by Carlos Hoyt, reprinted with permission
[They] drew a circle that shut me out
Heretic, rebel, thing to flout
But love and I had the wit to win
We drew a circle and took them in
- Edwin Markham, Outwitted
On Friday, January 28, 2022, I had what I hope might be the beginning of a world-saving dialogue with the hosts of a podcast called Hold My Drink (co-produced with Counterweight), hosted by Jen Richmond and David Bernstein.
"World-saving?" Really, Carlos?
The world won't get no better
If we just let it be
The world won't get no better
We got to change it
Yeah, just you and me
-Victor Carstarphen, Gene McFadden, John Whitehead, 1975
In addition to the podcast, Jen and David are also leaders of an organization called The Institute for Liberal Values (ILV). ILV arose out of the founders' concerns over what they consider to be an “illiberalism” across the United States, including what is commonly called DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) training and education, which they feel is sometimes practiced misguidedly with harmful effects.
I met Jen and David a couple of weeks ago. We had the chance to get to know each other sufficiently to agree that there might be value in trying to have a constructive conversation about our views on what DEI is and isn't, and what it should be and shouldn't be. This led to Jen and David inviting me to be a guest on their podcast and YouTube program. They came with their questions, concerns, and, most importantly, their open minds and warm hearts. I came with questions and concerns about what ILV stands for but, most importantly, with a desire to share what I know to be the power of DEI to create common ground, forge common purpose, and catalyze constructive collaboration.
You can see what this led to in this discussion. Did we save the world? Well, saving the world is a complicated process. A prerequisite to getting that big job done is the willingness of people who don't necessarily see eye to eye (or who don't think they do) to engage with each other with hope, trust, empathy, compassion, candor, curiosity, humor, and a desire to draw a circle in which we all can peacefully and lovingly coexist.
Of all the positive things that happened in our conversation, perhaps the most positive was that we left it with mutual eagerness to keep talking together. Stay tuned for Part II.
In the Hold my Drink — navigating culture with a chaser of civility, and Counterweight podcast, Episode 69, we speak with Carlos Hoyt in the first of a two part series on teaching Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. Carlos’ approach, which marries DEI with Critical Thinking, questions identity frameworks and dominant narratives. In this episode, Carlos lays out his blueprint for DEI work. In a surprisingly open and candid dialogue we explore where our perspectives merge and diverge. Stay tuned for our next podcast where we go beyond DEI theory to explore it in practice. All discussed with a chaser of civility, of course, and a fireball whiskey.
Hold my Drink welcomes all people with all kinds of beverages to join us as we explore the truths of a chaotic and beautiful world, together.
Find us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or watch the conversation unfold on YouTube, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
What Carlos is reading:
The myth of race, debunked in 3 minutes, Vox, Jenée Desmond-Harris and Estelle Caswell
Gods of the Upper Air, Charles King
Hell of a Book, Jason Mott
How Beautiful We Were, Imbolo Mbue
Passing, Nella Larsen
Systemic racism: What research reveals about the extent of its impact, New Scientist, Layal Liverpool
Explaining White Privilege to a Broke White Person, Huffington Post, Gina Crosley-Corcoran, Contributor
What Jen is reading:
Who Actually Gets to Create Black Pop-Culture? Current Affairs, Bertrand Cooper
How Social Justice Killed Anti-Racism, Quillette, Jerry Barnett
Inside the Woke Indoctrination Machine, Wall Street Journal, Paul Rossi & Andrew Gutmann
I Have Nothing to Learn from Another White Woman on Racism, The Commentary, Steve QJ
and watching…
Double Standards and The Lens of Identity (My ICMI Speech), Desi-Rae
Carlos is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker and a Ph.D. in social work. He provides psychotherapy to children, adolescents, adults, couples, and families, and consultation and training on matters related to social identity, social bias, and social justice to a number of organizations that wish to optimize their inclusivity efforts and outcomes.
Carlos has served in numerous diversity, equity, and inclusion leadership roles, including as the Director of Equity & Inclusion at Belmont Day School, and Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Director at the Chestnut Hill School in Chestnut Hill Massachusetts. He has worked as Assistant Professor of Social Work at Wheelock College in Boston, MA, where he was the key faculty designer of the Dynamics of Oppression and Privilege courses for BSW and MSW students; he has held teaching positions at Simmons College, Lesley University, and Boston University, providing instruction in clinical skills and practice, group dynamics, multicultural assessment, and cultural competence; and he has served as the Associate Dean of Students at Phillips Academy in Andover, MA, where he provided psychotherapy to students, and consultation, training, supervision, and support to faculty and student leaders.
Through his research, writing, teaching, and training, Carlos interrogates master narratives and the dominant discourse on race with the goal of illuminating and virtuously disrupting the racial worldview and reductive identity constructs in general. Carlos’s first book, The Arc of a Bad Idea: Understanding and Transcending Race, was published by Oxford University Press in 2016. He has written peer-reviewed articles on racism and spirituality and contributed an essay on empathy in a compendium of writings on peace psychology.
His approach in all forms of engagement with this challenging area of education, training, and growth combines preparing participants to interact fully, empathically, courageously, and candidly; grounding all content in facts and critical thinking; facilitating experiential opportunities for participants to be active synthesizers, versus passive receptacles, who can translate cognitive growth into positive personal action. More information on Carlos can be found here.
Below is a collection of Carlos’ writings:
The Pedagogy of the Meaning of Racism: Reconciling a Discordant Discourse
What if the Spirit Does Not Move Me? A Personal Reconnaissance and Reconciliation
Ep. 69: Teaching DEI Part 1 | Carlos Hoyt