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Observations on Diversity, Inclusion and Intercultural Competence by D&I Strategist Hamlin Grange (more…)
Category: Diversity
Making Space for Difficult Conversations
There’s no denying the recent U.S. election has had an impact. Donald Trump was elected by polarizing voters into “Us vs. Them” camps and focusing on fears. Now the genie is out of the bottle: certain groups and individuals have become emboldened, saying and acting however they choose towards others. Trump’s ascendancy to the White... Read More
The Damaging Politics of Polarization
Public comments by politicians can bring issues such as anti-immigration and racism to the forefront in a powerful way. It’s easy to have an emotional reaction, whatever ‘side’ they’re on. However, it may help to understand what’s happening in an objective manner by looking at it through the lens of an assessment tool I often... Read More
Political Correctness
The term “political correctness” has become code for so many things lately; from conversations about women and racial and ethnic minorities. It has become a license for some people to say anything they want, about any individual or social group without having to suffer the consequences or even think about the psychological or physical hardships... Read More
“Whitening” the Resume
In the late nineties, I was a journalist with CBC TV in Toronto, doing a documentary series on new immigrants to Canada. The TV cameras followed one man and his wife on their journey from Shanghai to Canada, and in his early weeks of settlement in Toronto. They had worked as electrical engineers in power... Read More
Iceland: The Best Place for Women?
When Canada's new Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, was asked by a reporter why 50% of his government ministers in his Cabinet were women, he said, without missing a beat, "Because it's 2015." At the time it may have seemed like a trite response from a Prime Minister, but it signaled a remarkable change in the... Read More
Disney’s Loss of Innocence: language, race and gender in children’s animated movies
Some people may say the Disney Problem is a matter of unconscious bias, or even cultural blindness. However, it's more likely a lack of intercultural competence. The writers and producers of these Disney movies (some of them wonderfully powerful) may not be "bad" people but they may want to reflect on how they are interacting... Read More
Eliminating Racism
The United Nations has declared March 21 as the International Day for the Elimination of Racism. However, every day should be the day we eliminate racism. The following was first posted in 2014.
Ferguson Report: A How-Not-To-Do-It Guide To Law Enforcement
Reading the Department of Justice Report on the Ferguson Police Department is a lot like reading a “How-Not-To-Do-It Guide” to law enforcement. The findings of the DOJ are shocking in the extreme. The report highlights so many violations of human and civil rights of the residents of Ferguson – mostly African Americans - that it... Read More
Hiding Behind Unconscious Bias
The recent admission by the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation that law enforcement officers are racially biased has been rightfully described as “unusually candid.” However, no-one has called James Comey’s remarks “original.” Comey, like so many before him, is calling for “honest and open conversations” about race and law enforcement. It seems after... Read More