Steps Organizations Can Take Toward Building a Legitimate Culture of Equity
2020 was an interesting moment for many companies and nonprofit organizations. The murder of George Floyd sparked nationwide protests, and it also put more pressure on corporate and nonprofit leaders to make public gestures in support of racial equity and to denounce police violence against Black people. We saw it all, from the announcement of new initiatives supporting Black artists and creatives to statements presented as a meme on Instagram. But there was one thing missing from a lot of these efforts: a commitment to shifting their internal cultures towards a more inclusive and equitable direction.
As a result, some organizations experienced unexpected pushback: former and current employees came forward to expose the same leaders doing performative allyship externally for discriminating against employees and color internally. This is what happens when an organization has no commitment to building a legitimate culture of equity that includes taking an honest look at whether they are practicing what they preach.
I want to share three key steps organizations can take toward building a legitimate culture of equity from the inside out:
Begin the work of shifting who holds power in your organization.
Take a look at who makes the big decisions on your organizational chart about budgets, hiring, programming, and other operational tasks. If your decision-makers are mostly straight white people, then that is something that needs to be addressed. Equity means shifting who has power in your organization, including who makes the decisions. You must build a culture that trusts people of color to lead the work you do, and not just implement it.
Extend the creation of an equitable culture beyond just having a few conversations.
One huge mistake organizations make is thinking a few conversations with your staff about racism or about the most recent act of state-sanctioned violence on a Black person, and then believing the work is done. In order to build a culture of equity, you must be willing to extend beyond simply having the conversation. You must also be willing to make intentional changes–in your hiring practices, in who makes decisions, and in the way you make room for people of color to advance in your organization.
3. Be willing to sit with the discomfort and fear of giving up power.
Some organizational leaders are hesitant to examine their culture of equity because it may mean giving up power that comes with white privilege. There is a belief that creating an equitable environment where people of color are given the opportunity to make decisions means that white people who are in charge will simply lose power. But if you are committed to a culture of equity, you must also be willing to examine how you have used your privilege to further perpetuate a white supremacy culture in your workplace. You just also be unafraid to share your power with other members of your team who are people of the global majority to address inequities and really create the change you are committed to making internally and externally.
