Category Archives: Authors A-H

Authors listed by last name A-H

Authors A-H, Social Issues

Retaliation Still Commonplace in Workplace – by David Grinberg

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America is fast becoming a retaliation nation. Look no further than the workplace, a microcosm of society.

Malicious managers are increasingly lashing out at aggrieved employees who have the courage to protest real or perceived discrimination. Retaliation against workers is an unlawful violation of their federally protected rights under anti-discrimination laws.

Nevertheless, retaliation is rampant from corporate America to small and mid-sized companies. This insidious form of discrimination is ruining company culture and hurting bottom-line productivity, among other negative repercussions for employers and employees alike.

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Authors A-H, Race & Ethnicity

Diversity and Speech Part 4: Navigating the N-Word – by Carlos E. Cortés

Leelee Jackson and Geoffrey Stone are hardly household names in diversity circles. But in 2019, my interactions with Jackson, a talented young playwright, and Stone, a passionate defender of free speech, helped illuminate the challenging complexities of diversity and expression.

As a fellow of the University of California National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement, I have been examining the myriad tensions created when two laudable principles collide: the defense of robust speech and the effort to create greater inclusivity. This intersection has generated considerable controversy, including among diversity advocates.

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Authors A-H, Healthcare, Neuro-diversity

Stopping the Stigma of Mental Illness – by David B. Grinberg

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May is Mental Health Month, a nationwide effort to raise awareness and help end the stigma for people with mental health conditions.

Let’s remember that as public discourse about mental health increases, the associated stigma decreases. That’s why it’s critically important to shine a spotlight on a range of mental health issues affecting people of all ages, from depression to dementia.

Fostering open communication, education, transparency, advocacy and outreach — both online and off line— are solid strategies to eradicate prevalent myths, fears and stereotypes.
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Authors A-H, Social Issues

Navigating the “touch, no touch” quagmire: Part 2 – by Terry Howard

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“Reach out and touch someone and make this a better world if you can.”  ~ Diana Ross

Wow, before the ink was dry on my, “Hug me not Joe Biden,” fundamentally a “don’t touch” (or touch selectively) advisory, in the American Diversity Report, along comes Tiffany Field who has spent decades trying to get people to do just the opposite…. touch one another more.

Okay, I say don’t touch, she says do touch!

So what gives?

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Authors A-H, Of Women, Social Issues

Stopping Sex Bias on Wikipedia – By David B. Grinberg

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Wikipedia, the popular online encyclopedia, continues to marginalize women on its English language pages and among its staff. This conclusion is not theoretical but unequivocal. It’s based on academic studies, public statistics and anecdotal evidence.

Wikipedia’s data is daunting, according to the Wikidata Human Gender Indicator.
To wit:

• Less than 18% of 1.6 million English Wikipedia bios are about women, up from 15% in 2014.

• Put another way: of about 1,615,000 bio pages, fewer than 300,000 are about women.

• Meanwhile, men account for about 90% of all English Wikipedia’s volunteer editors.

Wikipedia’s brand image is more reflective of 1920s paternalism than 21st century modernism. The San Francisco-based nonprofit Wikimedia Foundation, which oversees Wikipedia, has a noble mission: Democratize the free flow of information and knowledge to diverse populations worldwide.

But is English Wikipedia practicing what it preaches?

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Around the world, Authors A-H

The Anglophone Crisis in Cameroon – by OTIA BINIKISEH N. Eric

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A reality of Cameroon, the country fondly referred to as “Africa in miniature”, “the land of milk and honey”, the most peaceful country.

Camaroon English Speakers

CameroonFormer Southern Cameroon (Northwest & Southwest regions of Cameroon) is considered a minority group in Cameroon. Approximately 20% of the population (5 Million) of Cameroon are from and reside in these two English-speaking regions. This minority population has been marginalized both in public institutions and state positions. The feeling of marginalization started developing and growing among the anglophone population, when the 1961 Federal Constitution was changed by President Ahidjo in 1972; changing the status of Cameroon from the Federal Republic, to the United Republic of Cameroon. The  sentiment started to develop among the anglophone population that the francophone population was better represented politically, economically and socially. This fueled claims of self-determination within the Anglophone population. (ICG 02/08/2017).

 

This feeling of marginalization has been justified over the past years, where official documents are mostly released only in French.  There was infiltration of English common law system practiced in the English speaking parts of Cameroon and infiltration of the Anglo-Saxon system of education practiced in the English speaking regions of Cameroon with the French system of education. Worst of all, French speaking teachers who can barely say “good morning” in English, were sent to teach major subjects in Anglo-Saxon schools in the English speaking regions of Cameroon. This has made the Anglophone population feel that their culture and identity is being assimilated and wiped out.

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Authors A-H, Social Issues

Hug me not Joe: Part 1 – by Terry Howard

Joe hugged!

Joe’s hugging ignited a media firestorm!

Joe as in Joe Biden, former VP who’s tottering on a decision to make a run for president.

Now this narrative less about Biden and more about hugging and the need to both establish and/or reset social norms relative to personal boundaries. More than anything this is a wake-up call on hugging and the issues and questions the behavior raises.

So let’s get started.

Authors A-H, Inclusion

Diversity and Speech Part 3: The Diversity Movement – by Carlos E. Cortés

Diversity advocates cannot avoid dealing with the intersection of inclusive diversity and robust speech. Tensions between those two imperatives are inevitable. These tensions complicate our efforts to address such speech-related issues as privilege, power, marginalization, hostile work environments, and the expression of intergroup hate.

This is the third in a series of columns based on my research as a current fellow of the University of California National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement. In the first two columns I argued that diversity advocates should not be drawn into the position of opposing free speech. We don’t need to, because totally “free” speech does not exist in the United States.

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Authors A-H, Social Issues

Thou art the outside (the South) agitator – by Terry Howard

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Going SouthernIn her enormously important book, Going Southern, Deborah Levine takes the inquisitive reader deep into many aspects of life in the South, Southern culture, and other things people need to know about us Southern folks.

And she courageously touches on the thorny issue of race as an undeniable part of southern history. Her experiences and mine are about occasionally stepping into racial landmines, reconciliation, contrition and hope.

Here’s one of my recent ones.

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