Article by YWA Diversity, Equity, and Belonging Chair, Tatyana Mann
Well, this was different.
What a year.
I know everyone says that every year, but I hope you’ll forgive me the cliche with how obviously relevant it is. 2020 is one for all the books: history books, fiction books, political books — we’ll be telling our kids and grandkids of a not-so-distant past where we couldn’t travel during holidays to see our relatives; go to the grocery store without waiting in a line for 20 minutes; during a presidential debate, someone actually said “shut up, man;” and leaving your house with a mask was as natural as leaving with your keys.
This was the year the world stood still. For all of us. Not a single person on this earth was unaffected by 2020. Through all the mess and destruction and hurt this year caused, I can’t help but think of how much it unified us, too. For one moment in time, for the span of a year, everyone experienced the same thing, all at once, together.
For me, the last year was one of impressive change: I started a new role, became the first Diversity, Equity and Belonging Chair for the Young Women’s Alliance, said goodbye to my namesake, lost my role due to the pandemic, had an eat-pray-love moment with intention and started a new role (which I love).
And all the while, I couldn’t help feeling guilty: here I am in 2020 thriving, when so many who look, think and move like me (a woman/ a woman of color/ a black woman) are hurting. Unified by the way this country blinds us with “likes” for our culture, so they can continue to throw injustice in our faces.
As the DEB Chair, I found it my responsibility to not only create space for those that rarely feel invited, but to also sit quietly in the ones they create for themselves, to listen and learn from them. These are spaces made for Black womxn, Hispanic womxn, Asian womxn, Disabled womxn. This list is nowhere complete but it was starting point during my first year in this role and has formed the building blocks for so much to come.
With the guidance of an amazing subcommittee and a wonderfully supportive Board, the Young Women’s Alliance is establishing programming, events and (best of all) allyships set to guide us in the years to come towards a more equitable and diverse community that not only includes all the Black, Hispanic, Asian and White womxn in the Austin Area, but makes each one of them feel like they belong here, too. And that, if nothing else, is something worth celebrating this year.
I hope you’ll join me in this mission in 2021 — sh*ts about to get colorful.
Cheers, many blessings and well wishes,
-T.
