FAQs about Backbone: Courage for a Changing Workplace

Q: What is Backbone: Courage for a Changing Workplace?

A: Backbone: Courage for a Changing Workplace is an all day learning experience for HR, D&I, and people who are underrepresented at work to practice standing up against harmful behavior at work.

You can register here. A draft email to request your employer pay for you to participate is here.

Q: What will we do at Backbone: Courage for a Changing Workplace?

A: We will kickoff with a performance of a series of escalating workplace incidents between a young Black woman and her white woman manager.

Then we will break into small groups guided by experts.

For half the day, we will practice how to respond to this situation: how to intervene to heal and restore the parties, investigate, and persuade c-suite leaders to take action.

The other half of the day, we will focus on preventing situations like this from happening. We will create a roadmap to an equitable workplace, name and strategize on how to overcome our fears, and take a break for self care.

Throughout the day we will get to know each other to build our strength and community.

Q: Who should attend Backbone: Courage for a Changing Workplace?

A: Both people who are frequently harmed at work and professionals whose responsibility it is to respond.

The learning experience will be enhanced if a group comes from a company.

Survivors of workplace harassment, bystanders, and people in charge of culture will all have the opportunity to practice speaking up in a totally safe and supportive environment, with feedback from experts and each other.

Q: How will the learning experience at Backbone: Courage for a Changing Workplace be different?

A: You will not be sitting and listening, you will be up and doing, learning from each other, with tips, guidance, and feedback from experts.

Q: What will participants at Backbone: Courage for a Changing Workplace walk away with?

A: With words to say and the strength to say them the next time you see harm occurring at work.

Too often we see something wrong, but don't say anything because we don't know what to say or are afraid to take a risk.

The goal of Backbone is to seed a movement of workplace professionals who know what to say and are unafraid of conflict and discomfort.

Creating workplaces free of harassment and discrimination will never come from the top down, but only from the bottom up. We will be the change agents to make that happen.

Q: Why is Backbone: Courage for a Changing Workplace worth the registration fee?

A: Backbone: Courage for a Changing Workplace is cheaper than litigation, a settlement, or a consultant to "fix" culture after a workplace incident blows up into a crisis. It's also cheaper than the costs of replacing employees who leave because of discrimination at work.

And we have applied for Continuing Legal Education and Society for Human Resources Management accreditation so it may count towards continuing education requirements, as well.

Q: Why will Backbone: Courage for a Changing Workplace focus on a workplace incident between a young Black woman and her white woman team leader?

A: For several reasons.

One, because Black women are leaders we all need to emulate. Harriet Tubman, Ida B. Wells, Rosa Parks and many other Black women changed society for the better because they did all they could with what they had in the situation right in front of them.

Two, because Black women got the laws passed that protect other marginalized groups. Black women did the grassroots work of the Civil Rights movement that got the 1964 Civil Rights Act banning workplace discrimination.

Three because although they got the law passed, fifty years later, Black women continue to face tremendous discrimination at work, including from white women. As a white woman who earlier in my career led teams with young Black women, I know I did things that harmed them.

I am fortunate to have many Black women mentors, mentees, and friends who have taught me how to change to be less harmful to them.

Their stories of harm by white women at work is what inspired me to found Racy Conversations and to organize Backbone.

Four because HR today is largely the province of white women and we have a lot of work to do in overcoming our own biases, including our bias towards currying favor with white men in positions of power.

Five because if we can create a workplace culture where young Black women can thrive on teams led by white women, our workplace culture will be a place where all people in marginalized groups can thrive.

Q: Who are the experts who will be featured at Backbone, and what will they share?

A: Topics we will cover and the experts are:

How to Investigate the Incidents: Felicia Medina, Esq. and Joshua Klipp, Esq.

How to Present Recommendations to CSuite Leaders: Mindy Gulati, Esq. and Joy Sybesma

How to Intervene Early and Heal the Parties: Lynne Maureen Hurdle and Shawnee Renee Benton-Gibson, LMSW

Roadmap to an Equitable Workplace: Josuel Plascencia and Yulkendy Valdez

Overcoming Our Fears: Amanda Townsend and Michelle Kim

Selfcare Practices: Neha Sampat, Esq. and Salvatore Manzi

Mindfulness Exercise: Demarris Evans, Esq.

Mentors facilitating small groups: Colette Luckie, Elaine Marino, Monet Wilson, Torin Perez

Q: Where can I see some of these experts in action?

A: Check out these videos:

Joy Sybesma, VP of People at KARGO, on why HR professionals like her should attend Backbone

Project 99 Cofounders Josuel Plasencia and Yulkendy Valdez, experts on creating safe workplaces for millennials of color:

Q: Why is now the time for Backbone: Courage for a Changing Workplace?

A: #DeleteUBER #MeToo and #TimesUp movements show that our current ways of dealing with workplace harm are not working.

The workforce is changing.

Women are graduating from college at higher rates than men, 43% of Millennials are people of color, and 47% of Generation Z are people of color, and by 2040, people of color will make up the majority of Americans. The number of people embracing gender fluidity is increasing.

Workplaces have two choices: change so we can work with dignity, or become obsolete.

Backbone will accelerate change by strengthening our courage to demand it.

Register for Backbone: Courage for a Changing Workplace here. A draft email to request your employer pay for you to participate is here.

Karen Fleshman, Esq. is the founder of Racy Conversations.

Her mission is to inspire the first antiracist generation in the United States. 43% of Millennials are people of color. 47% of Generation Z are people of color.

When we flip 10% of the white people in those generations to antiracism, we will have a majority antiracist generation that will be transformative.

She speaks and cofacilitates workshops on race nationwide and online and contributes to Huffington Post, Moguldom, and The GED Section.

Karen is a cofounder of San Franciscans for Police Accountability and serves on the workgroup overseeing US Department of Justice recommendations on ending bias at SFPD.

www.racyconversations.com @fleshmankaren