Diversity Workshops
It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences
~ Audre Lorde
At Midnight Sun Psychological Wellness Centre (MSPWC), we have created a workshop that answers each of these questions and more.
Unlike many traditional workshops focusing only on overt forms of racism, our diversity workshops give equal weighting to overt and covert forms of racism as well as concepts of diversity and inclusion. In general, our workshops are delivered using a tri-fold approach consisting of three phases: Initiate, Understand, and Challenge.
The Initiate phase of the workshop is focused on beginning the conversation about race, racism, diversity, and inclusion. Some of the themes covered in this phase are:
- Construct and history of race
- The evolution of racism
- Racism, antiracism, discrimination, prejudice, stereotypes
- History of racism in Canada
- Overt and covert forms of racism
- Concepts such as cultural appropriation, micro inequities, colour blindness, etc.
- Diversity in organizations
- Inclusion and how to achieve it
The Understand phase of the workshop is focused on understanding the racial realities of racialized groups and individuals. Using empirical research, this phase of the workshop explores the following themes:
- The racial realities of different racialized groups and their experiences
- Legal discrimination and related statistics
- Police brutality
- Hate crimes and their prevalence
- Understanding the effect of our social climate on the changing nature of racism
Finally, the Challenge phase of the workshop is about integrating the information and discussions from the workshop into each participants’ lives. In this phase, participants will:
- Reflect on what they learned from the workshop and how it applies to their lives
- Consider what changes they can make
- Create a plan to implement their chosen goal(s)
