At the end of June, Optimistic Anthropology joined "a national movement to advance racial equity by dismantling structural racism, city by city, town by town." We wanted to share a little bit about why we have made this commitment.
What is Racial Equity Here?
Racial Equity Here is a national movement to advance racial equity by dismantling structural racism, city by city, town by town. It is seeking to do this by encouraging organizations in business, nonprofits, philanthropy, government, and the community to commit to taking three actions:
LEARN -- Develop shared understanding of key racial equity concepts (and they provide some great foundational materials to support that learning).
ACT -- Make racial equity an explicit part of your work by using a simple racial equity tool in decision-making.
PARTNER -- Work with organizations locally and nationally to advance racial equity.
Its founding partners are Race Forward & the Center for Social Inclusion, The Local and Regional Government Alliance on Race & Equity, Living Cities, and the Haas Institute for Fair & Inclusive Society.
Racial Equity Here has a searchable map of all the organizations that have committed to the movement, including Optimistic Anthropology. Check it out.
Why Has Optimistic Anthropology Committed to Racial Equity Here?
You might be asking, why has a start-up consultancy like Optimistic Anthropology signed a commitment (along with 464 other organizations as I'm writing this) to Racial Equity Here?
Put simply, because this movement is fundamentally aligned with our ethos.
Optimistic Anthropology's mission is to work with clients and collaborators who are aiming to make the world a better place for all people, and we recognize that a key part of that work involves dismantling structural racism.
We're at our best when we work with clients and collaborators who are passionate about their missions and open to learning and contributing what they learn to the field. It's important to us that we live the values and behaviors we seek in others.
We want to be held accountable for our commitment to learning and action. And the first step in doing that, is making our commitment public.
