Cultural Humility and Cross-Cultural Communication: The Building Blocks of Racial Equity

Part 1, November 7, 2021, 2:00 – 4:00 PM: As the U.S. experiences this latest collective cultural reckoning with systemic racism and racialized violence against Black and brown people, organizations and businesses have been more vocally espousing values of racial diversity, equity, and inclusion. Yet, efforts at creating equity and inclusion aren’t necessarily gaining traction or creating change. That is because things need to change not just at the level of policy but at the cultural level. Organizations may bring more Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) into the organization, but unless there is a shift in culture, they will not be able to retain them. Cultural humility, the life-long process of critical self-reflection to identify personal and systemic biases and address power imbalances, supports this shift in culture, inviting and challenging people from the dominant culture to decenter their experience and work to understand and value the cultural context of marginalized communities. People from the dominant culture often do not recognize their own cultural norms and biases. This workshop will help to make what is invisible, visible so that it can be transformed. In this workshop, you will develop the awareness and tools to become more culturally responsive and to actively build bridges of understanding across cultures. Participate in this workshop to become better equipped to create cultures that are truly welcoming, inclusive, and equitable.

Part 2, November 21, 2021, 2:00 – 4:00 PM: Now that you have completed Cultural Humility and Cross-Cultural Communication Part 1, we invite you to participate in this follow up session. Part 2 will focus on methods for actively utilizing the process of cultural humility to create more culturally inclusive and equitable practices and systems within organizations, coalitions, and movements. These practices will help to redress power imbalances and promote institutional accountability around issues of equity and access. If you have participated in the first session and are asking yourself the question, “Now what?” this workshop will focus on applying the knowledge you acquired in the first session to guide action in creating cultures of inclusion and equity within your organizations and communities.

Trainer:

Amihan Jennifer Matias is a passionate racial equity, cultural humility, and organization and leadership development trainer, coach, and consultant. She is a social justice activist, community builder, and leader who is deeply committed to creating a more just, compassionate, and equitable world. Amihan is the founder of several nationally recognized leadership development programs, including a nonprofit executive coaching program supporting Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) leaders and a six-month leadership forum for women of color leaders called And Still We Rise. She has a long history of community activism in Asian and Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities and is a founding member of Massachusetts Asian and Pacific Islanders (MAP) for Health and the newly formed AAPI Alliance of Western MA. She is also a founding board member of the Truth School.