EXCERPT: "The American Red Cross appreciates and is sensitive to the concerns raised regarding one of the water safety posters we produced," the hospital released in a statement to NBCBLK. "We deeply apologize for any misunderstanding, as it was absolutely not our intent to offend anyone. As one of the nation's oldest and largest humanitarian organizations, we are committed to diversity and inclusion in all that we do, every day."
Are they friggin' kidding? Apology not accepted...
This "post racial" America 2016 poster, is as racist as anything published in the 60's! They have got to be kidding regarding their claims of diversity and inclusion. If in fact they had any REAL diversity and inclusion on their staff (translation: INCLUSIVE of Black folks), this kind of thing would never happen. It is because diversity is now largely defined as white women and/or people of color who know about nothing about and who are therefore not sensitive to the struggle [of racism in America] or why the term/concept ever originated, that these kind of blunders happen and will continue to happen. Current claims of Diversity and Inclusion EXCLUDES Black Americans and this poster proves it! Even the weakest, less proud or culturally aware, of Black folks on the Red Cross staff would have immediately seen what was wrong with this poster and it would have never been published.
This actually reminds me of being at a DC Democratic party event in Washington, DC, when DC was still VERY chocolate (translation: overwhelming Black population). At this event some young White folks were passing out leaflets depicting an overhead shot with a bold caption of "Future Democrats" all looking up toward the camera. IN DC, where Blacks were a clear majority and where you could probably count the non-Black folks in the room, the photo of "future Democrats", a party highly dependent on the Black vote, was totally void of even one Black face! You can imagine the organizer's shock and horror when I brought this "oversight" to the attention of the organizers. Frantically they tried collecting all the previously distributed brochures, but the damage had been done... As in this case, Red Cross, the damage has been done.
I am not one to lightly call for termination of anyone's livelihood, but if there is an executive who is this insensitive and who has such poor judgment that a poster such as this was ever printed, published and seemingly disseminated throughout the state, s/he lacks in many other ways and is likely not an effective, fair or impartial administrator in many other perspectives. This person presents a future liability to the non-profit organization and he or she should be immediately relieved of his or her duties or at the least demoted. This action would send a resounding message of ZERO tolerance not only to others in management but also to Red Cross donors, Red Cross employees and to the community at large. Gotta' Go! Gotta' Go!!! Tired of empty apologies and promises to "retrain". Can't teach compassion and common sense...
Apology Not Accepted...
