It's not me...It's my brain

In my role as Chief Diversity Officer for my company, I recently attended a learning lab about unconscious bias. The theory of unconscious bias is that we human beings are not bad people we just hold unconscious beliefs about various social groups. It’s how our brains work.  It was interesting material, with just the right mix of neuroscience and practical application to keep me engaged as I thought of ways to apply this learning in my organization. 

At one point, the instructor was explaining implicit association; the series of conclusions our brain automatically makes when it senses danger. For example, we don’t have to touch fire every time we see it to know that it will burn us. 

As a way of demonstrating his point, he told us a story about flinching when he saw a young African American man walking toward him.  On reflex, he locked his car door.  The young man saw him, and there was an awkward moment that passed between the two of them.  His brain saw this young man as a threat, he posited, because of images on the nightly news.

As I sat there in that class listening to the story and the conversation that followed, I found myself fighting back tears.  While, they were talking about nameless, faceless young men I was thinking about my 23 year old nephew.

I remembered potty training him and teaching him how to ride his bike and tie his shoes.  I thought of all of the times we cuddled under a blanket and watched Monday Night Football after consuming a heaping plate of home-made nachos. I thought about helping him with his homework and beaming with pride at his high school graduation.  And I thought about him now.  At six feet two inches tall and 250 pounds, he is the stuff of some people’s night mares.  To me, he is a kind and thoughtful young man.

I sat there fighting tears because I have witnessed my nephew, in his hoodie, walking to the corner store for a bag of chips and a soda.  I now realize that there are people who would feel justified in suspecting he was a criminal simply because of the color of his skin.

I have been a vocal champion of diversity and inclusion for years, but on this day I found myself speechless while tears streamed down my face.  We can blame our brains and distance ourselves from the reality of how hurtful our actions can be, but that won’t make it right for my nephew or the thousands of young men like him who find themselves under constant suspicion. While it is true that I don’t know every young African American man I see walking down the street, I do know the one who lives in my house.  That is enough for me to challenge my bias, and give the rest of them the benefit of the doubt.

Inclusion 365 Mission #8
I will always challenge my internal biases, I will not use the media, society, or my brain as an excuse to prejudge people or circumstances

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