Myth 1: Bringing diverse people into your organization over those from the dominant culture means there are winners and losers.
Reality: An intention to hire a more diverse staff empowers those who have long been sidelined or ignored and brings a broader range of insights and experiences into the organization, which benefits everyone.
Myth 2: Our mission is to improve opportunities for marginalized groups, so we’re reaching diverse people and communities.
Reality: There needs to be a strategy and systemized steps to reach diverse people.
Myth 3: Our organization is an a geographic area that is not diverse, so why should we worry about diversity?
Reality: This assumption doesn’t acknowledge the value of diverse perspectives or the fact that demographics are constantly changing.
Myth 4: Our organizational leaders are well-meaning and not biased.
Reality: Unconscious bias exists everywhere. Addressing DEI calls for intentionality and an acknowledgement that biases exist in some capacity.