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Exploring the COVID-19 and Videoclassism in Today’s Workforce

Illustration of adults working from home with different backgrounds: outside; with kid; with pet; and wall art.

In a well-timed LinkedIn article, Department of Defense, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Program Manager, Taharee Jackson explores, “COVID-19 & Videoclassism: Implicit Bias, Videojudgement, and Why [She’s] Terrified to Have You Look Over [Her] Shoulder.” Jackson sheds light on the intersectionality of digital access, socioeconomic status, and the shift in workforce communications during the pandemic.

Jackson writes, “as a diversity consultant who teaches and trains others about implicit bias—and specifically the negative ideas we espouse about people who are experiencing poverty—I worry about the psychological effects and downright trauma of having those who learn and work alongside us having a requisite glimpse into our homes, making inferences about our social class, and subsequently judging us for it. I worry.”

The article ends with “five recommendations for interrupting videoclassism and checking the implicit bias that many of us will fall into as we videoconference with our peers and colleagues.”

Read Jackson’s full article to learn more about this unique point of intersectionality from an EDI insider.

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