Dig, Bridge, Collectively Act.

#MeToo and Black Lives Matter have inspired many companies to announce commitments to combating discrimination and racism. Commitments alone won’t dismantle systemic inequities, however. In this article two professors who have studied that problem present their solution: the Shared Sisterhood framework. It’s based on a set of practices they call Dig, Bridge, and Collectively Act, and though it initially was designed to help Black and white women connect and overcome their mutual challenges by working together, it can help strengthen relationships between other identity groups as well. The first practice, dig, entails identifying your social identities (which might include, say, “woman” or “man” or “nonbinary” and “His- panic” or “Black” or “Chinese”) and researching the power dynamics associated with each one. Some identities are imbued with social power; some have been historically marginalized. You need to recognize your blind spots about those dynamics in order to succeed at the second practice: bridging, or building authentic, trusting connections with others across your differences. In the third practice, collectively act, you and the people who share your values turn those bridges into channels for positive change, mobilizing to make organizations more welcoming and equitable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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