Becoming Anti-racist with Brandyn Campbell
On this episode of the PlanSimple Podcast, I’m really excited to talk with Brandyn Campbell, a consultant who helps companies build and articulate their commitment to racial justice. That means building inclusive environments and fleshing out their values and how those can align with being anti-racist.
This is not an easy conversation. I’ve realized over the past year ways that I am not anti-racist, ways I am not inclusive. There is a part of me that worries I could make a mistake, say the wrong thing to Brandyn in this conversation, or others. I know I am not alone in this fear, but it’s really important to have these conversations as part of change.
We talk about putting this into practice in our businesses. Brandyn says it can be easier for small business or solopreneurs because there are fewer layers of politics to navigate. It starts with identifying core values.
We talk about:
- How to handle making mistakes and how to use them to move forward
- Ways to identify core values or brand values, decisions to make based on your values and how that can be hard in the short term, and the power of being values aligned and how it sets you apart from your competition
- Aspirational values and steps we take that move us further into alignment with our values (we talk specifically about being inclusive as a value)
- Little steps you can take, like buying books from a Black-owned independent bookstore instead of Amazon
- Remembering that actions, like pointing out to an event organizer that their panel should be more diverse, don’t have to be a big controversy
- Talking with our kids about racism and also setting and living values as a family
Doable Changes
PRACTICE MAKING MISTAKES. Making mistakes is part of learning and change. Practice not getting defensive when you get called out or called in. Practice saying, “I didn’t know that. Thank you for telling me.”
IDENTIFY CORE VALUES. Journal about your core values. Think about this as an internal exercise, not something you will put on your website. Just define for yourself what you believe and why. You can choose to make these public, but doing it as a private exercise takes away the pressure to find the right words and lets you focus on the belief.
PICK ONE SMALL WAY TO LIVE YOUR VALUES. We discussed some of the ways we can live our values. It can be as simple as buying the books that we would buy anyway from a Black-owned independent bookseller instead of Amazon. Or sending a message to an event organizer pointing out a lack of diversity in their panel or making an effort to bring different perspectives to our own panels or podcasts. Pick one way and lean into that for the next month.
BIO
Brandyn Campbell combines her passions for communications and diversity to help businesses build and articulate their commitment to racial justice. The founder of Brandyn Campbell Communications, she draws on 15 years of experience providing training and strategy on multiculturalism and cultural competence. Brandyn has worked with clients around the world to provide actionable solutions to infuse diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout their communications and cultures. Brandyn lives in suburban Philadelphia and loves reading, laughing, music, hiking, and going on adventures with her two children.
