A former diversity, equity and diversity manager at the University of Vermont Medical Center recently ripped (white) executives in New England’s largest healthcare system, saying they “should not have the power to ‘speak constantly about DEI issues.'”
Ryan Polly, a transgender man who’s now the vice president of DEI for MaineHealth, said system execs are in need of sensitivity training “in order to create a ‘safe space,'” Maine’s Fox 22 reports.
Polly (pictured) also said company execs behave according to their “whiteness” and are “uncomfortable being associated with people of color.”
“I think what I encourage White people who are new to this to think about is your lens first. Like, turn the mirror on yourself first. If you’ve never thought about your Whiteness and how it impacts the space you’re interacting with, that’s a starting place,” Polly said.