A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE

At least two seasons have blown by since I wrote my last blog. Overwhelmed by the results of last November’s election, I muted my pen. Suddenly flattened by a life-changing illness, I lost my desire to write. Shattered by the loss of my wife, writing and reading became abstract concepts. To this day, my hands resist holding a book. I realize the irony of that truth since I’ve written a few of them.

As wrapped as I am in the fog of my personal issues, I’m not insulated from the assaults we minority citizens have absorbed via a series of anti-democratic policies enacted immediately after January’s inauguration. It’s clear the designers of the five-month old regime have had their plans and strategies poised to launch at precise moments. They have their program “together.” I’m not so deaf that I fail to hear the anathema leveled toward Black, Brown, Native-American, Asian-American, immigrant, and LGBTQ+ citizens.

Naively I’ve asked friends (and the air when I’m alone, ) “Why do they hate us so much? Is it their fear of difference that drives their hatred? What have we done to deserve such enmity?”

If I had to select a new policy that I find extremely destructive, I would choose the effort to make D.E.I. disappear. By now, diversity, equity, and inclusion are vilified words, as are the organizations that bravely continue to support these efforts. In trying to return to the positive and creative person I’ve been in the past, I’ve steered my fascination with language toward a positive direction.

What if D.E.I. stood for “Discover, Enable, and Inspire?”

Could enough of us take on the tasks of discovering young people as well as adults who show an interest in our career and then fostering that interest by answering their questions, inviting them to observe us at work, creating on-the-job experiences for them, and assisting them as they seek to get the formal training/education necessary to step into that career? In doing so, we would have discovered, inspired, and enabled that person to seek a successful future.

This is neither a new nor novel idea. It’s called mentoring. It’s been done successfully in high schools, vocational-tech schools, school-to-work programs, industry, and by individual men and women who’ve had the notion and energy to be be a positive influence for a younger person.

Some of us know a person or two whose prominent job position made her/him the target of accusations. “S/he got that job because s/he was Black/Hispanic/Asian, not because s/he was the best candidate.” Or… “The only reason s/he got into M.I.T. was the school’s affirmative action policy.” It is up to us to confront those who want us to believe that D.E.I. causes failures, that deserving people go unhired in favor of hiring a person because of her/his racial identification. It is up to us to formally or informally mentor someone who shows interest in and the potential to succeed in our field of work. I champion equal opportunity, not to satisfy a statistic, but to reward basic talent and effort.

Renée Bess is the author of six novels, one anthology, and with Lee Lynch, the co-story collector of the award winning collection OUR HAPPY HOURS: LGBT VOICES FROM THE GAY BARS. Her latest novel, HER LAST SECRET, is short-listed for a GCLS Goldie in the category of Historical Fiction. Renée’s books can be ordered from amazon.com. Renée’s publisher is Flashpoint Publications.