Newsletter: January 2026 Issue 2
- Cultures Connecting
- Jan 15
- 5 min read
New Lunch & Learn: DEI Facilitation and Social Status
Are you feeling stuck in your DEIBelonging work? Have you lost momentum for change in your organization? One of the most common pitfalls of DEIB work in teams and organizations is falling into the trap of status inversion.
Status inversion shows up when an organization genuinely wants to advance equity but ends up flipping who is seen as credible instead of changing the deeper rules of the game. Rather than separating competence and leadership from things like race, gender, or sexual orientation, those assumptions quietly get reassigned. White employees may feel their perspectives don’t count in equity conversations, while employees of color may be treated as if they’re supposed to have the right answers—or carry the hard conversations—simply because of who they are. That pressure isn’t fair, and it often means important, nuanced discussions never really happen.
Even though this dynamic can look like progress on the surface, it keeps the same hierarchy in place, leading to tension, withdrawal, and burnout. Real transformation happens when we stop tying worth, competence, and leadership to identity at all—not when we just reshuffle who holds status.
Facilitated by Dr. J.P. Anderson, this lunch & learn, DEI Facilitation and Social Status, will focus on how DEI facilitation can inadvertently contribute to status inversions and how to recognize, avoid, and repair them. Be sure to click on the button below for more information and to register!
Date: Friday, February 27, 2026
Time: 12:00-1:30pm PT / 3:00-4:30pm ET
Location: Zoom
Dr. J.P. Anderson Joins UW American Ethnic Studies Department
Dr. J.P. Anderson, one of Cultures Connecting’s racial equity specialists, recently joined the University of Washington (UW) as a faculty member in the American Ethnic Studies department where he teaches in the Integrated Social Sciences program (ISS). The program is designed specifically for students who cannot accommodate a traditional campus schedule. In addition to teaching asynchronous classes for ISS, Dr. Anderson is involved in the creation of a pre-law certificate.
Dr. Anderson’s role at UW marks a shift from the traditional tenure-track path he once followed and approaches his work with a sense of service, which for him is personal. Dr. Anderson himself was a nontraditional student, returning to school later in life and that experience shapes how he shows up for his students.
Alongside his work at UW, Dr. Anderson continues to consult for Cultures Connecting. Rather than seeing his university and consulting work as separate, Dr. Anderson views them as mutually reinforcing.
To read the complete interview with Dr. Anderson, visit our blog.
Leading Towards Justice Symposium in February
The 2026 Leading Towards Justice (TtJ) Symposium brings together educational and community leaders to share, deepen, and expand justice-centered leadership. This year's event focuses on coalition-building for collective action: the practices of power sharing, cross-racial solidarity, navigating conflict, and building trust across difference.
Our co-founders will be presenting workshops at the symposium. Dr. Caprice Hollins' will facilitate a shortened version of the Advanced Microaggressions for People Leaders that she offers for Cultures Connecting. Ilsa Govan will be presenting Beyond the Workshop: Building Momentum that Matters that equips leaders with practical strategies that go beyond one and done professional learning experiences to transform into lasting organizational change.
LtJ is hosted by University Washington Just Ed Leadership Institute, Leadership for Learning, and Danforth program and will be held on February 6 & 7th. Register today.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day on January 19th
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is on Monday, January 19th. The Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change (King Center), established by Coretta Scott King in 1968, is a great resource for commemorating this day. They are holding a teach-in for educators which you can register for here, as well other virtual events such as the 2026 Beloved Community Children's Book Reading and MLK Day Service Project.
If you're local to the Puget Sound area, here are some in-person events to attend, which you can also find on our DEIB/Social Justice calendar:
ALEGACY X Hosting Free Will Creation Workshop
ALEGACY X will be hosting a free workshop to help you complete your will from start to finish on Saturday, January 31st from 11:00-1:30pm at Byrd Barr Place. This will be a hands-on workshop where you will complete your will from start to finish, with notarization on site. For more information and to register, visit the event page here.
Ways to Take Action for Change
Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network
In this issue, we want to highlight the work of the Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network (WAISN) whose mission is to build collective power for immigrants and refugees across Washington through peaceful, non-violent, community-led action.
WAISN works in multiple areas including policy advocacy and grant making & fund development. They also support deportation defense through a hotline, rapid response network, accompaniment for legal or administrative appointments, and fair fight bond fund which is a community-sourced immigrant bond fund.
You can also visit their website to utilize their resource finder or to attend several upcoming events including:
All events are offered in both Spanish and English, with the Advocacy Day also in French, Portuguese, and Vietnamese. You can join WAISN as an organizational or individual member. Learn more about their work and get involved!
Buddhist Monks Walking for Peace
If you need some inspiration, you can follow the two dozen Buddhist monks walking over 2,300 miles from Texas to Washington, D.C. to encourage compassion, unity, and national healing. The are traveling with their dog Aloka and are currently in North Carolina. You can read about their why in their blog post, "Why We Walk."
You can follow their journey on their Instagram account @walkforpeace.usa where they share daily videos about their walk, the people they meet, and progress.
Upcoming DEIB/Social Justice Events
For details on these and other events, workshops and conferences happening in the social justice space, visit our Events Calendar. If you have an event you would like us to share, please reach out to us!
1/16: Train the Trainer (Cultures Connecting)
1/16: 53rd Annual Community Celebration of MLK at South Seattle
1/17: MLK Day Celebration at Federal Way Performing Arts
1/17: 2026 MLK Day Celebration and March
1/18: MLK Celebration 2026 at Bainbridge Island
1/19: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Commemoration at WA State History Museum
1/19: MLK Day of Service
1/20: Think Again Leadership ARCH mini (leaders of color)
1/20: NWIRP: Know Your Rights Colleges & Universities
1/20: NAMI BIPOC Support Group
1/21: Fire and Silence: Changing the Game
1/22: Equity in Stategic Planning
1/22: Facilitation Fundamentals
1/24: Developing Your Anti-Racist Heart: Doing the Inner Work
1/25: White Women Get Ready Anti-Racist Book Club
1/26: Black History Is for Everyone
1/26: NAMI LGBTQ+ Support Group
1/27: Race Forward: Power Building for Racial Equity
1/27: NWIRP: Immigration Updates
1/31: ALEGACY X: Create Your Own Will Workshop
1/31: Beyond Marginalization Workshop with Judy Lee
...and so much more! Visit our Events Calendar to see the most up-to-date full schedule.
