5 things / anti-racist conversation starters

This week, I spent a lot of time thinking about what it means for me (a privileged cisgender, white, lesbian) to be an anti-racist ally to people of color. I've seen peers on social media wondering the same thing. Here are some really simple, apolitical places to start:

• Reach out to each of your black and brown friends and check in with a simple text, "thinking of you amidst all this trauma. hope all is well."
  

• If you're a leader, send a message to your team and co-workers and let them know that you and the organization support people of color and are committed to embracing diversity. Create space for authentic conversations.
  

• Be deliberate about expanding your network and circle to include more people who are different from you.
  

• When you have opportunities or content to share, amplify people of color.
  

• Consume podcasts, books, articles, TV shows, etc created by people of color. I'm happy to make suggestions.
  

• Talk to your kids about race so it's not a taboo topic. Here are some conversation starters.
  

Want bigger ideas? Watch this video. 

Hit respond if you want to talk through these or other principles of anti-racism, or if you want to discuss training your team on inclusion. We have awesome facilitators who can help you hold these conversations in a way that allows each of your team members to feel valued.

This week I read some inspiring things as well:

• Amazon opened a permanent homeless shelter inside its Seattle HQ. Although the shelter has been planned for several years, it opened during the pandemic with some Covid-specific considerations.
  

• You can be in the NYC Pride virtual parade by responding to this casting call (by Monday!)
  

• This ranking of corporate America's response to Covid-19 has lots of great stories. For example, I had no idea that Verizon committed $54 million in contributions to nonprofits.