Essentia Health and MAHUBE-OTWA Sponsoring Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Leadership Training

DETROIT LAKES (KDLM) – Essentia Health and Mahube-Otwa are sponsoring a year-long leadership development initiative based on diversity, equity and inclusion throughout the Lakes Area.

The initiative will be led by Victoria McWane-Creek of ‘4 Full Participation’ with a stated goal to create lasting change by equipping leaders with the knowledge and skills necessary to improve racial health equity in their workplaces and communities.

“Throughout the year, participants will understand, identify the importance of, and invest in developing racial health equity. “Building equity” is based on the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI),” a press release from Essentia Health said.

IDI, LLC who manages the Intercultural Development Inventory has been a vocal supporter of the Black Lives Matter movement and supports the passing of the controversial H.R. 40 legislation that aims to examine the merits of introducing reparations to African-Americans for US slavery. “We at IDI, LLC support Black Lives Matter in the fight against systemic racism. We urge Congress to pass H.R. 40, legislation which would create a commission to examine the impact of slavery and discrimination and identify remedies.” they said in a June 12, 2020 statement.

A recent poll, however indicates that support for the Black Lives Matter movement is declining; and Systemic Racism, whose key aspect that even if individual racism is not present, the adverse conditions and inequalities for racial minorities will continue to exist, continues to be hotly debated and controversial.

Organizations that wish to register for the program are encouraged to contact Chandler Esslinger, community health specialist at Essentia Health, by phone at 605-254-8893 or by email at Chandler.Esslinger@EssentiaHealth.org