Comments on: Ask the White Guy: Diversity Is Not in Your DNA

By: Jonscott Williams

Jonscott Williams — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 10:43:40 +0000

Diversity is not in our DNA nor is it in the DNA of our culture or our business enterprises. I have worked in a number of Fortune 100 companies that all had functions with variations on the theme: diversity. Each had an executive supposedly empowered by senior leadership to lead the function. Over the years “quotas” became “goals”; “actions” became “initiatives”; “race” added “…gender, age, national origin and sexual orientation”. Thus, there have been Diversity Initiatives, Diversity Committees, Diversity Teams, Diversity Affinity Groups, Diversity Plans, Diversity Days and etc. Yet there continues to be very little actual diversity.

The “Admin” job category continues to be a female ghetto. Senior leadership teams continue to be largely White and male. The glass ceiling, with occasional exceptions, still manages to filter by race, gender and orientation. Whatever gets through is loudly trumpeted as “progress”… which at times leads to a relaxation of any real effort. Read many of the diversity plans from twenty or thirty years ago, change the date and some of the language, and you’ve got a plan that will easily pass muster, and still be largely ineffectual, today.

The most recent indices of how foreign diversity is to who and what we are rests in much of the politics of the last decade. We have become a nation of tribes seemingly at war with each other … the Religious Fundamentalists vs. the Secular humanists; the Pro-Lifers vs. the Pro-Choicers; the Xenophobes vs. the Immigrant’s Rights tribe; the Right vs. the Left; the Democrats vs. the Republicans; the States Rights tribe vs. the Federalists; the NRA vs. the Gun Controllers; the Birthers/Baggers/Deathers/Birchers vs. Obama; the Free Marketers vs. the Consumer Advocates, and on and on.

If diversity is about accepting, valuing and respecting the “other”, there is little to indicate that we are naturally capable of doing so. Put another way, diversity like democracy requires effort, commitment and intent.

By: Darlene Matthews

Darlene Matthews — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 14:07:51 +0000

The comments by “guest” show the feigned? ignorance about the problems
and solutions.

Those who very often don’t have equal access to the playing field are grouped.
For us who are disabled we often cant even get on the playing field.

By: Hans Smit

Hans Smit — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 10:40:15 +0000

I am an enthusiastic about diversity. In an orquestra there are diverse talents but they have the same spirit and also, we can have people in diverse roles and have one boss. The human being heart is bad since youth. There is no doubt that diversity, even placed as antonym of discrimination, needs to be managed. Education at home and from school, and at all levels of management and also, as governmental educational programs, advocating Jesus teachings (“the umbrella of overcoming the bad”), shall be more important for all of us either to manage others or being managed by others (think of recritment), and that way we can optimize the performance of the orquestra.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 18:13:04 +0000

Louis,
Did you mean they are “not” white males. If so how does that make them harmonious?

By: Louis Mauriello

Louis Mauriello — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 16:14:02 +0000

The reason “women” are bundled with “Black and Latinos” is becuase they are Non White Males! That IS their “exclusive harmony”.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 15:48:08 +0000

I honestly have difficulty understanding why you group “women, and/or Black and latino together. Are you implying some sort of exclusive harmony? I don’t see it.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 18:00:38 +0000

There does seem to be little logic in the capitalization argument, and in some of the commentary. On 2-21-10 Guest writes, “The very word America is a code word for white people.” Wow. That sounds a little…..well, nuts. Guest writes: “You don’t call Asian Americans that are citizens of America just Asians. You don’t call Japanese Americans that are citizens of America just Japanese, and you don’t call Mexican Americans that are citizens of America just Mexicans…” You’re right: I don’t call them Asians, Japanese, or Mexicans; I call them “Americans.” My husband, who was born and grew up in Iraq, calls himself—you guessed it, “American.” Guest further writes, “A terrorist is a person that commits bodily harm or injury to another human being.” Actually, Guest, that definition could mean a dentist, doctor, policeman, soldier, or your little brother who just tripped you is a “terrorist.” Geez.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 16:26:54 +0000

“The only thing in human DNA is to discriminate” so pathetically correct. My company has DBE, WBE, minority contractors that we must hire due to our affirmative action policy. Many of the white employees fight against the policy by implement it incorrectly, or just try to avoid it at every cost, it’s just not in there DNA. I was against discriminated by a white female in my first year working for a fortune 500 company. I didn’t sue the company but I asked that they implement a program to change the way minor’s are treated, or I would sue, so they form a diversity program at our headquarter and integrated at every location they owned. It is true the CEO must buy into and support any diversity program. The result was curing; it became the best place to work, after long some years of diversity training. The company stopped tolerating discrimination and getting sued.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 13:21:53 +0000

Luke;
You’re very right about the need for committed leadership to promote diversity in an organization.. I’ve worked in a number of corporations whose diversity efforts lacked the ACTIVE commitment of their senior leader. S/he was willing to say the right things on the right occasions. However, in terms of having a vision, being involved in goal setting, holding him/herself and others accountable for diversity …. not so much. In a number of corporations I’m familiar with, it’s possible to take a ten year old diversity plan – change the date – and present it as new because nothing much has changed.

One frustration I’ve experienced is working in a company that talked – very sincerely, I believe – about it’s commitment to diversity. They invited diverse (i.e. Black) speakers (in February), made contributions to various national organizations devoted to diversity and had the usual “…we value diversity in our people, our customers and the communities where we work and do business…” line in their brochures and annual report. Still the board of directors, senior leaders and the vast majority of management remained White and male. Frankly I would have preferred that they just drop the pretense and move on.

In the end the tribalism imprint on our DNA requires that we recognize our limitations and work on those things, like democracy and diversity, which do not come “naturally”. To do otherwise is little more than intellectual, philosophical and spiritual laziness.