Diversity Equity and Inclusion Statement Example & How to Write It

I’ve been getting asked to help some clients create an Anti-Racism pledge / diversity equity and inclusion statement lately, and here’s the deal with that…

I can’t.

This is something you have to write yourself. There is not a template you can just plug-n-play—that would defeat the purpose.

But there ARE some resources that can help you get started.

Here’s my diversity equity inclusion statement example:

Hi.

As a thin, able-bodied, cisgender, more-or-less heterosexual White woman from an upper-middle class suburban background, I have benefitted from an enormous amount of privilege in my life—privileges that are not enjoyed by those who are Black, Indigenous, or People of Color. Those who are fat or differently abled, or otherwise fail to meet the patriarchal standard of beauty.

I’ve been working on continuing to acknowledge and understand this privilege, and am committed to doing everything I can to subvert white supremacy, both in my business and through all my words & actions, all the time.

So far, this means: participating in political activism, especially around voting rights; reading & listening to a variety of voices & #decolonizingmybookshelf; using my writing as a tool to call out sexism, racism, misogyny, and white supremacy, AND to amplify the voices of Black / BIPOC writers and activists whose work has been ignored or erased; and financially supporting BIPOC service providers & Black-owned businesses.

Samantha Pollack
President, Samantha Kate Pollack INC
Cult of Personality™

Diversity Equity and Inclusion Statement Resources & Tips:

If you’re interested in creating a statement like this for your business, I used Rachel Rodgers’ PDF download, which you can find right here: helloseven.co/townhall-2 . I also recommend watching the Town Hall on that page.

• Be honest about where you are now & what you’re realistically doing.
• Be specific about the actual things you’re doing or plan to do.
• Acknowledge where you still have work to do. (And don’t just say, “I still have work to do;” try to be honest about the ideas, spaces, and advantages you have that still contribute to wh*te supremacy.

I have a Google doc with all this written out. Contact me & I’ll share it.

Do *you* have a diversity equity and inclusion statement / anti-racism pledge? I’d love to see it.

Here are some of the educators & activists I’m following right now…

These are all Instagram accounts (except one); most of them have links in their bios to websites if you want more info. I’ll continue updating this list & note whenever there’s a new addition.

• Leesa Renée Hall. Leesa is an Anti-Bias Facilitator who specializes in working with “Sensitives & Deep Feelers.”
• Sonya Renee Taylor. Author of The Body is Not An Apology. Her “What’s Up Y’all” IGTVs are insightful and real, and she’s often where I turn for clarification of particularly sticky issues regarding Whiteness.
• Rachel Cargle and @thegreatunlearn. Rachel is an academic & social entrepreneur with several different IG accounts that are all worth following.
• Privtoprog. Melissa DePino and Michelle Saahene have been “desegregating the public conversation about race” since they teamed up in 2018 to record a certain viral Starbucks video.
• Hear to Slay (podcast) with Tressie McMillan Cottom & Roxane Gay. The Black Feminist podcast of your dreams. 🙂