10 Ways to Celebrate Inclusion During African American History Month
From Diversity-Executive.com
Deborah J. Walker, February 2010

To commemorate and celebrate the contributions to our nation made by people of African descent, American historian Carter G. Woodson established Black History Week. The first celebration occurred on Feb. 12, 1926. For many years, the second week of February was set aside for this celebration, to coincide with the birthdays of abolitionist and editor Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln. In 1976, as part of the nation's bicentennial, the week was expanded into Black History Month. Each year, U.S. presidents proclaim February as National African American History Month. The 2010 theme is “The History of Black Economic Empowerment.”

The senior-level diversity or inclusion executive stands at the center of an organization’s efforts to create inclusive environments where differences are recognized, understood, appreciated and leveraged to competitively operate in a national and global economy. Despite the economic crisis, African American History Month offers an opportunity to proactively further these efforts. It also offers a time for reflection and recommitment to further institutionalizing the goals of inclusion. Below are ways to celebrate during African American History Month.

1. Create opportunities for other senior leaders to dive deeper into the impact of African-Americans as customers and consumers in your marketplace.

2. Create formal and informal opportunities for other employees to learn about, ask about and notice racial and biracial, ethnic, gender, age, sexual orientation, religious, and physical and mental ability differences, as well as other cultural differences, and their impact on their African-American colleagues or employees.

3. In the spirit of the 2010 African American History Month theme “The History of Black Economic Empowerment,” examine or re-examine your company’s African-American investing strategy and supplier diversity efforts.

4. Use African American History Month as a time for personal reflection. Read a range of historic and current books written by and about African-Americans that can support you in being a catalyst for continued inclusion. Also include books about the African Diaspora in order to understand the global influence of people of African descent on the marketplace.

5. Commit to learning more about the concept of racial micro-aggression and its forms — micro-assault, micro-insult and micro-invalidation — as one way to enhance your understanding of those commonplace verbal, behavioral or environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate a hostile work environment. Investigate options for addressing these.

6. Research has shown that social, economic, educational and health disparities exist and adversely affect African-Americans. Understand how these disparities might have an adverse impact on your company’s competitive edge.

7. Step up mentoring of African-American employees as well as employee volunteer efforts in African-American communities. Re-examine how well you are using your African-American employee resource groups as well as other resource groups to support inclusion internally and externally through your recruiting efforts.

8. Many companies believe their economic future is tied to the quality of our educational system. Encourage dialogues across differences about what is required to close the educational gaps across race and gender and what your organization can do to facilitate these efforts.

9. Use African American History Month as a time for an annual “inclusion climate” assessment. Conduct the assessment to determine the ways in which your inclusion strategies are working and are not working across racial, ethnic, interethnic and other cultural group lines. Commit to updating your inclusion plans in light of the assessment results.

10. Engage in outreach and partnership. Examine or re-examine your long-term relationships with professional, educational and nonprofit organizations that serve African-Americans and other communities of color. Are you making the best use of these partnerships? Do you, the company, your African-American resource groups and your partner organizations feel the relationships are mutually beneficial?

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in his “Letter from the Birmingham Jail” in 1963 said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”

The process of building an inclusive work environment is an ongoing one. African American History Month helps to reaffirm the nature of the journey as well as its challenges and opportunities. Groups that have been marginalized and then come to experience being valued contribute their full potential, bring their complete selves to their work, work more productively and are less likely to be absent or leave the organization. Having all employees experience this value is a competitive advantage. Recognizing, understanding and appreciating African-Americans and other cultural groups within the workforce, as well as the context in which they live outside the workforce, increases the probability that each will diligently work to ensure the company’s ongoing success. Observing African American History Month is value added.

Deborah J. Walker, Ph.D., is a senior consultant with Visions Inc. She can be reached at editor@diversity-executive.com.