I accidentally became DEI Committee Chair for the League of Women Voters of Door County last year. Tonight we put on an event we’ve been planning for months: “Words Matter: The Power of Language to Create a More Inclusive Door County”.
Here’s the description I wrote for the event: Our words have an incredible impact on the safety and belonging we create for others. Join us as we welcome a panel of community leaders to speak about inclusive language around race, mental health, disability, and LGBTQ+ identities. You’ll have the opportunity to learn and ask questions in a safe space. Whether you’re a community leader, educator, business owner, or simply passionate about creating a welcoming environment, this event will empower you with the tools to harness the power of words for a more unified and inclusive Door County.
Essentially, it was a panel program with five community members speaking about LGBTQ+ identities, mental health, and disability from their own lived experiences. We gave the panelists some time to speak and then opened it up to questions. (We also paid our panelists — if you’re going to talk about DEI you also need to talk about compensating people for their resources and education. . . not expect free labor from historically marinized groups)
I moderated the event which I expected would have a modest, maybe even disappointing turnout for a Thursday night in February. I think we only set out sixteen chairs to start. But we ended up with over forty people, filling the room. It was a little intimidating — not that I haven’t spoken to larger groups before for work but the context is different. But it was also really encouraging to see the community turn up for an event like this.
The panelists did an amazing job sharing part of their lived experiences and why this topic was important to them — from the importance of sharing pronouns and destigmatizing mental health to interacting with folks who have visible or invisible differences — the message was filled with empathy and connection. It’s about seeking to see others and being seen ourselves.
So it went well, I hope. We got positive feedback afterward and there’s energy around trying to pull all these disparate DEI initiates in the county together to make a bigger impact.
I’m also exhausted. And relieved it’s over. the long days and heavy topics at work lately have left me drained so I had to dig a little deeper for the energy tonight. But the whole committee and my parents were great and helped pull all the logistics together so I gratefully never felt like I was on my own.
With Love,
Natalie