Category Archives: About Us

About the American Diversity Report

DL Opinion columns

Time is well spent at the library – by Deborah Levine

Originally published in The Chattanooga Times Free Press

As I enter our downtown library I’m reminded of a famous quote by science fiction writer, Ray Bradbury, “Libraries raised me.” Growing up in Bermuda, the one small public library was a treasure and my grandmother donated the Encyclopedia Britannica to it. When we came to America as a kid, we lived in several different communities before settling in Long Island, New York. Lacking any sense of direction I often got ridiculously lost, but agree with Albert Einstein who said, “The only thing that you absolutely have to know, is the location of the library.”

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Authors R-Z, Religious Diversity Kit

Perspective on Christian Nationalism – by A. James Rudin

Baptizing America Revisited

Rabbi RudinA specter is haunting America and it is not socialism and certainly not communism. It’s the obscene specter of Americans being forced to kneel in submission to an extremist “winner take all” religious ideology seeking to transform the United States into a “Christian nationalist” country where Christian supremacy in its many forms supersedes all human laws – including and especially the American Constitution.

In my book “The Baptizing of America: The Religious Right’s Plans For The Rest Of Us (Thunder’s Mouth Press 2006), I warned that a well-financed and highly organized group of religious and political leaders was seeking to impose their narrow radical beliefs and harsh public policies on the US, even as our nation’s population was increasingly multireligious, multiethnic, and multiracial.

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Academic Articles, Advisors, Education

End of Affirmative Action? A Tale of Two Stories – by Dr. Carlos Cortés

Keynote Address for Constitutional Law:
The End of Affirmative Action
Part of the Signature DIAlogue Webinar Series of the
Los Angeles County Department of Human Resources

Thank you for the opportunity of reflecting on Affirmative Action, particularly the two recent Supreme Court decisions that struck down the admissions policies of Harvard University and the University of North Carolina. I’ll approach this topic as both an 89-year-old retired history professor and a half-century diversity consultant/public lecturer who actually witnessed the birth of affirmative action.    

The six-decade affirmative action journey involves two intersecting stories: a vision story and a systems story. Both are rooted in the civil rights movement and were launched officially by President John F. Kennedy’s March 6, 1961, Executive Order 10925.

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About Deborah Levine, Bunny Bear Adventures

Bunny Bear Adventures – Teaching Guide

Teaching GuideThis guide for teachers and parents helps children connect to their own feelings and develop empathy for others. The Teaching Guide uses the science of storytelling to design engaging stories as a tool for social and personal competencies. Given the growing need to teach young students respect  and empathy, the video stories of  Bunny Bear Adventures provide a creative approach for teaching social and emotional awareness and laying the groundwork for positive and productive human interaction.

The stories can be read out loud to students and  be accompanied by the Bunny Bear Adventures Coloring Book. Topics in the stories include: welcoming newcomers, understanding differences, dealing with bullying, awareness of language and valuing compassion and kindness.

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About Deborah Levine, Books, Bunny Bear Adventures

Bunny Bear Adventures – Coloring Book

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Statue of LibertyInclusive Coloring Book

These coloring pages for ages 6-11 are not only engaging and fun, but also include discussion questions that prompt deep thinking. They’re designed to help young people build critical thinking skills, enhance social and emotional awareness, and increase emotional intelligence.

Bunny Bear and Statue of Liberty
Bunny Bear and Statue of Liberty

Why call it Bunny Bear? My father called all the women in the family “Bunny”: my mom, me, and, when she was born, my daughter who gave me a teddy bear called “Bunny Bear”. The love that Bunny Bear represents keeps me company always and I’m happy to share that love.

The images on the coloring book pages are based on the video stories that you can see when you click on: Bunny Bear Adventures in Diversity Land.

RESOURCE PACKAGE with both:
#1 TEACHING GUIDE &
#2 COLORING BOOK
20% DISCOUNT: $19.95 & Postage only $3.50 

 

Academic Articles, Authors A-H

The Demise of Billionaires: Allure of Economic Reckoning – by Ainesh Dey

ABSTRACT:

The case for restricting wealth seems rather intense. Indeed the onus of proof is on those who defend the sanctity of the existence of billionaires, to show why they should be allowed to amass or even siphon off millions of dollars. However, this is not the end of the road. The erecting of a so-called “wealth ceiling”, as championed by Belgian- Dutch philosopher  Ingrid Robeyns  so that “no one has more than an upper threshold of valuable goods”, seems rather baffling in the contemporary age of economic slackness.

Indeed, a world without billionaires, would have profound contemporary significance. With the positive implications ranging from a steep fall in disruptive climatic conditions on the environmental front to reduced incidences of poverty, on the economic front, the grass might seem greener on the other side, however not correctly so, and this is where we get a glimpse of a different picture.

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Academic Articles, Advisors

Defining, Practicing, and Protecting Dialogue in Higher Education – by Dr. Carlos E. Cortés

What role can faculty play in changing the national conversation about campus dialogue? 

That’s actually two questions in one.  First, what national conversation –- or conversations — are we talking about?  Second, what role -– or roles — can faculty play?  I’ll take these questions one at a time.  But first let me tell you where I’m coming from.

No, I’m not indulging in today’s identity politics.  I’m not positioning myself by race or sex or gender identity or religion or sexual orientation?  But I am going to play the age card.  At 89, that’s one of the few cards I’ve got left.  And it’s relevant to today’s discussion because age rhymes with experience, and three aspects of my personal journey inform what I’m going to say.

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Advisors, Social Issues

The Scared States of America – by Terry Howard

Rejection?……Death?…..Aging?…..
Being judged?…..Loneliness?

What’s your innermost fear readers? I posed that question (with the options above and others) to some folks whose views I value. Those are the fears that bubbled up. Their answers follow. But to make this personal, ponder your answer to that question.

Now before we get to the responses from those I “surveyed,” I’ll start with a conversation with an African American friend who, like me, is the father of sons. We were talking about the recent spate of gun deaths sweeping the nation and the disproportionate impact on African Americans. Here it is:

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Authors A-H, LGBTQ

Reliving Transgender History Part II – by Rafaela Amrita Crevoshay

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“… let me remind you: bigotry against minority groups based on sexual orientation or gender identity, such as the trans community, is a way fascism takes root.”
~ by Robert Reich, The Guardian 4/30/23

Hirschfeld would have been delighted by the progress

As a pioneer in Weimar Berlin, Dr. Magnus Hirschfeld explored the limits of what he then referred to as transsexuality. His work documented substantial progress in the identification of diversity of behaviors among Trans people. His efforts to enhance Trans’ social acceptability were commendable and well-accepted. His Institut fuer Sexual Wissenschaft (Institute for Sexual Research) succeeded in initiating viable sex-change strategies and offered a range of comprehensive educational and therapeutic services to their patients. This enlightened approach to a taboo topic made historic progress in 1920s Berlin. Nazi exclusionary edicts abruptly terminated it, with tragic conclusion.

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Levine articles, Religious Diversity Kit

The How and Why of Religious Diversity Training- by Deborah Levine

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Why does the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion field include so little religious diversity training? The cultural awareness and cultural competence inherent in DEI are increasingly embraced as the major tools of the global market place of the future. Yet, there is a black hole of information on diverse religions. The silence is due to a paralyzing sense of being overwhelmed and under-prepared, not to a lack of interest or visibility. Turn on the TV, open a newspaper, or check the internet and religion pops out as a major issue across the planet. Look at the increase in EEOC complaints based on religious expression as well as the growing antisemitism, anti-Muslim and other hate-related trends. Yet, the vacuum of expertise in religious diversity exists in most relationship-oriented sectors of our society: business, education, government, and human services.

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