Unlearning racism in venture building & investing :: with Lindsey T. H. Jackson
Ventures
English - February 01, 2022 18:00 - 1 hour - 41.3 MBEntrepreneurship Business small business startups entrepreneurship venture venture capital founder founders investors investor Homepage Download Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
In this episode of Ventures, my guest Lindsey T. H. Jackson (https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindsey-t-h-jackson/) and I discuss the journey of anti-racism and anti-oppression work in ourselves, in venture capital, and in startup ecosystems. We discuss the nuances of dismal representation numbers in venture; how to approach Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) conversations in the workplace and beyond; how to develop a regular practice to self-reflect, define your community, and “fail fast” on your own anti-racism journey; and how to encourage others to consider embarking on the journey themselves.
Visit https://satchel.works/@wclittle/ventures-episode-82 for detailed notes and links to resources (videos, articles, etc…) mentioned.
You can watch this episode via video here.
3:18 - Lindsey’s introduction, background, brief story, about LTHJ Global (https://lthjglobal.com/)
10:30 - What got Lindsey into DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) consulting work?
13:30 - DEI & anti-racism work as intriguing to all entrepreneurs (it’s about collecting and responding to data, to work safer and smarter)
14:34 - Will’s journey coming from graduate work in a bioengineering lab, gathering and responding to data, influence from Dr. Viola Vogel as he got into venture building & investing.
17:13 - Common references to The Matrix in DEI work, why people ignore data, and listening to the market.
20:20 - Companies that make great products are made up of people. Importance of unlocking greatness in people.
20:56 - More diverse companies perform better. (Check out: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-numbers-dont-lie-diverse-workforces-make-companies-more-money-2020-07-30)
21:56 - Unlearning racism; reflections from Will’s personal journey
23:54 - How does Lindsey start the conversation without triggering people who think differently?
28:30 - “Calling in” (instead of calling out)
29:19 - Shockingly bad statistics regarding diversity in venture (see: https://www.wired.com/story/vc-pledged-better-diversity-its-barely-changed)
30:24 - “Do a count in a given day: How many people do you engage with that are outside of your intersectional identity”
30:57 - Identity as “Black”
32:52 - Dismal numbers in terms of percent of VC dollars going to businesses owned by black women.
36:04 - Cognitive diversity
36:29 - Recommended next steps to begin an anti-racism journey
47:32 - For people on their anti-racism/anti-oppression journey, what is Lindsey’s recommended way to talk about this with others and/or publicly?
51:15 - By the age of 5, black and brown children experience racism 5x/day, which increases in frequency as they get older.
51:11 - “How do I know I’m moving forward?”
54:00 - Consider the venture of anti-racism. Consider unlearning racism as joyful and freeing.
56:05 - By nature, anyone who considers themselves an entrepreneur is well poised to unlearn racism.
56:46 - Lindsey’s work: https://lthjglobal.com/ // https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindsey-t-h-jackson/ // Reach out and book her for a speaking gig // Subscribe to learn more about her upcoming book “Unlearning Racism” → http://eepurl.com/htLZyv