Dear Community,    

 

The Diversity Center of Northeast Ohio (DCNEO) proudly enters its eleventh decade of working towards eliminating bias, bigotry and racism. Our partnerships with Northeast Ohio schools, districts, and youth-serving professionals have empowered students and teachers to create classroom and community environments where all are connected, respected and valued. Our programming has provided incredible value to our community for nearly 100 years, and our justice, equity, diversity and inclusion (JEDI) programming continues that proud tradition.

 

We must not allow recent misinformation about JEDI programming to shake your commitment to our students. It is time to correct the false claims made in a variety of forums about DCNEO’s programming and staff and to reaffirm our position on important issues so our stakeholders, community partners and the community at large can be confident in the integrity and importance of what we do. 

 

We believe and teach different ways that individuals of all ages, ethnicities and backgrounds can include and learn from each other. We do not believe or teach that individuals should face discrimination or adverse treatment because of any part of their identity.

 

We believe and teach people how to recognize stereotypes, think critically and mitigate the impact and harm of stereotypes and bias. When harm occurs, we affirm our mutual humanity and relationships with one another. We do not believe or teach that racial, gender, or other stereotypes should be practiced or reinforced in the ways we treat others.

 

We believe and teach people skills to get past feelings of discomfort when they happen. We do not believe or teach that participants should feel discomfort, guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress because of their race, sex, or other identities.

 

We believe and teach skills and strategies for respecting others’ political, religious and other beliefs and practices and for navigating conflict around these and other subjects. We do not believe or teach any specific political, religious, or economic belief system.

 

We are transparent in our communications as we continue practicing and modeling respectful and empathetic modes of engaging with and serving our students and community. To this end, our staff are always willing to address questions about our work; and you can find a list of frequently asked questions about our work with schools and youth here.

 

 

Sincerely,

 

Peggy Zone Fisher

President & CEO