2017 DiversityInc
DiversityInc
MEETING IN A BOX
ISTOCL/COPYRIGHT: STOCKYIMAGES And as CEOs and company leaders
address these issues in the workplace, it is
crucial not only for managers to understand
how to handle the current racial climate but
for all of your employees to have a better
understanding of Black history, how far they
have come and what hurdles still remain.
For this reason, we are providing you with
additional content in this Meeting in a Box.
We are providing a Timeline, highlighting
events pertaining to Blacks throughout our
nation's history and all the way up to the
present; our Facts and Figures, giving
information on Blacks in corporate America,
education statistics and financial figures;
and our Things NOT to Say segment focused
on Blacks in the workplace.
We are also providing discussion
questions that can be facilitated by your
managers or employee resource groups, as
well as proven helpful strategies real leaders
have used to address racial tensions.
This information should be distributed to
your entire workforce and also should be
used by your Black employee resource group
and your diversity council all year round.
PA GE 1
Black History Month
For All Employees
This Meeting in a Box tool is designed
for distribution to all employees. You
may use portions of it or all of it. Each
section is available as a separate PDF;
you can forward the entire document or
link to it on DiversityInc Best Practices,
or you can print it out for employees
who do not have Internet access.
A s racial tensions remain on the rise
across the country, Black History
Month is of even greater importance.
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2017 DiversityInc
PAGE 2
1 TIMELINE
We recommend you start your employees' cultural-competence lesson by using this Timeline. The unique history of Blacks in the
United States is the clearest indication of evolving human-rights values and represents a moral and economic battle that split this
nation. The remarkable progress of African Americans is a testament to the power of democracy, culminating in the nation's first
Black President, Barack Obama. The timeline shown here illustrates significant dates in U.S. Black history and major historic figures.
Discussion Questions for Employees
Black History Month started in 1926. Is it still relevant to have a month-long celebration?
Your guided discussion should focus on the many contributions Blacks have made to U.S. history and the continued debate about
whether one month is sufficient. Point to examples of recent groundbreaking events, such as the election of our first Black
president. History is made every year; discussions on new achievements, challenges and victories are always relevant.
Why are "firsts" important to note? What other barrier breakers have you witnessed in your lifetime?
This personal conversation will help employees note additional events that they may not have been aware of. The significance of
these "firsts" can be explored in further detail after the Facts & Figures section below is discussed.
How does understanding the past help us deal with the present?
Why is it important to study history, particularly painful history? Does understanding what previous generations went through help us
see their perspectives today? Can similarities be drawn between civil rights activism during the era of Rosa Parks and Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr. and the goals of today's Black Lives Matter activists?
2017 DiversityInc
PAGE 3
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2 FACTS & FIGURES
Our Facts & Figures section highlights statistics on Blacks in corporate America, as well as disparities among races in educational
attainment and income. Note where the disparities exist and where there may be an upward trend when compared to last year's data.
Where applicable, national data are compared with DiversityInc Top 50 data to show what progress the leading companies are making.
Discussion Questions for Employees
What does it take to move into the senior-executive pipeline at your company? Do you think it's important for younger managers
to have role models who look like them?
Discuss the increase or lack thereof of Blacks in various management roles. Analyze the benefits of not only cross-cultural
mentoring relationships but also the benefits of Black employees having managers and bosses who look like them.
The Black community represents an increasing share of the consumer marketplace. Whether your company is B-to-B or B-to-C,
what efforts are you undertaking to reach Black consumers or clients?
As the population grows more diverse, so does your company's need to be able to serve people of all races, ethnicities and
backgrounds. Discuss how critical it is to have client/customer-facing staff members who mirror the communities. How active are
your resource groups in community, marketplace and client outreach?
DiversityInc
MEETING IN A BOX Black History Month
For All Employees
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3 THINGS NOT TO SAY TO BLACKS
We've updated our Things NOT to Say series to address current events and legal issues that may very well become topics of
conversation in the workplace, addressing everything from hairstyles to affirmative action.
Discussion Questions for Employees
What other condescending or offensive phrases have you heard addressed to Black employees?
Discuss how these phrases and stereotypes impact office morale and productivity.
What role do you think the company should play when offensive comments occur?
Have employees talk about under what circumstances they would report offensive comments and what they believe the company
should do.
After today's lesson, what would you do if you overheard a colleague make such a comment?
Continue the discussion with each employee and develop a plan of action on how to address offensive language.
2017 DiversityInc
PAGE 4
DiversityInc
MEETING IN A BOX Black History Month
For All Employees
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4 RACIAL DISCUSSIONS IN THE OFFICE
Corporate leaders have had to learn how to address growing racial tensions and found that open and honest discussions were
effective. We have provided some examples of what strategies have proven to be effective.
Discussion Questions for Employees
Are you acknowledging or ignoring racial tensions?
Assess whether your company is addressing these issues or pretending they don't exist during the workday. If they are going
ignored, talk about why transparency would be a better way to address the situations.
How are your employee resource groups involved?
Use the initiatives of resource groups and diversity councils cited in Frank Office Talk About RaceHow ERGs Can Help to set up
focused discussions and educate your workforce. These groups are conduits to the general employee population.
Are senior executives leading the discussion?
Knowing the demographics of your area and your company and having your senior leaders at the forefront of addressing gaps
and challenges as well as racial tensions helps employees understand their leadership commitment and appreciate their
inclusive workplace.
2017 DiversityInc
PAGE 5
Women's History Month for all employees
NEXT
MONTH
DiversityInc
MEETING IN A BOX Black History Month
For All Employees
PAGE 6
2017 DiversityInc
1619
Dutch ship brings 20 Africans to
Jamestown, Va., the first enslaved
Africans in the U.S.
1793 Eli Whitney's new cotton gin increases
demand for slaves
1793 Congress passes Fugitive Slave Act,
making it a federal crime to assist a
slave trying to escape
1808 Congress bans importation of slaves
1820 Missouri Compromise bans slavery
above the southern border of the state
1831
Nat Turner leads largest slave
rebellion prior to Civil War
1849 Harriet Tubman escapes to
Philadelphia and subsequently
helps about 300 enslaved people to
freedom via the Underground Railroad
1857
In Dred Scott v. Sanford, U.S. Supreme
Court declares that Blacks are not
citizens of the U.S. and that Congress
cannot prohibit slavery
1859
John Brown leads raid of U.S. Armory
and Arsenal at Harpers Ferry, W.Va.
1861 South secedes from Union and
Civil War begins
1863 President Lincoln issues the
Emancipation Proclamation, declaring
"all persons held as slaves within any
State or designated part of a State,
the people whereof shall then be in
rebellion against the United States,
shall be then, thenceforward, and
forever free"
1865 Civil War ends
1865 Thirteenth Amendment is ratified,
prohibiting slavery
1868
Fourteenth Amendment is ratified,
allowing Blacks to become citizens
1870
Fifteenth Amendment is ratified,
guaranteeing that right to vote cannot
be denied because of race, color or
previous condition of servitude
1870 Hiram Revels becomes first Black
member of Congress
1896 U.S. Supreme Court rules in Plessy v.
Ferguson that segregation doesn't
violate the 14th Amendment's equal-
protection clause as long as conditions
provided are "separate but equal"
1900 William H. Carney becomes first Black
to be awarded Medal of Honor
1909 NAACP is founded
1926 Carter G. Woodson establishes
"Negro History Week"
1940 Hattie McDaniel becomes first Black
to win an Academy Award
1947
Jackie Robinson becomes first Black
to play Major League Baseball
1950 Ralph J. Bunche becomes first Black
to win the Nobel Peace Prize
1953 Willie Thrower becomes first Black
to play quarterback in the National
Football League
1954
In Brown v. the Board of Education of
Topeka, U.S. Supreme Court rules that
racial segregation in public schools
violates the 14th Amendment
1955
An all-white jury acquits two white
men who confessed to murdering a
14-year-old Black boy, Emmett Till, for
allegedly whistling at a white woman
1793
1849
1950
Timeline
DiversityInc
MEETING IN A BOX Black History Month
For All Employees
2017 DiversityInc
PAGE 7
1955 Rosa Parks refuses to give up her
seat on a bus to a white man in
Montgomery, Ala., leading to the
Montgomery Bus Boycott
1957
Little Rock Nine integrate Little Rock
Central High School in Arkansas
1960
Four Black students stage famous sit-
in at a whites-only Woolworth's lunch
counter in Greensboro, N.C.
1961
Freedom rides begin from Washington, D.C.
1962
James Meredith becomes first Black
student to enroll at the University
of Mississippi. Violence prompts
President Kennedy to send in 5,000
federal troops
1963 More than 200,000 people march on
Washington, D.C., in the largest civil-
rights demonstration in U.S. history;
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gives his
"I Have a Dream" speech
1963
Four young Black girls are killed in the
bombing of a Birmingham, Ala., church
1964
President Johnson signs Civil Rights Act
of 1964, giving government more power
to protect citizens against race, religion,
sex or national-origin discrimination
1965 Malcolm X, former minister in Nation of
Islam and civil-rights activist, assassinated
1965
Thousands participate in three protest
marches from Selma to Montgomery,
Ala., for Black voting rights
1965
President Johnson signs Voting Rights
Act of 1965
1968 Dr. King is assassinated
1968 President Johnson signs Civil
Rights Act of 1968, which prohibits
discrimination in the sale, rental and
financing of housing
1972 Shirley Chisholm becomes first major
party Black candidate to run for president
1983
Vanessa Williams becomes first Black
Miss America
1984 Rev. Jesse Jackson becomes first Black
to make serious bid for presidency
1986
First observation of Dr. King's birthday
as a national holiday
1990 Douglas Wilder of Virginia becomes
first Black to be elected governor
1991
President George H.W. Bush signs Civil
Rights Act of 1991, which strengthens
laws on employment discrimination
1993 Dr. Joycelyn Elders becomes first Black
Surgeon General
2001 General Colin Powell becomes first
Black Secretary of State
2009 Barack Obama becomes first Black
president
2014 Hundreds gather in various protests
across the country after grand juries
decline to indict Michael Brown's and
Eric Garner's killers
2015 Black Lives Matter gains momentum
amid the shootings of unarmed Black
citizens by white police officers
1965
1963
2014
2016
1967
In Loving v. Virginia ruling, Supreme
Court declares law prohibiting
interracial marriages to be
unconstitutional
2016 Announcement that Lt. Gen. Stayce
D. Harris, highest-ranking Black
woman pilot in all U.S. armed forces,
to be inducted into Women in Aviation
International's Pioneer Hall of Fame
in March 2017
1967 Thurgood Marshall becomes first Black
U.S. Supreme Court justice
DiversityInc
MEETING IN A BOX Black History Month
For All Employees
PAGE 8
2017 DiversityInc
BUSINESS
FINANCES
DEMOGRAPHICS
$100,000
$80,000
$60,000
$40,000
$20,000
0
$36,544
$61,394
$55,775
$44,782
$77,368
$38,530
Blacks
Whites
Latinos
Asians
American
Indians
U.S. Median
Household
Income
$500 trillion
$1 trillion
$500 billion
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0
23.4%
$1.2 T$1.6 T$1.3 T$1.6 T$825 B$962 B$90.4 B$123 B$14.1 T$16.2 T32.1%
31.5%
29.2%
21.3%
Blacks
Latinos
Asians
American Indians Total Population
Facts & Figures
Black U.S. Population
42.4 million
(13.2% of total population)
59.7 million*
(14.3% of total population)
*projected
2015
2060
8.2%
6.6%
Blacks in Management
DiversityInc Top 10
U.S.
Source: EEOC
Blacks in Senior Management (levels 1 and 2)
6.2%
DiversityInc Top 10
U.S.
3.2%
Source: EEOC
9.2%
7.4%
Blacks on Boards of Directors
DiversityInc Top 10
Fortune 500
Source: ABD
DiversityInc Top 50 CEOs (6% Black)
10 States With Most Black Buying Power
Median Income
Buying Power
Projected Percent Change in Buying Power (20142019)
Bernard Tyson,
Kaiser Permanente
(No. 1)
Kenneth C. Frazier,
Merck & Co.
(No. 17)
Roger Ferguson,
TIAA
(No. 33)
Washington
Oregon
California
Idaho
Montana
Nevada
Utah
Arizona
Colorado
Wyoming
New Mexico
Texas
Oklahoma
Kansas
Nebraska
South Dakota
North Dakota
Minnesota
Wisconsin
Illinois
Missouri
Arkansas
Louisiana
Missis-
sippi
Alabama
North Carolina
Virginia
Michigan
York
New
Pennsylvania
Delaware
New Hampshire
Maine
Tennessee
Kentucky
West
Virginia
Iowa
South
Carolina
New Jersey
Georgia
Florida
Indiana
Ohio
Maryland
Connecticut
Massa-
chusetts
Rhode
Island
Vermont
New York
$103.8 billion
Texas
$99.1 billion
California
$80.5 billion
Georgia
$78.6 billion
Florida
$78.5 billion
Maryland
$66.9 billion
North Carolina
$52.5 billion
Illinois
$48.1 billion
Virginia
$47.5 billion
New Jersey
$41.9 billion
2015201520152015201520182018201820182018Blacks

Latinos
Asians
American Indians Total Population
Source: U.S. Census Bureau's 2015 American Community Survey
DiversityInc
MEETING IN A BOX Black History Month
For All Employees
EDUCATION
HEALTH DISPARITIES
Life Expectancy
Blacks
Latinos
Whites
Total Population
Source: CDC
75.1
years
81.9
years
78.9
years
78.8
years
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
Blacks
Latinos
Asians
American
Indians
Whites
Total
Population
Percentage of population age 25 and over who
completed at least high school
100%
2005 2015
81.4%58.5%75.6%80.2%90.1%85.2%87.7%66.7%83.8%83.9%93.3%88.4%90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
Blacks
Latinos
Asian
American
Indians
Whites
Total
Population
Percentage of population age 25 and over with at least a
bachelor's degree
100%
2005 2015
17.6%12.0%49.3%14.5%30.6%27.7%22.9%15.5%52.9%19.8% 36.2%32.5% Source: National Center for Education Statistics
2017 DiversityInc
PAGE 9
DiversityInc
MEETING IN A BOX Black History Month
For All Employees
2017 DiversityInc
PAGE 10
DiversityInc
MEETING IN A BOX Black History Month
For All Employees
COMMENTS
1"I have Black friends, and they
don't care if I say the N-word."
2
The N-word and any derogatory
language is never acceptable at
work, especially if it's racially charged
or in any way discriminatory. And to
make an assumption that what one
Black person says is okay is
representative of all Black people
implies that all Black people think and
feel the same way an assumption
you would never make about someone
of your own race.
And to imply that having "a Black
friend" gives you a free pass to be
offensive is a very outdated concept.
Most people "know" a Black person
this does not excuse inappropriate
behavior or actions.
3"Why don't you wear your hair
natural?"
Hairstyle choice is a personal choice
for women. And whether a Black
woman chooses to wear her hair
natural or relaxed does not represent
"the acceptance or rejection of their
Blackness," shares Carolynn Johnson,
chief operating officer at DiversityInc.
"There are other reasons: financial,
medical or just personal choice."
In fact, the topic of hair has become
a legal issue. A U.S. Court of Appeals
recently ruled in favor of a company
that refused to hire a woman who had
dreadlocks, sending the message that
it's legal for companies to refuse
employment based on hairstyles.
4"So, can I touch your hair?"
"I'm so sick of affirmative action
it's just reverse racism."
To discuss affirmative action in a
negative way with a Black employee
particularly one you don't know very
well will likely make them feel
uncomfortable. The assertion is that
you believe they only got their position
due to the color of their skin, rather
than their skills and experience.
"Reverse racism" is a common,
inaccurate synonym for "affirmative
action." And statistics show that the
complaints against affirmative action
are in fact unfounded. Despite making
up about 13 percent of the population,
Blacks remain underrepresented in
senior management roles across the
country, representing just 3.18 percent
of all senior executives.
Black People
Things NOT to Say to



"


You wouldn't go
to a breast cancer
rally and say, all
cancers matter.



"
This question could very well make
someone feel alienated or like an
outsider for deviating what has long
been considered "the norm" for
professional hair.
Curiosity can very easily cross the
line in this situation. Lissiah Taylor
Hundley, diversity and inclusion
strategist for Cox Enterprises (No. 18
on the DiversityInc 2016 Top 50
Companies for Diversity list), recalled
a sometimes uncomfortable
experience when she wore dreadlocks
to work.
"Fortunately for me, no one blatantly
expressed their bias or issues with my
hair; however, looks and questions
can be just as impactful," she said. "I
often received comments or questions
from employees about my hair. The
curiosity alone just floored me."
And while curiosity may be natural,
touching someone at work for any
other reason would be considered
invasive and inappropriate this
situation is no different.
While this comment could be well
intended and meant to be inclusive, it
sends the opposite message. Think of
it this way: you wouldn't go to a rally
for Susan G. Komen for the Cure, a
non-profit organization that raises
money for breast cancer, and say,
"All cancers matter." Your Black
colleague who may support Black Lives
Matter also believes that all lives
matter. This conversation is better left
unsaid at work.
5"I think all lives matter."
2017 DiversityInc
PAGE 11
DiversityInc
MEETING IN A BOX Black History Month
For All Employees
Troubled Times: Silence is Not an 'Option'
"Times like these are unfortunate reminders of why our focus on diversity and inclusion is so critical; and clearly there is still much
more work to be done."
This is an excerpt from an email sent to a host of Sodexo (No. 6 on the 2016 DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity list)
employees working in a cross section of diversity functions written by Rohini Anand, the company's senior vice president of corporate
responsibility and global chief diversity officer. Anand shared her concern and resolve in the aftermath of racial tensions that have led
to death and despair for so many:
"I am disheartened by the ongoing acts of violence, terrorism and destruction that continue to plague our communities around the
world. It is more important than ever, during times like these, that we reaffirm our commitment to Diversity & Inclusion."
The letter was sent out on July 11 to Sodexo's Employee Business Resource Group (EBRG) members, as well as INclusion commUNITY,
Regional INclusion Ambassadors, Spirit of Mentoring Implementation Team and Diversity Learning Lab facilitators.
The day after five Dallas police officers were shot in the aftermath of two videotaped killings of Black men by cops in Minnesota and
Louisiana, Steve Howe, U.S. chairman and managing partner for EY Americas, took to Twitter and also sent an internal email to the
entire EY workforce to address the issue. (EY is No. 3 on the Top 50 list.)
design race relations communications/programming to include leadership messages,
create a toolkit with resources,
hold dialogue sessions and webinar series,
sharpen its focus on this topic at an upcoming inclusion meeting in September that consists of EBRG and INclusion
commUNITY national leaders and their executive sponsors.
Why do all of this?
Silence on this issue wasn't an option, Davidson stressed. "If we did not do something, people would be scratching their heads questioning
why we were silent. If we truly want to fulfill our mission of quality of life, anything other than walking the talk is not an option."

It is more important than
ever, during times like
these, that we reaffirm
our commitment to
Diversity & Inclusion.
"
"
Sodexo intends to promote further discussion and understanding. Sodexo, said Jodi Davidson, the company's director, diversity &

inclusion initiatives, has plans to:
And PricewaterhouseCoopers (No. 5) held a discussion
about the issue across the company.
The call for these conversations which were held informally
among colleagues was prompted by an email Tim Ryan,
PwC's U.S. chairman, sent following the Dallas shootings to all
45,000 employees in the United States, acknowledging the
violence happening around the country, said Nidhi Sinha, a
spokeswoman for the company.


It's all part of an effort to put these difficult discussions on the
table as a way to foster change. Sinha said there was one
employee who commented that "the silence was deafening"
following the recent turmoil, because no one among her team
would even address it. That apprehension, she added, is why
Ryan wanted to initiate a dialogue.
Companies are looking to use conversations as a springboard
for possible actions to improve race relations and diversity.