ignite!: Hold fast to your values!
Jacksonville bridge in rainbow lights for LGBTQIA Pride month, Matt McCallister
June is an incredibly important month in our country. Pride and Juneteenth shine the spotlight on both the progress and regression we’re experiencing in our country as it relates to inclusion/exclusion, values, equity/inequity, intentionality, lifting all voices and tokenism. I hope you’re listening and engaging in what is going on around us. For example, there have been many companies who have backtracked on their support of Pride and/or Juneteenth celebrations. Your dollars matter, and where you spend them speaks volumes.
Our country’s current clash of values was illustrated in a story I just read. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis decided that cities across the state could only illuminate bridges at night with red, white and blue lights from Memorial Day to Labor Day. His 2024 “Freedom Summer” initiative intentionally covered Pride month. Citizens gathered anyway with flashlights in all the Pride colors and illuminated the bridge. This year, the Department of Transportation decided to quietly plan bridge construction to deter a repeat of the event. They even went to the point of opening the bridge as citizens were gathering. Organizers had a Plan B in their pocket and routed supporters to the next bridge and shone their rainbow of love and support in grand fashion.
Every day is a new attack on the rights and privileges of those who are not seen as “desired Americans” by an oppressive regime. While those messages and actions are coming out, it is more important than ever that we show up and insist on including E-V-E-R-Y-O-N-E!
As a leader, when things get challenging, I turn to my values. What holds me true to my work? I fully believe that everyone – Every. Single. Human. – has value and deserves the rights and privileges that are abundantly shared with the dominant culture. I also choose to determine where I draw a line. I listen and engage every voice to better understand their perspective, especially when it is very different from mine. My “line” is drawn when actions and beliefs create a dominance in value of one group over another. When harm is done on the basis of being and existing, rather than a person’s actions.
Leadership Eastside’s Values are rooted in purposeful inclusion, addressing the root causes of inequitable systems, inspiring a collaborative culture, and promoting justice and equity for everyone. As an organization, we’re struggling right along with you to engage voices that are diametrically opposed to the very existence of many people in our community.
As an organization, our Board of Directors is engaging in continuous conversation about what Leadership Eastside might become over the next twenty years. Just like the Florida Pride supporters who found a creative way to challenge the system, we strive to equip more and more leaders on the Eastside and beyond with the skills and tools to see the systems in place that are not serving everyone and challenge them.
Hold fast to your values and listen to the perspectives of others who may shed new light for you to consider. Step up for those who are being persecuted and make sure you let your friends know they are loved and accepted for exactly who they are.
I hope to see you at an event soon.
From the desk of Jeni Craswell
