From the course: Supporting Allyship and Anti-Racism at Work

Defining antiracism

From the course: Supporting Allyship and Anti-Racism at Work

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Defining antiracism

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- My definition of anti-racism is actually just five words, actively working to eliminate racism. Let's analyze each of those words. First, actively. Author of "How to Be an Antiracist," Ibram X. Kendi, says, "There's actually no such thing as non-racist. There's only racist and anti-racist." Those who believe in non-racist ideals but they don't take any real action are just perpetuating the status quo, not improving it. The next word is working because anti-racism really, really is work. It's work to look for disparities and inequities to analyze them, find the root causes, and work to change the system. It's work to stop doing things the way you've always done them. And instead, to find new practices and processes to encourage greater equity. Anti-racism is important and necessary but not easy. The next word is eliminate. I once heard an entrepreneur proclaim, "We don't fix problems, we eliminate them." At first glance, that might sound confusing, but what he wanted his staff to understand is that fixing a problem wasn't enough. He wanted them to take the time to figure out what caused it in the first place and change that, or re-engineer the entire process, if needed, to ensure that that problem would never happen again. That's what anti-racism requires, not just promoting a few people of color as window dressing but really re-engineering core processes and practices to truly move the needle on how racism shows up in the workplace. The final word, of course, is racism. I prefer David Wellman's simple definition of racism as a system of advantage based on race. It's important to point out that while any historically marginalized racial group can experience racism, it's a mistake to assume they all have the same experiences or challenges. At times, I'll use the term people of color. But I'll also sometimes reference a specific racial group, like American-Indian, Alaska native, or indigenous people, Blacks or African-Americans, Latinx, Asian-Pacific Islanders, or others. I do this intentionally to role model what organizations should be doing. Analyze issues of racism in a very nuanced way, considering broader challenges for all people of color but also considering specific challenges that might be unique to a particular racial group.

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