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RedRover recognizes the deep systemic racism within the animal welfare sector. Our mission is to help animals in crisis and strengthen our relationships with animals – but the lives of animals do not exist in a vacuum. We cannot fully and effectively help animals without looking deeply at ourselves and how we treat one another. Therefore, we see diversity, inclusion, and equity as integral and vital to the success of our mission, as well as to the wellbeing of our staff, volunteers, and the people and communities we serve.
RedRover is committed to examining the way we do our work and accomplish our mission with the goal of increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion. RedRover is committed to working in stronger partnership with the people and communities we serve and actively seeking representation from those communities for our governing Board of Directors and for our staff and volunteers.
More specifically:
In our work to build a more empathetic society for all, the intersection between human injustice and animal suffering matters. And this means social justice, including racial justice, is also our cause. Black people, Indigenous people, and people of color are significantly underrepresented in animal welfare organizations at every level, but especially in leadership positions. The systemic racism and underlying bias that plague us as a society impact the policies and practices that govern our nonprofit organizations and have excluded and oppressed people of color. Finding ways to identify bias, celebrate and invite diversity, and develop and embrace inclusive practices can repair the divisions in our society and support equity, as well as help animals. For example, just a 3% increase in the adoption of shelter animals among people of color would lead to 2 million more animals in new loving homes. (For more statistics, visit careawo.org.)
We are committed to Board-level thinking around examining the structural inequities that have contributed to historically marginalized people being underrepresented and underserved within the animal welfare sector. We are committed to learning and implementing ways RedRover can address these inequities in ways that most impact our mission. The RedRover Board of Directors has approved this policy, as well as the Action Plan below which will be updated quarterly, shared with our supporters, and posted online to show our progress.
Goal/Action | Complete By | |
✔ | Initiated Anti-Racism Working Group | June 2020 |
✔ | Full staff attended Critical Diversity Solution’s (CDS) training, “Leveraging Diversity Challenges for Equity, Inclusivity, and Social Impact” | November 2020 |
✔ | Full staff attended CDS’s session on “History of Racism in Animal Welfare” | January 2021 |
✔ | Consult with CDS on staff and Board recruitment, HR policies and procedures, and the plan for Responders volunteers | January 2021 |
✔ | Initiated DEI Policy Task Force (staff and board) | October 2020 |
✔ | RedRover Readers and Kind News Magazine:
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✔ | Full Board of Directors take the “Leveraging Diversity Challenges for Equity, Inclusivity and Social Impact” training | March 2021 |
✔ | Approve DEI Policy | March 2021 |
✔ | Follow/listen to Black, Indigenous, and people of color leadership/voices through LinkedIn, etc. | June 2020 – ongoing |
✔ | Recruit and bring onboard at least one BIPOC Board Director | Antoine Jr. Melay approved by board 2/20/2021 |
✔ | Update Employee Handbook, policies, and procedures to ensure we are celebrating diversity and maximizing a sense of inclusion and belonging and make clear our commitment to identify and examine policies and practices entrenched in established ways of doing things that have perpetuated the exclusion and oppression of Black people, Indigenous people, and people of color (BIPOC) | Anticipated to be complete by March 2021 |
Audit website and communications and implement strategies to accurately represent RedRover where we are today as well as where we want to be | TBD | |
✔ | Update and implement third-party fundraising process to engage partners in taking steps to become anti-racist/support DEI | March 15, 2021 |
Review all new major partners, vendors, and sponsors for their commitment to anti-racism and DEI | TBD | |
✔ | Update new staff recruitment and hiring processes; for example, include DEI language in recruitment materials, add job posting to CDS recommended sites, increase job posting sites by 100% | New staff position posted February 20, 2021 |
✔ | Update new board posting, recruitment, selection, training, and orientation processes | Anticipated to be complete by March 1, 2021
Implement new Board recruitment process by April 1, 2021 |
RedRover Relief: Analyze data of current clients and application process |
TBD | |
RedRover Responders:
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TBD | |
All managers at RedRover read and discuss the book Crucial Conversations to assist in communicating difficult topics with staff/volunteers | Fall 2020 – September 2021 | |
Governance/Strategy Committee interviews at least two Black people, Indigenous people, and people of color Board candidates by November 2021 | November 2021 | |
Keep one Board position open until filled by a racialized candidate; Bring on board an additional historically marginalized Board Director | Ideally, January 2022 but could be January 2023 | |
Track individual staff continued anti-racist education: books, conferences, webinars, etc., and report to Board and RedRover Leadership; all managers participate in one DEI learning per quarter in 2021 and record in the professional development log | Ongoing | |
Seek out partnerships with BIPOC-led organizations and diverse nonprofits within the communities we serve | TBD |