Weekly Shares (5/21/23) - Some Thoughts on Radical Inclusion
Again this week, I am focusing on a longer read having just finished David Moinnina Sengeh’s new book, Radical Inclusion. Sengeh, the Minister of Basic and Senior Secondary Education and Chief Innovation Officer for the Directorate of Science, Technology and Innovation in Sierra Leone. In the book, Sengeh outlines seven steps to create a more inclusive setting, whether at work, at home, or elsewhere in the world.
Sengeh walks the reader through his advocacy for ending the exclusive practice of barring pregnant girls from attending school. His use of storytelling as he chronicles his path from putting this exclusive practice on the agenda for his country’s leadership team to building a coalition makes the process needed to accomplish Radical Inclusion crystal clear. While making clear that changing policy language is much easier than changing hearts and minds, Sengeh leaves us with the blueprint to create more inclusive spaces that benefit ALL members of the community.
Sengeh’s seven chapters each highlight one of the seven steps. I am also going to include an excerpt (or two) that resonated from each chapter.
Introduction - The Need for Radical Inclusion
“Inclusion as a social construct is about accepting everyone and recognizing all they can contribute to our homes, schools, and communities - not irrespective of their differences, but because of them…What we need is radical inclusion, and that cannot be achieved with inaction and silence.”
Chapter 1 - Identify the Exclusion
“Exclusion is almost always about power and the need to retain it.”
“Many of us remain silent even if we’re disturbed by it, and the world goes on. That’s why the first step to enhancing inclusion is to identify the things that lead people to feel excluded, at both an individual and a systemic level, and put a name to them. Once we name something, it is harder to ignore.”
Chapter 2 - Listen to Understand and Learn
“...the most powerful tool for changing deeply entrenched perspectives is empathy.”
“Here’s the thing about listening: the more I listened, the more I realized how much I didn’t know and how essential it was to engage with all kinds of people, from all walks of life, and from every part of the country.”
Chapter 3 - Define Your Role - Why You, Why Now?
“To have the kind of impact that is needed to make inroads on intractable problems, we need to understand the role all people play, those who consciously choose to get involved and those who stand passively, those who advance debate deliberately and those who hold it back, perhaps without even knowing it.”
“There’s a saying: If someone’s liberation upsets you, there is a good chance you were benefitting from their oppression.”
Chapter 4 - Build a Coalition
“…when it comes to addressing deeply entrenched injustices, we almost certainly will need help from others.”
“Empathy breaks barriers, and quickly. And barriers must be broken to form strong coalitions. It is the most powerful tool a leader can have.”
Chapter 5 - Advocacy and Action
“I came to understand the choice at the heart of leadership: to pursue big dreams and suffer the consequences, or narrow one’s ambitions in an effort to get along.”
Chapter 6 - Adapting to a New Normal
“Equity is a state, and inclusion is a process to get you toward that state in which everyone enjoys the same opportunity to be present, to participate, to be seen, and to be oneself…Equity is the goal; inclusion is a crucial first step in getting there.”
“You can’t simply change policy and ask staff to implement it; you have to show them how…by giving them the tools they need to implement it.”
Chapter 7 - Beyond Inclusion
“Without vigilance and constant effort, you can - through the efforts of bad actors or simply through your own complacency and lack of commitment - wind up exactly where you started, or in a place that’s even worse.”
“Those leading the fight must be openly supported by the administration and not negotiated with in silence.”
Afterword
“That’s the final thing I want to add about radical inclusion. Only when you are a lifelong student of it can you possibly be doing it right.”