Last week was one of the most pivotal in my time at StriveTogether. We launched a Racial Equity Planning Team in partnership with individuals representing 15 members of the Cradle to Career Network. This group of amazing people has committed to develop an action plan for the Network to improve outcomes for black and brown kids.<\/p>\n

Over my 18-year career \u2014 and especially over the last year and a half \u2014 I\u2019ve been asked to launch a lot of meetings and planning efforts. (I should add metaphorical ribbon-cutting to my resume!) But the kickoff to last week\u2019s StriveTogether Racial Equity Planning Team is long overdue and comes at a critical time for the Network and the country.<\/p>\n

Something else happened last week on the same day our Racial Equity Planning Team first met. During a town hall meeting on CNN, Howard Schultz, former CEO of Starbucks and possible 2020 presidential candidate, responded to a question about racism at Starbucks, saying that he \u201cgrew up in the projects and doesn\u2019t see color.\u201d Wait, what? I did a double-take wondering if he seriously just said that. But he did.<\/p>\n

This is one of the most cringeworthy things that well-meaning white people say. And I get it. I do. My guess is that like me (and perhaps like many of you), Howard Schultz was taught to see racism only as individual acts of hatred \u2014 and not as the systems and structures that result in white dominance and privilege. And so if we\u2019re \u201ccolorblind,\u201d then we can\u2019t be racist, right? Wrong.<\/p>\n

Comments like this underscore how much more needs to be done to achieve StriveTogether\u2019s vision of \u201cevery child, cradle to career.\u201d Equity is at the center of our work as a Cradle to Career Network \u2014 I often say that equity is<\/em><\/strong> the work.\u00a0 With racial equity as a priority in our new five-year strategic plan, we are actively working to build the capability of cradle-to-career partnerships to close disparity gaps and create more equitable systems that lead to economic mobility for black and brown families.<\/p>\n

The data makes it crystal clear that this is where we need to focus as an organization and network. Our recent assessment of communities across the Cradle to Career Network shows that the 67 partnerships in the Network impact 13.7 million students, 8.6 million (or 62 percent) of whom are students of color. When you take a closer look at this data, it is evident that systems are perpetually failing students of color. We shouldn\u2019t be surprised by this. We know that systems and structures in our communities are designed to perpetuate these results. For this reason, the Network is doubling down on our efforts to transform systems so that race and income no longer dictate a child\u2019s ability to thrive.<\/p>\n

This is no small task and requires courageous leadership at all levels and across all sectors. I am grateful to be able to work with the diverse group of individuals who comprise the Racial Equity Planning Team as we unpack the key barriers facing communities. Together we will prioritize policies and practices needed to address those barriers.<\/p>\n

In addition to this Planning Team work, StriveTogether continues to build our racial equity competency.\u00a0 Our organization recently has started holding racial affinity groups for staff. Once a month, I participate in a white anti-racist affinity group along with some of my colleagues. I can admit I was skeptical at first. I wasn\u2019t sure how putting a group of white people together in a room could be productive \u2014 isn\u2019t that just the recipe that has led to the outcomes we see today? And, if I\u2019m honest, I can admit that my own white fragility had me a little freaked out about saying or doing the wrong thing, especially in my role. But as I\u2019ve written about before<\/a>, going on this journey to become a white leader for racial equity won\u2019t be comfortable and will require learning in public, so that\u2019s what I\u2019m doing. And I\u2019m learning and evolving and finding my voice. And anyone who knows me well knows that, once I find that voice, I usually don\u2019t stay quiet.<\/p>\n

Rather, I have started using my white privilege as a megaphone to help educate other white people, especially white leaders. And there are a lot of us. White people, especially white men, still dominate leadership roles in every sector. And it is not a surprise that, when reviewing the StriveTogether assessment data, we see that most cradle-to-career partnerships in the Network are led by white people.<\/p>\n

Fellow white leaders in this work: This is very important and something I want to emphasize. Disregard what Howard Schultz said. You absolutely do see color. And you have to. Please, I\u2019m begging you. Because if not, if you hide behind this idea of \u201ccolorblindness,\u201d then you continue to whitewash history and the systemic oppression and injustice suffered by entire groups of people. I know that it makes you uncomfortable and maybe a little stressed. But don\u2019t you think we should be made to feel uncomfortable and a little stressed? After all, the color of our skin privileges and protects us \u2014 we can probably handle a little stress and discomfort.<\/p>\n

Because if we cannot see color, then we don\u2019t end up naming race in this work. And if we can\u2019t name race, then we won\u2019t be able to challenge the systems and structures that perpetuate inequitable results. And if we can\u2019t transform the systems, then we won\u2019t be able to embrace or enable the future we strive for \u2014 a future in which every child has every opportunity to succeed and thrive from cradle to career.<\/p>\n

I believe we can do all of this. We can see color; we can celebrate the beauty and opportunity in diversity. We can transform systems to achieve more equitable outcomes. We can be white leaders for racial equity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last week was one of the most pivotal in my time at StriveTogether. We launched a Racial Equity Planning Team in partnership with individuals representing 15 members of the Cradle to Career Network. This group of amazing people has committed to develop an action plan for the Network to improve outcomes for black and brown…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":11571,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":""},"categories":[222],"tags":[81],"class_list":["post-11195","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-equity","tag-blog","category-222","description-off"],"yoast_head":"\n