Global Lessons in DEI - Tyronne Stoudemire
Tyronne Stoudemire is a facilitator of lasting change. Through his vast experiences in DEI and passion to create a more equal world around him, he has made revolutionary strides in organization’s paths to become more inclusive. His deep knowledge in diversity stems from both personal and professional experiences alike.
He is an honest, effective communicator fighting for change. Tyronne was featured on Culture Moments Podcast discussing global lessons in DEI and the importance of equity.
“It’s about diversity, equity, and inclusion. There’s a difference between equity and a difference between equality. Equality says everybody gets treated the same — ‘We’re fair.’ Equity is meeting people where they are and closing the gap.
“I use the illustration of four individuals on a bicycle. And the bicycles are all the same size. But if someone that’s actually small in stature, someone is tall, someone is in a wheelchair, that’s not really equitable. So meeting them where they are, providing them with the right tools — that’s where we need to really be.
“When communities and cultures have been sub-optimized and have been held back, how do we bring them forward in a new decade? Quite frankly, when doing consulting years ago, I would have conversations with White men and White women, and they’d say, ‘When are we going to stop having this conversation about gender and about race? When will it be all be over?’ And my perspective was, ‘Until there’s a point in time that we’re all on the same page, when we’re all experiencing the same difference.’
“And that difference today was (witnessed with) the murder of George Floyd. It was really the young, digital native who stood on the corner with her iPhone and showed the entire world injustice, coupled with the pandemic, coupled with COVID-19, coupled with what’s going on in politics, and how we’ve taken COVID-19 and politicized it. I think that has since shown how Black people have not been treated well from a workplace perspective or from a healthcare perspective. And the judicial system was against us — worked against us in most cases. Black and Brown men being pulled over more than any other demographic. You have more women of color in prisons than you do have White women.
“So people who don’t see themselves in key roles or see themselves in society, that they make a difference — or they’re constantly told that they’re less than — will find themselves subjected to those types of feelings or emotions and will not see themselves as educated, not see themselves as pretty, not see themselves as smart. Society has to change that with the images that we put forward. And we just have to do that by promoting the best and brightest talent who just may happen to be a woman or someone of color.”
