Chuck Ross writes for the Washington Free Beacon about questionable priorities for a New York City government agency.
The New York City Parks Department, facing a $33 million budget cut and chronic understaffing problems, instructs its supervisors to be “antiracist” activists who police “microaggressions” and promote conversations about race in the workplace, documents obtained by the Washington Free Beacon show.
The department’s Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging provides the “Microaggressions” training to help senior leaders and employees identify “subtle” slights that people experience in the workplace “due to their group identity,” the records show.
A resource guide created by the same DEI office—titled “What every supervisor/manager should know about race and racism in the workplace”—recommends books and documentaries that portray white people and society as inherently racist, including Nikole Hannah-Jones’s historically inaccurate 1619 Project, Ibram X. Kendi’s How to Be an Antiracist, and Robin DiAngelo’s White Fragility.
The guide also features a “Becoming Anti-Racist” graphic “inspired by Dr. Kendi,” which it says supervisors can use “to discern where you are on your journey.” The guide identifies four “zones” in the path toward “Becoming Anti-Racist.” The “Fear Zone” includes those who “avoid hard questions” and “strive to be comfortable.” The “Learning Zone” includes those who “understand [their] own privilege in ignoring racism” and are “vulnerable about [their] own biases and knowledge gaps.” The final “Growth Zone” includes those who “promite [sic] and advocate for policies and leaders that are Anti-Racist,” “educate [their] peers how Racism harms our profession,” and “yield positions of power to those otherwise marginalized.”
Supervisors are also encouraged to engage in race-related “reflections.” Questions they should ask themselves, according to the training, include “Have I explored my own biases and fears?” “Do I encourage trainings around issues concerning race, unconscious/implicit bias, and diversity and inclusion?” and “Do I create opportunities for discussing race and racism in ways that are relevant to the work in my unit?” For the parks department, that “work” includes managing the city’s 1,000 playgrounds, 1,800 public basketball courts, 14 golf courses, and other facilities.
