Category Archives: Authors

Authors A-H, Teams & Leaders

Experiencing Diversity Through the Marine Corps Training Process – Reginald Hairston

The Marine Corps’ purpose as stated on its webpage is to, “Defend the people of the United States at home and abroad. To do that, we make Marines who win our Nation’s battles and return as quality citizens.”  To the casual reader, the first half of the purpose, which is to defend the United States, is stated in simple terms and easily understood.  However, it is the latter half of the purpose that bears some investigating and begs the question, “What does make a better citizen mean?”  To answer this question, I want to take you on a journey through the process of becoming a Marine, the transformation that occurs and the life-changing impact of being immersed into a sea of diversity creates. 

Citizens from every walk of life you can imagine arrive by bus to one of three locations.  Young men and women who have signed an enlistment contract arrive at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, South Carolina or Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego.  Officer candidates receive their initial training at the Officer Candidate School located in Quantico, Virginia.  For the purposes of this journey, we will focus on the experience of the recruits who matriculate through one of the training Depots.

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Authors A-H, Teams & Leaders

Breaking Down the Walls to Disability in the C-suite – by Louise Duffield

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Overcoming obstacles to the integration of disabled people in the C-Suite should be at the top of every board agenda. Often, I hear about diversity, but diversity efforts alone do not  deal with the challenges facing disabled senior executives or aspiring leaders. These challenges can be addressed, and leaders have a responsibility to turn around the stigma surrounding disability in the C-suite.

Authors A-H, Religious Diversity Kit, Social Issues

Religion-based bullying: causes, dangers, solutions – by Sam Chester

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Bullying can be based on various things. A person, most likely, a school student, might find themselves bullied by others because of their race, gender, sexuality, appearance, academic or athletic performance, personality, and other aspects of their identity.

A solution to the problem as complex as this one must be equally comprehensive. Today, however, I would like to tackle but one element of this problem: religion-based bullying.

Roots of faith-based bullying

Religion-based bullying is a horrible trend that is still going strong in our schools. It happens both in the physical world and online and shows no signs of stopping. It would be preposterous for us to blame it exclusively on children, equally as preposterous as to turn a blind eye to it.

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Authors A-H, Culture

Diversity and Speech Part 5: Interculturalism – by Carlos E. Cortés

The diversity movement has raised myriad issues regarding language and the exercise of speech.  Indeed, some critics of diversity efforts have accused its advocates of undermining the U.S. tradition of free speech.  Yet that argument is ill-founded, for two reasons.  First, because totally “free” speech does not exist in the United States.  Second, because establishing selective legal limits on speech is as historically American as apple pie.

This is the fifth in a series of columns based on my research as a past fellow of the University of California National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement.   In earlier columns I argued that diversity advocates should not be drawn into the position of opposing free speech, because it does not really exist.  Rather they should clarify and reframe the issue.

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Authors A-H, Social Issues

The Online Spaces of the Final Generation – by Samantha Boucher

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“The Final Generation”

Some refer to Generation Z – those born, roughly, from the mid-1990s onward – as ‘The Final Generation’. This is not due to some apocalyptic vision of the future, but rather as a reflection of the nature of culture in online spaces.

The Final GenerationIn previous generations, it could be reasonably assured that a monoculture would develop. Because of the nature of the distribution of media and the limited ways in which it could be communicated, entire generations of youth would grow up with roughly the same cultural experiences – watching the same shows and cartoons, consuming the same film and radio programs.

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Authors A-H, Politics, Social Issues

Two Letters – taking a stand! – by Terry Howard

As sheer coincidence would have it, I’d just finished rereading Dr. King’s famous “Letter from A Birmingham Jail” when the following excerpts of a letter from my good friend “Shirley” popped up in my email:
Dear Pastor, I first want to say that I have benefitted from your sermons since I have been a part of your congregation. I, however, have some concerns that prompted me to write to you. I know that my political beliefs aren’t necessarily in line with a large portion of the congregation. I knew that when I first started worshipping here but I didn’t perceive it to be a concern. I believed this to be true because I try to look at people and issues and determine the best course of action based upon all that I hear, read, observe and analyze. Based on that process, I pray that I know what is the most prudent to address and decisions to make.  

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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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