Diversity can be defined as the sum of the ways that people are both alike and different. Visible diversity is generally those attributes or characteristics that are external. However, diversity goes beyond the external to internal characteristics that we choose to define as ‘invisible’ diversity. Invisible diversity includes those characteristics and attributes that are not readily seen. When we recognize, value, and embrace diversity, we are recognizing, valuing, and embracing the uniqueness of each individual.
American Library Association Office for Diversity, Literacy and Outreach Services. (2017). ODLOS glossary of terms. American Library Association. https://www.ala.org/aboutala/odlos-glossary-terms
Equity is not the same as formal equality. Formal equality implies sameness. Equity, on the other hand, assumes difference and takes difference into account to ensure a fair process and, ultimately, a fair (or equitable) outcome. Equity recognizes that some groups were (and are) disadvantaged in accessing educational and employment opportunities and are, therefore, underrepresented or marginalized in many organizations and institutions. The effects of that exclusion often linger systemically within organizational policies, practices, and procedures. Equity, therefore, means increasing diversity by ameliorating conditions of disadvantaged groups.
American Library Association Office for Diversity, Literacy and Outreach Services. (2017). ODLOS glossary of terms. American Library Association. https://www.ala.org/aboutala/odlos-glossary-terms
Inclusion means an environment in which all individuals are treated fairly and respectfully; are valued for their distinctive skills, experiences, and perspectives; have equal access to resources and opportunities; and can contribute fully to the organization’s success.
American Library Association Office for Diversity, Literacy and Outreach Services. (2017). ODLOS glossary of terms. American Library Association. https://www.ala.org/aboutala/odlos-glossary-terms
Intersectionality acknowledges the unique experiences of individuals who are members of multiple minoritized socially- and culturally-constructed categories (Crenshaw, 1994) and is often used to examine how the multiple identities of individuals interact and relate to societal inequities and social injustice (Reimers & Stabb, 2015).
Students have multiple social identities. Some students’ social identities are attached to multiple privileged groups (e.g., heterosexual White male), multiple marginalized groups (e.g., bisexual Latinx gender non-conformist), or both privileged (e.g., upper-middle class) and marginalized (e.g., Black) groups. For most individuals, their multiple identities do not function independently. Rather, the two identities interlock and relate to the overall functioning of the self.
Searle Center for Advanced Learning & Teaching. (n.d). Social identities. Northwestern University. https://searle.northwestern.edu/resources/principles-of-inclusive-teaching/appendix/glossary.html
Privilege operates on personal, interpersonal, cultural, and institutional levels and gives advantages, favors, and benefits to members of dominant groups at the expense of members of target groups.
Privilege is characteristically invisible to people who have it. People in dominant groups often believe that they have earned the privileges that they enjoy or that everyone could have access to these privileges if only they worked to earn them. In fact, privileges are unearned and they are granted to people in the dominant groups whether they want those privileges or not, and regardless of their stated intent.
Unlike targets of oppression, people in dominant groups are frequently unaware that they are members of the dominant group due to the privilege of being able to see themselves as persons rather than stereotypes.
Office of Active Citizenship and Service. (n.d.). Power & privilege definitions. Vanderbilt University. https://bit.ly/3X5grLP
An individual’s social identity indicates who they are in terms of the groups to which they belong. Social identity groups are usually defined by some physical, social, and mental characteristics of individuals. Examples of social identities are race/ethnicity, gender, social class/socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, (dis)abilities, and religion/religious beliefs.
...Students who identify with one or more minoritized/marginalized social groups may experience learning environments in ways that can impact their learning process and overall experiences in classrooms and other educational spaces. ...And, while college students from all backgrounds report experiencing imposter syndrome, its impact on maladaptive psychological adjustment (e.g., depression) is exacerbated for individuals who identify with an ethnic or racial minoritized group.
Searle Center for Advanced Learning & Teaching. (n.d). Social identities. Northwestern University. https://searle.northwestern.edu/resources/principles-of-inclusive-teaching/appendix/glossary.html
"Systemic bias is prejudice, bigotry, or unfairness directed by health, educational, government, judicial, legal, religious, political, financial, media, or cultural institutions towards individuals of an oppressed or marginalized group. [Bias, whether conscious or unconscious,] is prejudice, bigotry, or unfairness directed by someone from a privileged group towards individuals from an oppressed or marginalized group. To put it simply, systemic biases are barriers maintained by institutions while unconscious biases are ones upheld by individuals." (From Leesa Renee Hall)
American Library Association Office for Diversity, Literacy and Outreach Services. (2017). ODLOS glossary of terms. American Library Association. https://www.ala.org/aboutala/odlos-glossary-terms
(Johns Hopkins University, nd.)