2020, our worst year yet, or the year we learn our biggest lessons and redefine ourselves?

To say this year has been quite the roller coaster ride would be an understatement. It is only June 2020, and so far, we have witnessed:

1. tensions between the USA and Iran, that for a second, made us think we were on the brink of world war three;
2. a state of emergency due to forest fires in Australia;
3. the impeachment trial and acquittal of the US president Trump;
4. the UK withdrawing from the EU (Brexit)
5. a global, COVID-19 pandemic;
6. a global recession as a result of (3);
7. a new normal;
8. swarms of locusts causing food shortages in East Africa and Asia;
9. flash floods in East Africa; and
10. the murder of George Floyd, resulting in world wide protests in support of the Black Lives Matter movement and blunt conversations around discrimination globally.

It is no doubt the above events in themselves are negative.

However, it is because of the above events that we, as people, organisations and communities are all being forced to:

• confront serious issues that we have ignored for too long from: the gap between the "first world" and "third world"; extreme poverty and insecurity for millions of people; discrimination; corruption, climate change; and
• take action to make the change within ourselves, our organisations, and our countries in ways we previously haven't.

Given the above issues are wide, my focus for this article is discrimination and why it is important for you as a person, professional and business to pay close attention.

The murder of George Floyd, a turning point for America, and a wake up call for the world

For the benefit of those who do not know George Floyd, or why his story is important. Mr. Floyd was an unarmed black man who died after a Minneapolis police officer kneeled on his neck for more than eight minutes as he told them "I can't breathe".

His death, captured on camera by a witness at the scene has:

• sparked off not only a nation wide, but a global protest (currently on its 16th day) against the senseless killing of black men (women and children) at the hands of the American police due to systematic racism over decades. The protesters also demand justice for George Floyd, and the many that have been victims of police brutality and a reform of the police system in America. The protests
• it has also brought to the surface hard and blunt conversations around all forms of discrimination be it racial, class-based and gender discrimination, and a demand for the protection of the minority and less privileged, whether in homes, communities, organisations or countries.

What changes have the George Floyd protests brought about?

Some of the changes that the protests have inspired in the USA are:

• Minneapolis committing to dismantle its police;
• Confederate statues being toppled across the country; and
• Mayor Muriel Bowser renaming a street near the White House to "Black Lives Matter Plaza;

Globally, the protests have triggered waves activism that has seen citizens demand change by:

• toppling statues of personalities that represent racism, discrimination and oppression in different cities in Europe (United Kingdom, France and Belgium);
• protesting police brutality in different cities in Africa;
• protesting the Israeli governments proposed annexation of the Westbank;
• protesting the recent wave of rapes and killing of women in Nigeria, leading to a national outcry, with thousands signing a petition and using the hashtag #WeAreTired.

Why does the above matter for you as a professional and as a business?

1. Your values as a professional and as a business matter.

What you stand for, how you serve and what you deliver in your communities and industries matter.

Your silence and indifference also sends a message -the wrong message, that you have a platform to stand for something, and instead, choose to do nothing. This is what Facebook did recently with COVID-19 and Trump, and now with George Floyd resulting in both employees protesting and/or quitting (please note many of the employees who protested and chose to stand up against the company were millennials) and advertisers protesting the companies actions:

“The current developments have now rendered it morally impossible for us to continue feeding the same hand that complacently offers its services as the major platform for hate-mongering, promotion of violence, and disinformation,”

2. growth can only happen if we all have a seat at the table

Millennials, women and people of different ethnicity, are groups that represent a change in the norm, a different perspective, that challenge existing narratives. These narratives may be different to traditional organisations and settings but are needed to drive any organisation, community and country forward. We only fail ourselves if we fail to create the spaces that allows these groups to thrive with dignity and respect. New Zealand is a key example of a country that took a chance on female leadership.

Conclusion

My key take away from the above is that, with the right intentions, the human will is incredible and can overcome and be the tool for positive change. In this context, change is the right to always live with dignity, have access to equal opportunities, and the platform to thrive on merit and not on age, gender or race. So in case you had any doubt, know that the future is here, and that people of colour, women and millenials are not only here to stay,but here to win.