The word diversity has as of late become so overused as to be meaningless. We are asked to offer “good” white people who “mean well,” absolution from the ills of racism. We are asked about how white people can do better and feel better about diversity or the lack thereof.
People of color are not asked about our areas of expertise as if the only thing we are allowed to be experts on is our marginalization. This is the state of most industries, and particularly contemporary publishing. When I received the invitation to speak at Winter Institute, I knew, even before I got the details, that I would be asked to talk about diversity in some form or fashion. For many, Roxane Gay’s opening keynote, which called on booksellers to stop talking about diversity and do something and to step up their role in providing sanctuary, set the tone for one of the most political and energizing bookseller gatherings in recent memory. With demonstrations going on simultaneously at cities around the country, booksellers felt a sense of urgency, not witnessed in previous years, about their role in changing times. Given the current political climate, the Winter Institute that just ended in Minneapolis was like none other.