by James A. Bacon
I’ve written a lot about what’s wrong with “Diversity, Equity & Inclusion”: how it classifies people as oppressed or oppressors, feeds feelings of victimhood and grievance, pits groups against one another, and leaves people, especially minorities, feeling isolated and alienated. But I’ve been challenged by the avatars of Bacon’s Rebellion latest podcast to explore the idea of what inclusion should look like. How do institutions, in particular universities, create a sense of belonging for students, faculty and staff from all walks of life?
Much of my criticism has taken aim at the Oppression Narrative at the University of Virginia and the DEI bureaucracy that enforces it. But, as it happens, there is an excellent positive example at UVA of how to foster a sense of belonging — the Hoos Connected program.
Hoos Connected is the brainchild of psychology professor Joseph P. Allen, who runs an adolescence research lab at UVA. The program brings together a diverse group of first- and second-year students weekly to get to know one another, share their personal experiences, and hear the perspectives of others. The goal is for young people to explore what they have in common — not what divides them.
As one Asian-American student in a Hoos Connected a promotional video put it, the best part “was being able to hear other peoples’ experiences and stories, and how different or similar they were to my own.”
