Anti-racism 101
Current Situation
Organizations are now expected to show intentional and meaningful progress to create inclusive spaces for all groups regardless of race. To promote the impact and longevity of these efforts, foundational changes to systems, operations, and day-to-day activities are needed. But our efforts are limited with the current approach to DEI. A focus on group definitions, approaches, and impacts rarely deliver sustained positive change since participating individuals must prioritize self-preservation. When facing information related to how we're seen by ourselves and others, many inevitably focus on protecting the idea that they're a "good" person. DEI (specifically anti-racist) efforts must promote self-awareness to give organizations a fair shot to create inclusive spaces.
Program Summary
Sonder DEI's Antiracism 101 consists of a professional development workshop and/or 6-part program that allows participants to develop and leverage an understanding of their individuality to create a culture of genuine empathy and gives organizations a sense of clarity to create systemic change.
This program leverages a bottoms-up approach to prioritize the unique perspective of each participant to identify areas of opportunity for sponsoring organizations to address racism. A meticulously curated curriculum first addresses personal experience and identity before acknowledging any social justice issue so when racism inevitably comes up, there's room for nuance. Encouraging and affirming facilitation and learning modules empower participants to safely examine and ultimately discuss their unique experience without the need to take personal responsibility or worry about getting anything "right" or "wrong". The program concludes with organizations receiving a framework to assess the intent and accuracy of their anti-racist efforts (workshop) and a tailored Anti-racism Playbook outlining recommended next steps identified from the collective understanding of its participants (full 6-part program).
Engagement Opportunities
Anti-racism 101 prioritizes two approaches to develop self-awareness and organizational empathy—self-reflection and group discussion. The workshop and full program ach utilize carefully curated content created from strategic learning objectives. Participants learn of and reflect on insights derived from considerations in psychology, neuroscience, sociology, history, philosophy, and change management presented in an easy-to-understand format—information is accessible to everyone regardless of their prior knowledge.
Self-reflection prompts are adapted to participants' unique experience and aligned to each learning objective to enable personal vulnerability and perspective shifting. Group discussions then capitalize on this awareness to promote the appreciation of one another before assessing current anti-racist processes in the workshop or defining tangible next steps at the end of the full program.
90-minute Workshop
Assess current anti-racist efforts
A bite-sized and highly interactive learning experience for organizations of all types, sizes, and level of experience addressing racism. Participants learn to promote effective change by engaging with discussion prompts aimed to shift how they view colleagues... and themselves. They then use this new level of awareness to create more authentic working relationships and promote accountability for DEI/anti-racist efforts to enable systemic change.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will be able to...
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Recognize and appreciate their own individuality and the uniqueness of other workshop attendees
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Evaluate the effectiveness of current, previous, and upcoming anti-racist initiatives by examining associated emotions and intent
LOGISTICS
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Workshop Location — On-site / in-person
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Facilitation — Content delivery and discussion led by the program's creator, Ian Gibbs-Hall
Outcomes & Benefits
Participants
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Appreciation of their one-of-kind self, experience, and associated perspective
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Framework and mindset to better understand one another and promote vulnerability
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Safety to engage in discussions surrounding racism regardless of prior knowledge
Organizations
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Ability to rate the overall effectiveness of DEI/anti-racist strategy and initiatives
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Culture with increased understanding, appreciation and empathy
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Opportunity to align DEI/anti-racist practices toward creating systemic change
Full 6-Part Program
Define anti-racist strategy & next steps
This ongoing learning opportunity aims to fundamentally change how participants see racism, others, and (most importantly) themselves. The program's comprised of 6 modules with distinct learning objectives recommended for a 6-month period and participants engage with the pre-recorded lessons on their own time. At the end of each month, a live session with the program's creator addresses questions and facilitates collaboration to effectively address racism in the organization. For 12-month consultations, collective understanding is summarized from these discussions and anonymous surveys to create an organization-specific Anti-racism playbook outlining the current situation, desired future state, and tangible next steps.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
LOGISTICS
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Time — 14 Lessons totaling ~11 hours of pre-recorded content
— participants spend ~2.5 hours per module engaging with lessons, self-reflection, and live discussions
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Location — content delivery and live discussions switch between virtually or in person depending on lesson content
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Facilitation — all content and discussions facilitated by the program's creator, Ian Gibbs-Hall
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Supporting Materials — works cited, self-reflection journal, and communications to increase engagement
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Anti-racism Playbook — delivered after 12-months of consulting
Outcomes & Benefits
Participants
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Self-awareness from a comprehensive understanding of individuality and existence
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Ability to identify racist policies and ideas in surroundings
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Asynchronous participation on own time
Organizations
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Workforce with the ability to successfully engage in difficult conversations
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Detailed playbook providing tangible next steps to promote anti-racism
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Opportunity / fair shot to create policies targeting sustained systemic change
