Achieving Diversity at Independence, Inc.
2000
by Susan Mikesic
Ed Roberts Gives Us Advice
On August 11, 1992, Ed Roberts visited Independence, Inc., the center
for independent living in Lawrence, Kansas, for an informal visit with
our staff. Ed was in the area, having been invited as the keynote speaker
at a conference on children and youth sponsored by Kansas State Social
Rehabilitation Services. During his visit to our center, one of our staff
members mentioned to Ed that she noticed a great lack of racial diversity
at our midwestern regional conferences. She said that, in attending conferences
and workshops, she would often look around and notice that she was one
of only two or three people of color in a group consisting of hundreds
of Caucasian people. She asked Ed, if this lack of diversity was everywhere
in the disability rights community, or was it a problem only in the Midwest.
Ed's answer was discouraging, but enlightening. He said that (at that
time) a lack of racial diversity was a problem in the independent living
movement everywhere. However, just when our staff member was about to
react in a crest-fallen way, Ed looked her right in the eye and said,
"So I guess you'll just have to do something about it, huh?"
His comment to her, and to all of us, was a pivotal moment in the development
of our Human Diversity Task Force. We realized at that moment, that, yes,
it was time to do something.
We started by examining the diversity of our staff, our board of directors,
and the consumers of our services and we realized that we were not as
diverse as we would like to be.
A Task Force is Formed
The Cultural Diversity Task Force, a group of staff members and consumers,
began to meet regularly with the goal of increasing the racial diversity
of our consumers, our staff, and our board members. One of our original
task force members described her experience as a woman of color coming
through our front door for the first time and encountering, in our staff,
a sea of white faces. This was not comfortable for her. Stories like hers
helped us to realize that we needed more diversity on our staff for consumers
to feel more comfortable with us.
After attending a workshop on "isms"--racism, ageism, sexism
and homophobia--we realized that we did not want to limit ourselves and
that we wanted to increase all aspects of multiculturalism at our center,
including race, religion, gender, age, sexual orientation, socioeconomic
status and disability.
We changed our name to the Human Diversity Task Force and deliberated
on how to market our services to underserved populations. One of our committee
members commented that, if we wanted to communicate a welcome to diverse
populations, we would need to know how to do so. In other words,
we needed to begin by educating ourselves about diversity issues, so that
we could communicate caring and understanding to diverse groups when they
did access our services. Therefore, we began a series of in-service trainings
for our staff. We also sent out flyers and advertised these presentations
in our agency newsletter, inviting consumers, colleagues, and the general
public.
We immediately noticed that these talks not only provided us with quality
training about diversity issues, but also were effective in helping us
market our services. What we originally thought of as a preparatory step
before beginning our marketing efforts, actually became our marketing.
For example, one of our early presentations was conducted by a panel of
professors from Haskell Indian Nations University, a college in Lawrence
exclusively for Native American students. We were not serving very many
Native American consumers at the time, and we believed that some of the
Haskell students had disabilities and could probably use our services.
We decided to invite these professors, who were Native American themselves,
to speak with us about their cultural beliefs and customs. In the month
following that presentation, we received five new referrals from among
Haskell students. One might envision the networking that led to these
referrals: The professors we met probably took information about our services
back to Haskell. They told their colleagues and their students about us,
and those colleagues and students spoke to their associates and the word
spread. In this grass-roots way, our reputation as a welcoming place was
enhanced within this community of people. As a result, the Haskell students
with disabilities who sought our services could approach us with some
confidence that they would be treated with respect by us. In the years
following, we found more and more opportunities to network with organizations
that provide services for Native Americans in our community and now we
often receive referrals from among this population.
The Human Diversity trainings work so well in this way, that we have
continued them for the past seven years. Several times per year, we bring
in speakers from a wide assortment of backgrounds to teach us about their
culture, their beliefs, their civil rights issues, and more:
- Consumers who use wheelchairs have described their trips abroad.
- International students from the University of Kansas have told us
about their native countries.
- Gay, lesbian and bisexual people have spoken about their lives and
issues.
- Elders have spoken with us about aging issues.
- Holocaust survivors have described their experiences in the Holocaust.
- Women with disabilities who were abused or battered have shared their
stories.
- Homeless people have spoken about their needs and their issues.
- A panel of deaf people has made suggestions for working with sign
language interpreters.
- A panel of consumers with psychiatric disabilities has talked with
us about their disabilities, made suggestions and given feedback to
our staff.
The Human Diversity Task Force has sponsored other creative ventures.
Every October, during the week of our annual agency Open House, we host
a Human Diversity Potluck and encourage people
to bring diversity topics to discuss. Sometimes we ask an outside facilitator
to lead us in a discussion.
Twice we chose the topic of Spiritual Diversity for our potluck event
and encouraged people to bring sacred objects that illustrate their beliefs.
People brought prayer beads, sacred books, pictures, and figurines. During
the event, we gave any interested person the opportunity to show their
object to the group and speak about what their object means to them.
Twice we have invited people to bring "nostalgic" objects,
items instilled with meaning for the person. People brought objects from
their childhood, gifts from a beloved relative or friend, musical instruments
and souvenirs from trips. Many people brought items that exhibited some
aspect of their culture or their family of origin. Deep and personal sharing
ensues as we celebrate our diversity in this very personal way.
In 1998, we participated in the Season for Non-Violence,
a grass-roots event commemorating the 30th anniversary of the passing
of Martin Luther King, Jr., and the 50th anniversary of the passing of
Gandhi. Community members were invited to host a public workshop on issues
of non-violence. We hosted a public forum entitled, "Non-violent
Social Activism," and our panel consisted of people from various
areas of civil rights activism, including those working with women's issues,
disability rights advocacy, issues of aging, and Native American concerns.
Panel members spoke about ways that they have non-violently acted to uphold
civil rights and brainstormed about ways we could work together to become
more of a political force.
For one of our early trainings, the Human Diversity Task Force invited
a panel of individuals who are gay, lesbian or bisexual to speak with
us about their lives and about issues they face. During this discussion,
we asked the panel members how we could communicate a welcome to gay,
lesbian and bisexual citizens. They suggested that we hang Safe
Zone Stickers in our windows and on our bulletin boards. These
stickers, which feature an upside down pink triangle, a universal symbol
of gay pride, indicate to visitors at our center that Independence, Inc.
is a safe place for gay, lesbian and bisexual people. Periodically, we
host additional panel discussions and print articles in our monthly newsletter
reminding our staff and visitors of the responsibilities involved in being
a Safe Zone.
Twice a year we host a public talk that we call our Ability
Awareness series. For each of these events, we choose a different
disability and invite a panel of individuals who have that particular
disability to speak about their experiences and about ways that the community
could become more accommodating. We market these talks extensively and
sometimes have 100 people in attendance. These events are opportunities
for the community to learn about disability rights issues, and for consumers
to give and receive support.
For the Ability Awareness talks, we sometimes focus on an issue that
affects people with disabilities as a group, rather than focusing on a
particular disability. These are our Ability Awareness
Public Forums which have focused on topics such as homelessness
and housing concerns and breaking down barriers to employment.
At any of these Ability Awareness events, the consumers chiefly run the
show. The panel always consists of consumers. An Independence, Inc. staff
member moderates the discussion, and one or more staff member might share
briefly about our services, or speak about laws that protect the rights
of people with disabilities. Sometimes we invite other community service
providers to say a few words about their services. The primary speakers,
however, are always consumers.
We have recently begun hosting Ability Awareness forums in small towns
within the three-county area that we serve. These forums are part of our
rural outreach that is designed to increase
our service delivery in rural communities. We have made efforts to learn
about the culture, customs, values, and preferences of the people from
these rural communities. For example, we learned not to hold
a public meeting between the hours of four and six p.m. in these small
towns, sometimes referred to as "bedroom communities." It is
very common for citizens from these communities to commute to their jobs,
and during late afternoon hours local residents prefer not to travel the
busy and often dangerous rural highways unless absolutely necessary.
Once a year a small group of consumers and staff get together for our
Annual Planning Meeting to brainstorm potential
topics for future human diversity trainings. We usually show a video with
a diversity theme at the meeting. We try to choose inspirational or interesting,
thought-provoking films as we want to encourage people to attend and participate
in this planning process. Our Human Diversity Task Force chair and her
assistant meet monthly to plan specific events, contact speakers and organize
publicity. Very little time is involved in this simple process which produces
very great benefit.
Very few of our speakers have asked for monetary compensation. Out of
more than 70 workshops, involving more than 100 speakers, only two people
have asked for monetary compensation. Everyone else has donated his or
her time and skills free-of-charge. We have found that when we explained
our purpose, we usually encounter an outpouring of generosity and support.
As a result, the Human Diversity Task Force functions with a very minimal
budget--just a moderate amount for photocopying and mailing flyers to
advertise our events.
Tracking Our Success
Since the inception of our Human Diversity Task Force in 1993, we have
seen many changes at our center. We have more staff now, our budget has
grown and we have several new programs. Two years ago we moved into a
new building that we designed and built. During these seven years, we
have reached some of our Human Diversity goals to increase the diversity
of our staff, board and consumers, and some of our goals are yet to be
attained.
The racial diversity of our staff has increased.
In 1993, we had two staff persons who were non-white out of a total of
22 people, or nine percent. Currently, we have five staff members who
are people of color, out of a total of 36, or 14 percent. (According to
1990 census information, the population of Douglas County, Kansas, where
Independence, Inc. is located, is 89 percent Caucasian.)
We do not have a reliable source of statistical data on the ethnic
diversity of our consumers. Our consumers are invited to disclose
their ethnicity at the time of intake, but less than forty percent of
consumers chose to do so in 1999. Of those who reported, sixty-eight percent
were Caucasian and thirty-two percent were non-white. In order to gain
a perspective on how the racial diversity of our consumers has changed
over the past several years, this author spoke with nine staff members
who have worked at Independence, Inc. for at least six years. Five of
these reported that they see more people of color now as compared with
several years ago; the other four say the proportions seem about the same.
One staff member interviewed has worked as a receptionist or back-up receptionist,
which allowed him to observe firsthand the influx of our consumers. He
reported that when he first began working in 1986, he estimated that about
2 percent of our consumers were non-white. Now, through observation, he
estimates that about ten percent of our consumers are non-white.
According to staff observation, particularly in our benefits advocacy,
housing advocacy, computer training, and payroll assistance programs,
we are serving more non-white consumers now than six or seven years ago.
Also, we are networking more often with other agencies that serve non-whites,
particularly those that serve Haskell students and Native American citizens.
We serve a substantial number of Russian and other international consumers,
but we generally do not see many members of the Asian or Hispanic communities.
The housing specialist reports working with several consumers who speak
languages other than English, including Asian, Russian and Spanish. According
to staff observation, we are serving more African American consumers now
than we were seven or more years ago.
Of course, we do not ask consumers about their sexual
orientation, but we have had no consumer complaints due to homophobic
behavior on the part of any member of our staff. Since 1993, we have been
able to maintain our connection to the gay and lesbian community through
engaging gay, lesbian and bisexual individuals in our Human Diversity
Task Force trainings and through courteous behavior on the part of our
staff. We receive word-of-mouth referrals from the gay community and from
our county AIDS project. It is common for consumers who are gay or lesbian
to "come out" to our staff, perhaps prompted by the Safe Zone
stickers we display.
We are serving more people who have disabilities that
are considered traditionally underserved by CILs. Until the early
1990's our center primarily provided services for wheelchair-users and
other people with physical disabilities. In the early 1990's, we identified
several disabilities as "underserved" and have increased our
involvement with consumers from all of these disability groups over the
past seven years.
Looking at new consumer intakes for a calendar year, we initiated services
for nearly three times as many people with head injuries, more than twice
as many consumers with psychiatric disabilities, more than twice as many
consumers with cognitive disabilities and a few more consumers with deafness
or hearing loss in 1999 as compared with 1992.
We are also serving more consumers from rural communities,
another group identified as "underserved." In 1999, we initiated
services for more than twice as many consumers from rural communities,
as compared in 1992. Our rural outreach efforts, in which the Human Diversity
Task Force plays a small part, have contributed to this growth.
The racial diversity of our board has varied
over the last seven years, with between ten and 25 percent being non-whites.
Currently, ten percent of our board members are non-white, and we have
six openings for new members. Our board is keenly aware of the need for
more cultural diversity whenever choosing new members, so we look for
this percentage to increase as these positions get filled. Human Diversity
Task Force committee members, to solicit board involvement from among
our colleagues at organizations that serve multicultural communities.
Your Center Can "Do Something About It", Too
All of this would be very easy for any CIL to duplicate. All you need
is a small group of staff and consumers who believe in the value of increasing
your center's diversity. Here are some suggestions for getting started:
- First, get a committee together. Ask among your co-workers, consumers,
and colleagues. Who is interested in addressing issues of human diversity
at your center? Create a mailing list.
- Next, begin to meet regularly as a committee. Ask yourselves the
following questions:
- What are the human diversity demographics of your service area?
Compare those statistics with the people you serve. Who is missing
from your list of consumers? Look at age, gender, race/ethnicity,
religion, income level, and education level. Also, look for missing
disability categories. Do you serve people who are deaf, blind,
or deaf/blind, people with psychiatric disabilities, cognitive disabilities,
learning disabilities, head injury, or seizure disorders?
- Who do you know in your community who could help you? Look for:
Colleges/Universities
Multicultural Centers
Churches
Political Organizations
Civic Groups
Activists
Bilingual Newspapers
Bilingual Radio Stations
Support Groups
Coalitions
(Plan to use these venues for advertising educational workshops,
staff and board positions announcements, and networking opportunities.)
- Are your center's policies and board policies supportive of diversity
and intolerant of intolerance? Do items need to be added to the employee
handbook or the agency by-laws, making this clear?
- Are any of your co-workers displaying signs of homophobia, racism
or other 'ism's?
- Based on what you discover after asking these questions, develop a
set of goals and a plan. You might want to form committees to address
each set of problems. For example, one committee could develop a series
of staff trainings. Another committee could develop a proposal for agency
policy supporting diversity. A third committee could develop a resource
list of possible community collaborators.
- Look for and begin attending workshops on diversity issues. Encourage
staff to participate in continuing education on diversity topics. Get
on mailing lists. Make announcements at your staff meetings about training
opportunities.
- Solicit support from your board of directors and administrative staff.
Submit proposals describing your plans. Encourage your executive director
to mandate staff participation at human diversity inservice trainings.
Invite board members to participate. Design some trainings specifically
for your board.
- Build durability into your plan. Establish traditions. Host annual
events. Choose a regularly scheduled time for planning meetings. Sponsor
regular staff and community events.
- Get new staff members involved in human diversity issues. Develop
an orientation that gives an overview of multiculturalism and guidelines
for communicating a welcoming attitude.
- Keep your goals in mind and continue finding creative ways to work
toward them.
The benefits of hosting Human Diversity trainings at your center are
likely to be immeasurable. Presentations on human diversity topics are
not only educational, but are often good fun. Your staff will provide
better quality services to a wider variety of consumers. People with disabilities
from underserved populations in your communities will get to know about
your services and can gain from them. You will enhance your reputation
as a welcoming agency. Your center, your consumers and your community
will benefit. Good luck to you on your human diversity journey.
Contact Information
Susan Mikesic
Independence, Inc.
2001 Haskell Avenue
Lawrence, Kansas 66046
(785)841-0333 (voice/TDD)
(785)841-1094 (FAX)
susanm@independenceinc.org
About the Author
Susan Mikesic is the community coordinator
at Independence, Inc., an independent living center in Lawrence, Kansas.
She has served as the chair of the Human Diversity Task Force at Independence,
Inc. since its inception in 1992. Ms. Mikesic, who has a Masters degree
in counseling psychology from the University of Kansas, has worked in
the area of independent living for 10 years. She has spoken about the
Independence, Inc. Human Diversity Task Force at the Statewide Independent
Living Council of Kansas (SILCK) summit in Topeka, Kansas; at the National
Council on Independent Living (NCIL) conference in Washington, D.C.; and
at the IL NET Outreach to Underserved Populations workshop in Portland,
Oregon.
|