Faces and Voices of Recovery Presents: Deaf and Hard of Hearing members Address Diversity, Equity

On April 24, 2020, Faces & Voices committed to releasing an action plan within 30 days to address diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and to lift voices from communities of color or other marginalized groups.

Here are the actions that have occurred in the past 30 days:

• Retained an outside consultant, Dr. Dietra Hawkins, a Cultural Competency specialist.
• Full board briefing on the need for specific activities regarding DEI
• Individual assessments with staff and board regarding cultural competency
• Frequent staff meetings regarding the issue, collaboration to identify next steps

The short-term actions planned are:

• Collect feedback and comments regarding action plan starting May 22, 2020
• Hold an all-staff DEI training before June 12, 2020
• Implement the Annie E. Casey Racial Analysis tool for all meetings and projects by July 1, 2020
• Refine the Strategic Plan with a DEI lens by July 31, 2020
• Conduct community forums with external stakeholders starting with Recovery Leadership Summit June 16, 2020

The long-term and ongoing actions are:

• Formalize and Implement DEI plan
• Deliver biannual progress reports on Faces & Voices DEI activities
• Examine all events for balance and representation from marginalized groups
• Restructure internal programs to eliminate structural barriers to equity

These actions will in no way solve the problems associated with race, gender, and other marginalized populations within the national recovery movement. Our goal is to amend our mistakes, move forward, and continue to grow in recovery. 

Please join us at our community forum on June 15th if you would like to share your thoughts and feelings with us.

Click here to register