Parents Teach Kids Inclusion

My dad taught me about inclusion, diversity, and equality when I was a very young girl living in Maryland. My Brooklyn-born and raised dad worked for the Federal Government and my parents found themselves living in the DC Metro area. We started playing with the local kids.

One of the neighbors asked my dad if we could go with their family to a BBQ and we had so much fun. When the father asked if we could go again (we were jumping in the background thinking we were going to another party), my dad asked him what kind of BBQ was it? The man said it was a family BBQ. Dad asked the man, why didn’t you ask their friend Ellie to go with them? All the girls play together every day. Why was she the only girl left home? My dad had seen Ellie playing by herself the day we all went to the BBQ. The man said to my dad, Come on, Mitch, no N_ _ _ _ _ s, J_ _ s, or S_ _ _ _ s!

My dad immediately told the man that his kids won’t be going to any more parties or BBQs, ever. We cried because we are so young we didn’t understand the significance of the conversation. The man tells my day “Mitch, you’re making too much of this”. My dad says, “How can I tell my kids everyone is created equally, and you don’t let their friend go because of the color of her skin”. My dad made it clear that his kids would never go again. We cried at the time.

Dad Stands Up to Intolerance

I tell this story with pride and great love for my father. My parents are devout, democratic, non-judging Catholics, but you would never know it. Mom and dad have always walked their talk and never preached to anyone. You won’t hear them quote the bible or ask people about their relationship with God and they don’t judge. They just live by the Golden Rule and taught their kids to accept, love, respect, and include others.

Applying Lessons to my Life

I’ve applied #diversity, inclusion, and #equality in all areas of my life and certainly in my hiring positions. I have worked for large international corporations and owned two corporations where I’ve hired 1,000s of employees in my career. The best teams are made up of different people coming from different walks of life with different life experiences bringing it all together to create continuity and strength of the team. I love learning from others and finding better ways to make things happen. Good leadership must be inclusive and diverse while promoting actual equality to create level playing fields with avenues for all to grow. This will then create a place where the corporation, the consumer and the employee are all winning.

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