Shaneka Abdul-Lateef, MS, HS-BCP

There are moments when organizations feel a surge of urgency around equity. A public incident, internal feedback, or external pressure creates a push to respond quickly. Statements are made. Commitments are shared. Initiatives are announced. On the surface, it looks like movement. But urgency, when it’s not grounded in strategy or accountability, can become performative. Performative urgency is when the response is fast—but not deep. When there is more focus on being seen as responsive than...

Comfort isn’t the goal when it comes to equity work—transformation is. That’s something I’ve come to understand more deeply through the work I do with HerAbdul Equity Exchange. Every time a conversation about equity begins, there’s often an unspoken tension in the room. People want to engage, but they also want to stay comfortable. The truth is, those two things don’t always go together. One of the biggest misconceptions about equity work is that it’s supposed to feel good—that if we say...

In conversations about race, the terms “racial prejudice” and “racism” are often used as if they mean the same thing. While they are closely connected, they are not interchangeable—and understanding the difference between them is critical if we want to have honest, productive conversations about equity and justice. Racial prejudice lives at the individual level. It refers to preconceived beliefs, attitudes, or judgments about a person based solely on their race. These ideas are often shaped...