Dear colleagues,
As you might have (not) noticed, I tend to be more of a silent lurker on this list, with the occasional pop-up. However, yesterday and this morning I was, once again, reminded the depth to which white supremacy and colonization are embedded into both design practice and the academy and just how desperate our white fathers are to keep hold of their power.
I am beyond disappointed in Don Norman’s twitter response to Vivianne Castillo, where he asked for her expertise then balked at her offer of teachings—properly compensated, as it should be. His response demonstrates—precisely—why he should be paying for training in EDI, anti white supremacy, and decolonization.
I take this as both an opportunity to stand along-side one of our colleagues who, undoubtedly, now has to field a plethora of hate mail because she dared “talk back” to Don but, more importantly, to call attention to the following:
Just because you are an “expert” in some areas doesn’t mean you know anything about many, many others.
Just because someone says they are an expert in something doesn’t mean they really are.
Toxic cultures are maintained without “truth-to-power”.
Everyone deserves to be paid for their labour. Particularly when you are in the highest positions of privilege—as Don is—you should be eager to compensate equitably and lift-up generously.
Furthermore, I hope that—some day very, very soon—as a community we stop celebrating books about design that are published by all white male “panels".
m
Ps. I will attempt to short-circuit any private messages I may get calling me out for writing this note to the entire list—since Don is very much a public figure who garners great benefit and holds substantial power through his public persona, any critique should also be made publicly. I also have little confidence that, given his response to Castillo, he would learn anything from a private message.
Dr. Milena Radzikowska, MDes
Professor, Information Design
Faculty of Communication Studies››
Mount Royal University
Diversity & Equity Officer for the Mount Royal University Faculty Association
She/Her
http://www.milenaradzikowska.com
https://twitter.com/DrRadzikowska
I speak today as an immigrant, white settler who arrived on these lands in 1988.
I now live and work throughout the traditional lands of Treaty 6—the ancestral and traditional territory of the Cree, Dene, Blackfoot, Saulteaux, Nakota Sioux, as well as the Métis; Treaty 7—the ancestral and traditional territory of the Blackfoot Confederacy: Kainai, Piikani and Siksika as well as the Tsuu T’ina First Nation, Stoney Nakoda First Nation, and the Métis Nation Region 3; and Treaty 8—the ancestral and traditional territory of the Cree, Dene, as well as the Métis. I know that many First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples’ footsteps have marked these lands for generations, and recognize my own ongoing role in reconciliation.
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