Category Archives: About Us

About the American Diversity Report

Authors A-H, Race & Ethnicity

Education about Racial Issues – Who educates who? – by Terry Howard

My hunch is that the majority of those well-meaning folks who say, “When I see you, I don’t color,” or a variation, have no idea how exhaustive it can be to many Black folks. And to Black folks who hear this constantly, the typical response is usually a deep inhale and a …. “well, here we go again!”

Case in point is Oprah Winfrey’s latest magazine “O” with an advice column headlined, “How to Deal with Your White Friends”– advice for Black women feeling worn down by the neediness of others to help them deal with racial issues.”

So why this recent surge in interest in racial issues, Black ones in particular?

Continue reading Education about Racial Issues – Who educates who? – by Terry Howard →

Authors A-H, Race & Ethnicity

Unpacking “Black Lives Matter” – by Terry Howard

 “The Black Lives Movement wants to see the destruction of the nuclear family.”
     “BLM is a hate group that’s planning to destroy the police.”
 “Let us not be confused. BLM is nothing but a Marxist group.”

These are actual quotes – from politicians running for office (surprise, surprise, surprise) – that typifies how Black Lives Matter has become a convenient boogey man – a political wedge issue – these days. However, the words have moved from baseball caps and posters. They’re now painted in large letters on streets in New York, Washington, DC and other cities. You’ll even find the words on tattoos, and even engraved on protective masks to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Continue reading Unpacking “Black Lives Matter” – by Terry Howard →

Levine articles, Women in STEM

A STEM Woman’s Story – by Deborah Levine

Don’t Bother Trying to Fit In

Deborah Levine
ADR Editor-in-Chief Deborah Levine

When my family moved to America from British Bermuda, I was still in elementary school, having completed first form, the equivalent of first grade, at the Bermuda High School (BHS) for Girls. Uniform and uniformed, I marched in step with the other girls, just as my mother had done through her entire schooling at BHS. Yes, I did stand out as the only Jewish girl in the school, or anywhere on the island. But generations of my family were well known on the island, so the singularity was tolerable. Inserted into a New York City suburb, I was delighted to find that this particular oddity was completely irrelevant. For better or worse, I still stuck out and a confidence crisis set in.

Continue reading A STEM Woman’s Story – by Deborah Levine →

Authors R-Z, Race & Ethnicity, Social Issues

RIP John Lewis – By Elwood Watson

A Tribute to the ‘Conscience of Congress’

John LewisAs he’s laid to rest, there are no shortage of salutes to Congressman John Lewis, the formidable civil rights activist and legislator from Georgia who departed this earth on July 17, 2020, at the age of 80.

Mr. Lewis was a larger than life figure, a fierce, fiery presence packaged in a medium-sized man’s body. He was a person who lived an extraordinary life.

Continue reading RIP John Lewis – By Elwood Watson →

Advisors, Authors A-H, Disability

Why Disability Employment is Good Business – By David B. Grinberg

In case you missed it,  the 30th anniversary of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was not long ago. All employers need to remember that workforce diversity includes people with disabilities.

All savvy employers should know by now that providing equal opportunities to people with disabilities simply makes good business sense. This is especially true in an interconnected, global economy. Unfortunately, not every company has gotten the message.

As the ADA turned 30, there was good and bad news regarding people with disabilities (PWDs). The good news: The disability community can be found in virtually all aspects of modern society.

Continue reading Why Disability Employment is Good Business – By David B. Grinberg →

Levine articles, Politics, Social Issues

Tribalism and The Vote – by Deborah Levine

Some have called our “Me & Us First” politics as nationalism but I prefer to apply the label ‘tribalism’.  In this COVID-19 environment, racial lines, regional preferences, current events and heavy political advertising, are not shaping public opinion as much as the identity of a specific community and the resonance of a leader to that community. Communities are built on religious and ethnic values, family preferences, housing patterns, and health habits. Their political choices have always been shaped by those cultural traits. With the economic fallout and the growing disparities in jobs and  education, politics will become a complex mix of leadership styles that symbolize communities along with the body language, word choice, and facial expressions that resonate specific communities. Policy positions and biographical details will be less relevant as they are filtered through the lens of each group.

Continue reading Tribalism and The Vote – by Deborah Levine →

About Us, Uncategorized

Thanking our ADR Donors

ADROur virtual Town Hall, The Future of Diversity Amid Pandemic,   took place on Sept. 14, 2020 with help from multiple donors.  Your generous support of our mission to Promote Diversity, Foster Inclusion and Counteract Hate is much appreciated. I can’t thank you enough for joining me in these DEI efforts to make a lasting real-world difference – needed now more than ever.

  • Cindy Steede Almeida
  • Lori Strauss Bantz
  • Sandra Benson
  • Earl Berkun
  • David Blair
  • Bill Bond
  • Garnet Chapin
  • Stephen Crevoshay
  • Alnoor Dhanani
  • Lakweshia Ewing
  • Roslyn Gerwin
  • Vivian Hershey
  • Terry Howard
  • Janice Jacobs
  • Marilyn Kallett
  • Elizabeth Keenan
  • Martin Kimeldorf
  • Gene Konsavage
  • Miki Leischner Levine
  • Carole Long
  • Ronald Lake
  • Cathy Light
  • Sharon Riegie Maynard
  • Susan McCuistion
  • Frank Miller
  • Gay Moore
  • Janet Cooper Nelson
  • Jennifer Rose Norred
  • Nicole Sloane
  • Sandy Norris Smith
  • Janet Thal
  • Elwood Watson
  • Barbara Weitz
  • Richard Zachary
Black-Jewish Dialogue, Levine articles

Why Black-Jewish Dialogue Now? – by Deborah Levine

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Our Virtual Dialogue – Background

The online Black-Jewish Dialogues began in the summer 2020 and quickly went global. The monthly Dialogues were recorded, and placed on individual pages in the American Diversity Report as ongoing resources.

CLICK on video to hear the presentation by Deborah Levine for Chattanooga’s Mizpah Synagogue that initiated the  Dialogues.  Hear the video and see excerpts of the transcript.
Scroll down for links to the  Dialogues and related podcasts. 

TRANSCRIPT EXCERPTS: It’s a true challenge to talk about issues involving African Americans and Jews in these turbulent times. The murder of George Floyd and COVID-19 have put a spotlight not just on monuments and law enforcement, but also on festering issues of economic, social and healthcare inequities. The issues echo the 1960s civil rights era but with the internet, terminology, quotes, memes and comments are constantly morphing. And spreading. Two weeks ago, a Black-Jewish woman messaged me, worried about how the words of Louis Farrakhan were being blending with those of local White Supremacists. (See Farrakhan) Will the words of our nonviolent sixties icons, James Baldwin and Martin Luther King Jr., successfully counteract this trend? I hope that celebrating the life of the civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis will re-emphasize the impact of non-violent activism. (See John Lewis)

Continue reading Why Black-Jewish Dialogue Now? – by Deborah Levine →

Levine articles, Music, theater, TV, dance, Neuro-diversity

Music and NeuroCommunication: Part 2 – by Deborah Levine

Neuro Communication with James Brown

My musical neurocommunication with Ravi Shankar ended with his deep bow. The burst of applause was startling after the stillness, as was the quick dash of movement to the bathrooms. I turned to Cousin Sam, thanked him, and started to put on my coat. Sam didn’t move, ”We should stay for the next act.” I whined at that, “I’m tired and it’s a long schlep back to campus on the bus.” “Trust me. We should stay,” he said softly, but firmly. And so, mildly kvetching (complaining in Yiddish), I was still seated when the curtain re-opened.

Continue reading Music and NeuroCommunication: Part 2 – by Deborah Levine →

Levine articles, Music, theater, TV, dance, Neuro-diversity

Music and Neurocommunication: Part 1 – by Deborah Levine

Neurocommunication with Ravi Shankar

My cousin Sam and I escaped our Harvard dorms and were about to experience neurocommunication as we headed out to a Ravi Shankar concert in a small neighborhood theater in Boston. I was just seventeen, you know what I mean, and it was frostbite territory standing at the bus stop in Cambridge, Mass. Freezing almost took my mind off of being homesick for my family back in New York. Overcome with loneliness, I needed an attitude adjustment and Sam insisted on some music therapy. He thought that classical sitar music from India would distract and soothe  – reboot my brain.  I wondered why we were the only Harvard students who ‘d come to hear this relatively unknown musician from India. But it was the sixties and Shankar hadn’t yet been labeled by The Beatles’ George Harrison as “the godfather of world music”.

Continue reading Music and Neurocommunication: Part 1 – by Deborah Levine →