets and leading the pack with respect to innovation. It’s often said, “Diversity is not just the right thing to do, it’s the smart thing to do.”

• Given the primary focus on the “the business case” are leaders today simply paying lip service to social responsibility?
• What is the difference between social justice and diversity programs?
• How can organization’s truly embrace diversity through inclusion while promoting social justice AND maintaining success in the marketplace?

The core value that brought Co-hosts and Co-founders Richard Friend, Ph.D. and Judy Seidenstein to their work in the field of diversity is social justice. On this Friday’s episode of Diversity Matters, learn how they help leaders make the link between competitive advantage through inclusion and corporate social responsibility.

Joining Richard and Judy on this week’s show is Polly Weiss, the Director of Diversity & Equity Programs for Duke University’s Office for Institutional Equity. Polly consults with leaders across Duke University’s healthcare and campus organizations on management strategies related to workplace diversity. Join us as we discuss the challenge of balancing social justice with organizational effectiveness on Friday, April 13, 2007 at 10AM (eastern). Call in with your questions and comments at 866-472-5790. Listen to Diversity Matters live or on demand at http://www.diversitymatters.info/. At Diversity Matters™ we are committed to creating a world that works by giving voice to ideas and resources that support diversity, and leading efforts to inspire inclusiveness at work and in the world.

Tune in!

Richard Friend, Ph.D.
Co-founder and Co-host

Trust: The Cornerstone of Inclusion

Friends and Colleagues -

At Diversity Matters we are committed to sharing tools that help create an inclusive climate where diversity thrives in the workplace and in the world. True inclusion does not occur unless people come to trust one another. If we can understand how trust works, we can figure out what behavioral choices we must make to build trust and therefore achieve inclusion in our workplaces, communities and families. If diversity drives innovation, then trust is a cornerstone of the inclusive climate that taps into diversity and leverages it for high performance.

Diversity Matters helps people to identify and give voice to factors that either promote trust or inhibit it within their organizations. However trust, like inclusion, is one of those concepts many people talk about but often fail to define, let alone measure. On this episode of Diversity Matters we identify the link between interpersonal and inter-group trust and diversity.

Our guest is consultant and colleague Dr. Delorese Ambrose, author of the new book, Making Peace with Your Work: An Invitation to Find Meaning in The Madness. Dr. Ambrose has been a student of the subject of trust for many years. In her work she explores how to restore trust in the aftermath of major changes and the role of inter-group and interpersonal trust in promoting diversity and achieving inclusiveness. Her newest tool - the Interpersonal Trust Profile assesses trustworthiness on the part of leaders and others.

Together we will explore:

• What are the four dimensions of trust?
• What is the relationship between trustworthiness and inclusion?
• How can we build trusting relationships across our differences?
• What can I do if my boss, co-workers or other important people in my life do not model trustworthiness or perceive me as trustworthy?
• How do other dimensions of diversity impact the perception of trustworthiness?

Join us as we discuss these questions and give voice to promoting trust as a foundation of inclusion on Friday, April 6, 2007 at 10AM (eastern). Listen to Diversity Matters live or on demand at www.diversitymatters.info.

Stay Tuned!

Richard Friend, Ph.D.
Co-Host and Co-Founder