If diversity and inclusion commitments are to ever go beyond nice statements and small symbolic gestures, the efforts are going to have to get uncomfortable.
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In the wake of the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd in May and the increased momentum behind the Black Lives Matter movement, Central Massachusetts organizations of all sizes were quick to denounce racism and police brutality and begin committing to greater diversity and inclusion. Not everyone was united, per se, but there was general agreement things needed to change.
But if these diversity and inclusion commitments are to ever go beyond nice statements and small symbolic gestures, the efforts are going to have to get uncomfortable. That unity will be eroded with each major step as objections arise to various measures, and only strong wills and determination will keep the momentum going as Floyd’s death moves further in the past.
Take Staff Writer Monica Busch’s story on how companies can help reduce pay gaps where women earn 83 cents compared to men and Black women earn 58 cents. The main point of the story is companies should make salaries on their positions more transparent, so all employees have a better understanding of what they can earn. Doing so, of course, hurts companies’ ability to bargain effectively with their new hires over pay, and some employees will object to their compensation being made public, even if it is just a range for a similar position. Salary transparency is a way to increase diversity & inclusion, but it won’t be popular with everybody. None of the 10 largest employers in Central Massachusetts currently do it.
Busch’s other story for WBJ’s Oct. 12 Diversity & Inclusion section shows how Clark University did make some strides to increase its anti-racism education among faculty and students. However, the organization representing students of color – the Black Student Union – says the efforts have not gone far enough, and the school still needs to address issues the BSU has been asking for since the mid-20th century. Clark could be lauded for going beyond what most other Central Mass. organizations were doing, but it is still seen by members of its own student body as falling short.
Getting to a place where the deep-rooted problems of racism and prejudice are addressed in a significant way is always going to require uncomfortable changes and controversial decisions. But, as all this gets harder, it is important to remember why we prioritized it in the first place.
