“Outreach Empowerment Diversity”  Please respond to the following:

Note: This can be either a written or video discussion post.

Note: Collaboration matters! Please respond to at least one other student.

Consider the following situation:

You walk into your office and you hear co-workers talking about a recent situation where the police arrested and killed a young African American man. Your team is really divided on this issue. There are some individuals who believe that the police are corrupt and using racial profiling to identify and harm citizens based on their race. There are still others who feel that the young Black men who were attacked provoked the police and that racial profiling is ridiculous. There are still other co-workers who are intimidated by the entire conversation and just hang their heads and avoid the discussion. You breathe a sigh of relief when the conversation ends and everyone goes back to work. Soon after, your manager comes to you to inquire what was the conversation all about. 

As the new director of diversity education, it’s part of your responsibility to provide a forum for constructive dialogue on these topics. For this discussion activity, describe how you could facilitate a dialogue regarding this topic. What types of things would you need to be mindful of? What strategies could you use before, during, and after any kind of a dialogue/workshop? How would you create a safe space where all could feel heard and respected? What are some of your personal biases that may influence your facilitation?