Category Archives: About Us

About the American Diversity Report

Advisors, Authors A-H, Social Issues

Diversity vs. Free Speech: An Invented Conflict – by Carlos E. Cortés

“That’s against free speech.”  “That’s censorship.”
“That’s unconstitutional.”

 

Those are the kinds of responses diversity advocates are likely to receive when they challenge hate speech or other forms of demeaning and marginalizing expression. Unfortunately, diversity supporters often take the bait and respond by arguing for the importance of limiting free speech. But they shouldn’t go down that road. They don’t have to challenge free speech because free speech doesn’t actually exist. Let me explain.

Continue reading Diversity vs. Free Speech: An Invented Conflict – by Carlos E. Cortés →

Authors A-H, Race & Ethnicity, Social Issues

When Nobody’s Looking: the Northam Moment! – by Terry Howard

1 Comment

Sigh, here we are again folks. Race…America…2019!

Like those meddlesome spring dandelions in the front yard, the specter of race keeps coming up as a slap upside the head reminder of how far we’ve come yet how far we need to go. One step forward, two, three, four, five steps back.

Here’s the latest “what the heck was he thinking” moment; one, I add with disgust, broke in the headlines on the first day of African American History Month in a state where 400 years ago the first slaves were hauled off in chains onto the shores in Virginia.

Continue reading When Nobody’s Looking: the Northam Moment! – by Terry Howard →

Authors A-H, Commerce, Social Issues

Corporate Governance and Sustainable Development – by Bojana Bogojević

At the present moment, when only a few economies of the world have recovered from the global economic crisis that befell, and only spill-over has occurred for the rest, corporate governance has become a vital solution for the economic growth and sustainable development to which every economy aspires.

What is Corporate Governance?

Corporate Governance is the system of process and rules under which a company is directed and controlled. Corporate Governance isn’t just a set of value statements. There are a significant number of very technical legal requirements that companies must follow in order to demonstrate that they have good corporate governance.

Continue reading Corporate Governance and Sustainable Development – by Bojana Bogojević →

DL Opinion columns

Embrace our Local-Global Connections – by Deborah Levine

(Originally published in The Chattanooga Times Free Press)

The recent kerfuffle involving Chinese graduate students speaking in their native language during a break at Duke University underscores our growing hostility towards international connections. The head of a master’s program urged the students to speak and practice English 100%. Even if it’s just private conversations in Chinese, she worried that they’d be overheard and discriminated against for not speaking English. As the controversy exploded, she stepped down as program head while Duke reassured its international students that they were valued.

International students make up 14% of Duke’s class of 2021 and are a substantial revenue source for the university’s revenue, like many of our higher education institutions. It’s not surprising that Duke respects these students’ contribution to their ongoing existence. The university chose not to buy into the current fear and loathing of anything foreign that generates suspicion, dislike, and even violence. There is little to be gained in allowing the negative trends to overcome common sense and the common good.

Continue reading Embrace our Local-Global Connections – by Deborah Levine →

Authors R-Z, Of Women

Balancing your day as an Entrepreneur – by Rae Steinbach

Why does Diversity & Inclusion include so little religious diversity training? The cultural awareness and cultural competence inherent in D&I are increasingly embraced as major tools of the global market place of the future.
Starting your own business is hard work and it’s even harder when you’re a mom entrepreneur. Finding the time to grow your business while also raising children is an intimidating task. If you’re looking to generate a business plan that focuses on coworking ideas, an on-demand product, or simply selling products over the internet, it may seem like you simply don’t have the time when you’re also focused on raising your children.
However, it’s certainly not impossible. Many women in your situation have gone on to become successful entrepreneurs. They simply knew how to manage their time effectively.
These tips will help you do the same. If you’re trying to balance the responsibilities of being a mom and a business owner, keep them in mind.

Continue reading Balancing your day as an Entrepreneur – by Rae Steinbach →

Around the world, Authors R-Z

Asians Celebrate the New Year – by Dr. Julia Wai-Yin So

The first day of the year in the lunar calendar is to many Chinese, Koreans, and Vietnamese who live outside their home countries, the most important festival of the new year that they celebrate.  Other Asian ethnic groups may join the festivity in their neighborhoods even though they observe their owe New Year days.  For example, the Thais honor their Songkran (Water Festival) in April or the Gujaratis celebrate theirs the day before the Asian Indian Diwali (the Festival of Lights) in late October or early November.  As for the Japanese and Filipinos, they choose to observe the Gregorian New Year.  With this festive day around the corner, let’s look at some of the New Year traditions of Chinese, Koreans, and Vietnamese.

Continue reading Asians Celebrate the New Year – by Dr. Julia Wai-Yin So →

DL Opinion columns

Let America Eat Again – by Deborah Levine

(Originally published in The Chattanooga Times Free Press)

The partial shutdown that President Trump and two branches of government agreed to lift temporarily left thousands of families with no income, with many forced to work without a paycheck, relying on reimbursement in the vague future. Their unemployment and indentured servitude has put a spotlight on their need for the basics of survival. The idea of these families going hungry has affected all of us and the impact is growing. It’s impressive that people are helping them with donations, restaurants are serving free meals, and food pantries are gearing up for waves of new clients. Let’s hope that the generosity and humanity currently on display remains alive and well after the resolution of the shutdown.

Continue reading Let America Eat Again – by Deborah Levine →

Authors A-H, Social Issues

The Case for Dialogue – by Terry Howard

Should  I dialogue, or should I not? At this moment I’m grappling with that question, staring numbly at still another request to accept someone’s request to be their “friend” on Facebook. And here I am again gritting my teeth, vacillating between two options, three actually – accept, decline or ignore – and the potential reactions to any one of them.

Now here’s what’s gnawing at me: Many of those who ask me to join them on Facebook are some great individuals, people I deeply respect and immensely enjoy one-on-one interactions with. Yet my fear stems from this question: “If I ‘accept,’ will it diminish our ability to dialogue?”

Continue reading The Case for Dialogue – by Terry Howard →

Authors I-Q, Inclusion

The Era of Diversity Talk and No Action Is Over – by Joseph Nwoye

It’s Time for A Paradigm Shift 

Joseph NwoyeDiversity is increasingly becoming a powerful force in the determination of an organization’s success. Everyone has talents, some of which are recognized and used, and others never identified and thus never put into use. Organizations that engage diverse teams can draw on the synergy associate with it to innovate and subsequently achieve unprecedented success.  It is evidenced in Harvard Business Review article, titled, “How diversity can drive innovation.”  In that piece, (Hewlett, Marshall & Sherbin) assert, “Employees of firms with 2-D diversity are 45% likelier to report a growth in market share over the previous year and 70% likelier to report that the firm captured a new market.”

Considering various research showing the correlation between diversity and business success, many organizations are now, for good reasons, calling for greater diversity in the board room and significant areas of leadership in our global market place.  There is clearly ubiquitous evidence demonstrating that diversity correlates with business success. McKinsey and company assert “New research makes it increasingly clear that companies with more diverse workforces perform better financially.” According to Deloitte, “Diversity and inclusion at the workplace are now CEO-level issues, but they continue to be frustrating and challenging for many companies.”

Continue reading The Era of Diversity Talk and No Action Is Over – by Joseph Nwoye →

DL Opinion columns

Elephant in the room: Suicide – by Deborah Levine

(Originally published in The Chattanooga Times Free Press)

Of the top media stories, few mentioned the escalating rate of suicide. Adjusted for age, the annual U.S. suicide rate increased 24% between 1999 and 2014, the highest rate recorded in 28 years. Yet, despite about 129 suicides per day across the country, the topic remains in the shadows.

You may think that Tennessee is an exception, but we have twice as many suicides than homicides. With a suicide rate well above the national average, suicide is the tenth cause of death in our state. Tennessee averages one suicide every eight hours. And the situation continually worsens. The Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network reports that suicide deaths have steadily increased over the last 35 years since they’ve been monitoring suicide.

Continue reading Elephant in the room: Suicide – by Deborah Levine →