ChoicePoints Learning

Women touch hearts. Tap into the power source.We are life givers in fact and in feeling. As mothers, sisters, aunts, CEOs, managers, team members, neighbors, soros, family and friends, we are influence, voices of reason, challenge, laughter, love and light. We are the essential element that makes life worth living. The more we embrace our power, the better life will be.For some women, knowing that we are powerful was ingrained in us from an early age. Irrespective of how the country saw us, thought about us and treated us, we knew that we had power and that we were powerful. For other women, having power in our own right was something to consider, not accept. I’m talking about women who were raised to think that women are less than, women who ingested beliefs that limit who we are and assume that women don’t possess the right stuff, aren’t smart enough or have what it takes to go the distance, to soar. It’s time to cast off that way of being– it’s simply too small for you. Now is the time to embrace the power that is innately yours as a woman. We are hope for the world. Decency and kindness are our through lines. Lines that can be thread in ways that only a woman can. Stand in your power in your unique way. Take a stand for decency, respect and capacity that transcends race, gender, religion and sexual orientation. From the front line of protests, to the meeting rooms where decisions are made, take a stand that meaningful contribution, capacity and potential are traits inherent is all humans, not just a select few. Speak up: hearts and minds are tuned in to receive you.Women hold lofty seats in people’s hearts and minds. As a woman, you do too. Leverage your seat of influence and power to make a difference. In my Black community, it’s the cut of the eye, the sideways glance or the way a question is posed that connects with your gut. A woman’s voice reverberates across the ages. Friends talk about the women of their youth. Moms, aunts, teachers and neighbors whose advice and admonitions resonated and shaped them when they were young boys and girls making their way. March 27th marked the 5th anniversary of my mom’s passing. She lives on in me and the people she touched. She’s present in her absence. My sister picked up where my mom left off: now she embodies mom’s light, love and influence in times that matter. We know that women can bring forth decency, empathy and human kindness that the world needs now. Be a woman who brings the best out of people. Women are advice givers and journey guides for decency, respect and love. Lead the way.Having power and being powerful is an everyday thing for women, not just a National Women’s History Month thing. As we stand on the cusp of the rest of 2025, stand up for decency and kindness in ways that only you can do. Women make the extraordinary happen.The ability to bend the arc of the moral universe towards fairness and love is within your hands. You have unimaginable power. Use it. Change the world in ways that only you can!TracyTracy Carmen- JonesPartnerChoicePoints Learningwww.choicepointslearning.com ChoicePoints Learning is here and ready to serve.Let’s connect and explore possilbiites to take life in this old house of America and the world to new hieghts for all. Want to read more?Check out our website, to see how we can help you and your organization create a new normal to achieve sustainable results, one interaction at a time. About the Partners of ChoicePoints LearningTracy Carmen-Jones, Steve Galloway and Linda Bidlack are the Partners of ChoicePoints Learning. They are committed to building Beloved Community that fosters ways we can be Better Together at work and in life. Tracy has extensive senior leadership experience in Fortune 500 companies in utilities, oil & gas, technology, financial services and management consulting. Tracy earned PCC level certification training in leadership coaching at Georgetown University, MBA from J.L. Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University and BSBA, Georgetown University.Steve Galloway is a dynamic and thoughtful transformation change, organizational and leadership development consultant and coach. The thrust of Steve’s work is helping organizations and their people develop the skills, practices, insights, relationships and strategies required to reach peak performance and the realization of their desired business and personal developmental aims. Steve has served a wide variety of private/public sector, intelligence and defense organizations providing dedicated consulting support addressing organizational change challenges, emerging business transformation initiatives and leadership development. Steve’s educational background includes a M.A., Political Science/Policy Analysis, Southern Illinois University, B.A., Political Science, Edinboro University, Change Management Advanced Practitioner (CMAP), Georgetown University, Executive Leadership Coaching, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, Fellows in the Management of Change, Johns Hopkins University. Linda Bidlack has a passion for coaching leaders to find and use their voice, presence, and values to elevate their entire organization while also flourishing as human beings. Linda’s clients are high achievers who want to take their impact to the next level but realize that a shift is required – what got them to where they are now is not going to work as well on a bigger playing field. Also an award-winning workshop designer and facilitator, she has helped hundreds of people develop capacities they didn’t know they had, build their authentic presence and influence, address their blind spots, or wrestle with what they want to do next. Linda’s educational background includes an Executive Certificate inLeadership Coaching, Georgetown University; Professional Certified Coach; MA in Counseling, University of Maryland; BA in Anthropology, Hiram College. About ChoicePoints LearningOur mission is to help people notice and choose actions that promote mutual understanding, appreciation and respect across all aspects of identity. Our goal is to build Beloved Community across races in order to create results that matter.

Martin Luther King Jr. lived many years ago.You’re alive today.What’s yours to do?We celebrated the life of Martin Luther King Jr. on Monday, January 20th.His contributions simply astound us and is a testament to the power oflove. Martin Luther King Jr. made his mark.He dedicated his life to being a drum major for justice, focused on eradicating racial inequities that are woven into the very fabric of America. Standing on the shoulders of countless people throughout the ages who worked alone and with others to resist, sit in, stand up, and risk life and limb to move America forward, MLK Jr. amplified the Civil Rights movement and led it to unimagineable heights. MLK believed that the “arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice”. We wholeheartedly agree with him, but the arc bends only if we bend it. We are alive today. What’s yours to do?The threads of woven fabric loosen over time and wear out. We can unstitch the threads of inequity about race and other marginalized identities woven into America where we work, where we live and in our daily interactions. MLK Jr did his part. We can do ours. We’re here now and can make a difference. To start, or deepen your impact, develop a daily habit of asking yourself: what is mine to do? Steve Heller, a fellow Georgetown University Leadership Coach and CPL team member placed that question on my heart several years ago. It lives there today. The very question calls me to lean in to make a positive difference for Blacks, other People of Color and marginalized identities. He did. You can. The first step is to decide that you have a role in eliminating injustice. MLK Jr. could have retreated into the woodwork and thrown up his hands that he was just one person. Or he could’ve been paralyzed by the enormity of the task, America’s legacy of unfairness or prioritized his personal comfort over making a difference. We’ve heard these reasons from people who were born into advantage and those who have influence by simply being in the room. They are made by many at all levels and from all walks of life. These comments and many like them drive inertia and reinforces America’s staus quo. Our response is the same: you still can rise, you have agency, you can make fairness reign in the spaces you’re in. One statement, one action, one invitation, one decision at a time. The arc bends toward justice with human hands. Your hands. Let’s carry on the dream of Martin Luther King Jr. TracyTracy Carmen-JonesPartnerChoicePoints Learningwww.choicepointslearning.com Want to read more?Check out our website, to see how we can help you and your organization create a new normal to achieve sustainable results, one interaction at a time. About the Partners of ChoicePoints LearningTracy Carmen-Jones, Steve Galloway and Linda Bidlack are the Partners of ChoicePoints Learning. They are committed to building Beloved Community that fosters ways we can be Better Together at work and in life. Tracy has extensive senior leadership experience in Fortune 500 companies in utilities, oil & gas, technology, financial services and management consulting. Tracy earned PCC level certification training in leadership coaching at Georgetown University, MBA from J.L. Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University and BSBA, Georgetown University. Steve Galloway is a dynamic and thoughtful transformation change, organizational and leadership development consultant and coach. The thrust of Steve’s work is helping organizations and their people develop the skills, practices, insights, relationships and strategies required to reach peak performance and the realization of their desired business and personal developmental aims. Steve has served a wide variety of private/public sector, intelligence and defense organizations providing dedicated consulting support addressing organizational change challenges, emerging business transformation initiatives and leadership development. Steve’s educational background includes a M.A., Political Science/Policy Analysis, Southern Illinois University, B.A., Political Science, Edinboro University, Change Management Advanced Practitioner (CMAP), Georgetown University, Executive Leadership Coaching, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, Fellows in the Management of Change, Johns Hopkins University. Linda Bidlack has a passion for coaching leaders to find and use their voice, presence, and values to elevate their entire organization while also flourishing as human beings. Linda’s clients are high achievers who want to take their impact to the next level but realize that a shift is required – what got them to where they are now is not going to work as well on a bigger playing field. Also an award-winning workshop designer and facilitator, she has helped hundreds of people develop capacities they didn’t know they had, build their authentic presence and influence, address their blind spots, or wrestle with what they want to do next. Linda’s educational background includes an Executive Certificate in Leadership Coaching, Georgetown University; Professional Certified Coach; MA in Counseling, University of Maryland; BA in Anthropology, Hiram College. About ChoicePoints LearningOur mission is to help people notice and choose actions that promote mutual understanding, appreciation and respect across all aspects of identity. Our goal is to build Beloved Community across races in order to create results that/ matter.

How it beganEducators in Santa Rosa, California first celebrated Women’s History Week in March 1978 to increase awareness of women’s contributions to society. Over the next several years, other cities across the country joined Santa Rosa in celebrating Women’s History Week. After weeks of national protest and promotion, in 1980, U.S. President Jimmy Carter declared the week of March 8 National Women’s History Week, urging everyone in the United States to participate. According to Carter, “too often the women were unsung and sometimes their contributions went unnoticed. But the achievements, leadership, courage, strength, and love of the women who built America was as vital as that of the men whose names we know so well.” ThenWithout question women have always been on the planet and therefore always part of history. But for centuries, their presence and participation in it was unappreciated, devalued and generally overlooked. We know that early history texts often excluded women altogether, except for mentions of certain queens and members considered royalty. NowThough we as a nation now acknowledge and celebrate the contributions and achievement of women in our society, significant disparities continue to exists. Did you know a woman’s status in the United States consistently lags behind a man? Despite some progress in recent decades, women today earn 87 cents to every dollar earned by a man, women experience higher poverty rates than their male counterparts, face specific adverse health conditions, and remain underrepresented in political office across the nation only to name a few. The impact of these disparities has eroded women’s rights, economic security, personal safety, and health. These facts bring us to the question… How did we get to this place? The PatriarchyOne thing that’s contributed to the oppression and disparity faced by women continues to be our ingrained practice of patriarchy. At its most basic level, patriarchy is a social system in which men have a privileged position in society. It is a set of cultural rules, values and norms that specify how men and women should be and act. It is based on a belief that men have an inherent right to dominate and that women be subservient. Given this context, it becomes easy to see how the disparities and oppression faced by women has come to be and continue. Now that we know the facts, what needs to happen next? A Call to Action for MenMen, the time is now to ask yourselves, “What is mine to do?” As men, the true benefactors of patriarchy and its accompanying systems of oppression: it’s our responsibility to dismantle these systems that nurture and perpetuate inequality. It’s time to actually put on our “big-boy” pants and become an active advocate for equitable gender inclusion in all aspects of daily life. It’s time to come down from our institutional and psychological towers of power and enter the arena where real change occurs. Here are a few things men can do to better partner with women and dismantle the patriarchy. Deprogram yourself. Acknowledge and accept the fact that we have all lived in a social system in which men have disproportionate access to political power, social influence, and financial gain resulting in thediminution of women and others. It’s also about deep personal introspection and an examination of your values, morals and principles about what it means to be human and especially what it means to be aman. Why do anything?Without the avid support of men, the true beneficiaries of our patriarchal social system, significant progress toward ending gender disparities and oppression is unlikely. What’s at stake?A study by McKinsey projects that in a “full potential” scenario in which women participate in the economy identically to men, $28 trillion dollars (26%) would be added to the annual global GDP when compared to the current business-as-usual scenario. Imagine a world where the oppression of women is non-existent. Imagine/ a world where everyone wins. Imagine yourself helping to make it a reality! Step back and listen. Remember your intention to dismantle patriarchal attitudes and behaviors. Men tend to think they know what’s right. Everyone dislikes a “know-it-all.” Transformative listening requiresempathy, sincerity, focus, respect and an overarching appreciation and valuing of women’s lived-experiences. Remember, it’s not about you. Too often we men can be controlled by ego which can often lead to oppressive behaviors. You are speaking with women not for them. Mansplaining is not good. Remember, Everyone dislikes a “know-it-all.” Get comfortable being uncomfortable. You were born into and have learned extremely well how to operate in a system that marginalizes women. Changing will not be easy. Lean into your commitment to equity and justice particularly when you may feel degrees of shame, blame and anxiety. The answer to your feeling discomfort lies with more engagement and learning, not less. You matter,SteveSteve GallowayPartnerChoicePoints Learningwww.choicepointslearning.com Want to read more?Check out our website, to see how we can help you and your organization create a new normal to achieve sustainable results, one interaction at a time. About Steve GallowaySteve Galloway is a Partner in ChoicePoints Learning and is committed to building Beloved Community that fosters ways we can be Better Together at work and in life. As a dynamic and thoughtful transformation change, organizational and leadership development consultant and coach, the thrust of Steve’s work is helping organizations and their people develop the skills, practices, insights, relationships and strategies required to reach peak performance and the realization of their desired business and personal developmental aims. Steve has served a wide variety of private/public sector, intelligence and defense organizations providing dedicated consulting support addressing organizational change challenges, emerging business transformation initiatives and leadership development. Much of Steve’s consulting and leadership coaching focuses on the building of inclusive capacities. Steve strongly believes that leaders who are best prepared to lead in this ever-evolving environment will achieve the most success for themselves, their organizations, and positively impact society at large. Steve has served as Adjunct Faculty-Lecturer at Georgetown University’s Institute for Transformational Leadership (ITL), the co-chair of the Georgetown University Leadership Coaching

Every day gets brighter.With its ups, downs and in-betweens, 2024 is now in our collective rear view mirror. While the lessons of 2024 are still fresh, let them serve as a taut trampoline to catapult you forward. What will you create in 2025 that impacts how you lead?There is no one else like you. Often, we recognize and celebrate our unique selves and then marvel at how others could do a better job of being more like us. This is true for those who hold familiar experiences, traits and identities to ours. This perspective expands exponentially with people who embody other characteristics and identities including race, gender and sexual orientation that are different than ours. Make 2025 the year that you will be more valuable to your full team and to those individuals and groups that are critical to your success at work. You’re here, now.Your journey has readied you to try new things, tweak your current way of being and to step into new levels of impact. At ChoicePoints Learning, we boil lofty concepts and frameworks into digestible nuggets to hold in your heart and mind. We can help you see, emerge and move in ways that make a difference in your leadership. With strategic planning. experiential leadership workshops, leadership coaching, dynamic programming and the ability to generate results on inclusion and culture, we’re ready to go to work for you. Reach out and connect.The year is new and bursting with possibility. Seeing life that way, perceiving 2025 that way, is a choice. We invite you to make 2025 year for the record books in the important areas of your life. Drop us a line and let us know what’s true for you and how we can be a part of your success. You matter,SteveSteve GallowayPartnerChoicePoints Learningwww.choicepointslearning.com Want to read more?Check out our website, to see how we can help you and your organization create a new normal to achieve sustainable results, one interaction at a time. About the Partners of ChoicePoints LearningTracy Carmen-Jones, Steve Galloway and Linda Bidlack are the Partners of ChoicePoints Learning. They are committed to building Beloved Community that fosters ways we can be Better Together at work and in life. Tracy has extensive senior leadership experience in Fortune 500 companies in utilities, oil & gas, technology, financial services and management consulting. Tracy earned PCC level certification training in leadership coaching at Georgetown University, MBA from J.L. Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University and BSBA, Georgetown University.Steve Galloway is a dynamic and thoughtful transformation change, organizational and leadership development consultant and coach. The thrust of Steve’s work is helping organizations and their people develop the skills, practices, insights, relationships and strategies required to reach peak performance and the realization of their desired business and personal developmental aims. Steve has served a wide variety of private/public sector, intelligence and defense organizations providing dedicated consulting support addressing organizational change challenges, emerging business transformation initiatives and leadership development. Steve’s educational background includes a M.A., Political Science/Policy Analysis, Southern Illinois University, B.A., Political Science, Edinboro University, Change Management Advanced Practitioner (CMAP), Georgetown University, Executive Leadership Coaching, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, Fellows in the Management of Change, Johns Hopkins University. Linda Bidlack has a passion for coaching leaders to find and use their voice, presence, and values to elevate their entire organization while also flourishing as human beings. Linda’s clients are high achievers who want to take their impact to the next level but realize that a shift is required – what got them to where they are now is not going to work as well on a bigger playing field. Also an award-winning workshop designer and facilitator, she has helped hundreds of people develop capacities theydidn’t know they had, build their authentic presence and influence, address their blind spots, or wrestle with what they want to do next. Linda’s educational background includes an Executive Certificate inLeadership Coaching, Georgetown University; Professional Certified Coach; MA in Counseling, University of Maryland; BA in Anthropology, Hiram College. About ChoicePoints LearningOur mission is to help people notice and choose actions that promote mutual understanding, appreciation and respect across all aspects of identity. Our goal is to build Beloved Community across races in order to create results that matter.

Choosing to SeeMost often we interpret seeing as merely the act of visually perceiving things that we encounter and surrounds us. We at ChoicePoints Learning encourage you to begin seeing much more than that. We encourage you to see yourselves, others, the communities you live in and the places you work, differently. See them more appreciatively, broadly, and better than before. The Vision of Carter G. WoodsonWhat we celebrate as Black History Month began in 1926 with the creation of Negro History Week by noted American historian, scholar, educator, and publisher, Carter G. Woodson. Woodson’s vision was an America that not only saw and valued the contributions and achievements made by Blacks in building America, but also the recognition of their humanity, self-worth, dignity and potential to build a better country where all can achieve success and happiness. Mirrors and WindowsWe can continue to create Woodson’s vision by “Seeing” through the metaphor of “Mirrors and Windows.” Mirrors challenge us to reflect on our past to learn what shapes our present by providing insight into who we are and why we are. Mirrors also illuminate the unique presence, power and possibilities that live within all of us. Mirrors show us who we truly are and how we came to be. Windows provide us with the opportunity to take all we’ve learned about our past to inspire and propel us into our best future selves. Through windows we envision what can be; not only for ourselves but foreveryone. Choicepoints Learning offers opportunities for you to lead by SEEING differently. We facilitate the discovery of self, others and the power of inclusive leadership. We believe “When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change” Wayne Dyer. Reach out and connectWe are here for you. Let’s connect and share how we can SEE our best way forward. You matter,SteveSteve GallowayPartnerChoicePoints Learningwww.choicepointslearning.com Want to read more?Check out our website, to see how we can help you and your organization create a new normal to achieve sustainable results, one interaction at a time. About the Partners of ChoicePoints LearningTracy Carmen-Jones, Steve Galloway and Linda Bidlack are the Partners of ChoicePoints Learning. They are committed to building Beloved Community that fosters ways we can be Better Together at work and in life. Tracy has extensive senior leadership experience in Fortune 500 companies in utilities, oil & gas, technology, financial services and management consulting. Tracy earned PCC level certification training in leadership coaching at Georgetown University, MBA from J.L. Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University and BSBA, Georgetown University. Steve Galloway is a dynamic and thoughtful transformation change, organizational and leadership development consultant and coach. The thrust of Steve’s work is helping organizations and their people develop the skills, practices, insights, relationships and strategies required to reach peak performance and the realization of their desired business and personal developmental aims. Steve has served a wide variety of private/public sector, intelligence and defense organizations providing dedicated consulting support addressing organizational change challenges, emerging business transformation initiatives and leadership development. Steve’s educational background includes a M.A., Political Science/Policy Analysis, Southern Illinois University, B.A., Political Science, Edinboro University, Change Management Advanced Practitioner (CMAP), Georgetown University, Executive Leadership Coaching, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, Fellows in the Management of Change, Johns Hopkins University. Linda Bidlack has a passion for coaching leaders to find and use their voice, presence, and values to elevate their entire organization while also flourishing as human beings. Linda’s clients are high achievers who want to take their impact to the next level but realize that a shift is required – what got them to where they are now is not going to work as well on a bigger playing field. Also an award-winning eorkshop designer and facilitator, she has helped hundreds of people develop capacities they didn’t know they had, build their authentic presence and influence, address their blind spots, or wrestle with what they want to do next. Linda’s educational background includes an Executive Certificate in Leadership Coaching, Georgetown University; Professional Certified Coach; MA in Counseling, University of Maryland; BA in Anthropology, Hiram College. About ChoicePoints LearningOur mission is to help people notice and choose actions that promote mutual understanding, appreciation and respect across all aspects of identity. Our goal is to build Beloved Community across races in order to create results that matter.

Harriet was strategic, cunning and functioned with nerves of steel. Each trip was a covert operation that ran at great risk. She was the conductor who ran the ground game expertly. Under threat of death and with a $40,000 bounty on her head, she ran the dangerous routes many times.

Without Martin Luther King, Jr., I would have no knowledge of the fullness of you or even what it feels like to have met your acquaintance. Without the blood, sweat and tears that MLK shed and his repudiation of state-sanctioned terrorism of Black people, our paths would have never crossed in the ways that we have come to know each other. The bread that we have had the good fortune and God’s favor to break together at work and in friendship would have never been tasted.

As we enter 2020, the narratives and behaviors of fear, distrust, misunderstanding and polarization are permeating every element of our society; from our communities to the workplace.  Today’s cultural and political environment is as divisive as it has ever been in our history.  Perhaps one of the most obvious topics wrought with fear and misunderstanding is race.  The dynamics, complexities and implications of race are interwoven into the fabric of our communities, organizations and institutions.  Yet, the widespread implications of such dynamics are not only infrequently discussed, but often dismissed and denied.  We have a choice.  We can succumb to divisive dynamics or seize this opportunity for bold, courageous and transformational leadership. We do have a choice. Diversity is Realty Undeniably, our global and societal demographics have changed and will continue to change significantly.  Diversity numbers are rising and by 2045 people of color are projected to be the majority not only in the U.S., but across the world.  This will be the “New Normal.” This “New Normal” will require organizations and businesses to abandon their historic, comfortable, status quo approaches and strategies to effectively engage, utilize and benefit from this different marketplace and societal reality. As a result of these dramatic demographic shifts, we’ve already seen significant changes in the way business is done.  Diversity is no longer the obligatory politically correct term cavalierly stated to appear woke, but is the driver of social and economic reality. Tools of Change Coaching has historically been at the forefront of helping leaders address the challenges of organizational change and effectiveness.  One of the most successful tools in the arena of leadership development is coaching.   Given the dramatic cultural shifts occurring globally, and the impact it is having on people at every level, coaching is an even more vital element in the leadership development and organizational effectiveness toolkit.  While organizations and businesses are preparing for and adapting to the impact and realities of the “New Normal,” are coaches readying themselves to properly address the needs of our clients as they face these new challenges? Coaching with Cultural Competence Similar to organizations and businesses operating in this “New Normal” reality, coaches cannot continue serving leaders using the same tools, models, approaches and mind sets of yesterday. The key to effectively operating in our “New Normal” world is to coach with cultural competency.    At its very essence, coaching is about partnering with clients to inspire them to maximize their personal and professional potential.  Coaches encourage and embolden their clients to become the experts of themselves; producing the solutions and strategies that bring them satisfaction and fulfillment.  Therefore, it is fundamental that coaches become culturally competent, meaning they are aware of and understand the distinctions of difference, and can skillfully integrate those understandings in service to maximizing the development of their coachees. So, what is cultural competency?  Cultural competency is not a destination to reach or a class one takes to be deemed certified in and the learning is complete.  It is a process of on-going learning that invites self-awareness and assessment of biases, stereotypes, and perspectives held of others as well as, increasing awareness of the contexts and lived experiences of others who are different from us culturally.  A Culturally Competent Coach is one who: Leadership coaches have a uniquely powerful and influential position to affect positive change in the lives of people and shift their ability to improve and grow.  In today’s “New Normal,” leveraging one’s cultural competence is essential for personal and organizational success.

When I look at this picture I see them for who they are, who they’re becoming, their beliefs, wants, desires, funny moments, conflicts and crunch times of togetherness in some really tough moments. The night we took this picture was a dream for us: our first mother-son, father- daughter dance, complete with a fancy dinner and all the trimmings. When I look at this picture I feel the moment. It’s as pungent, warm and snuggle-worthy as fresh laundry straight out of the dryer. I’ve been in corporate America for years now and boy how I’ve invested in getting to know you and you, me. Relationships have been borne out of countless conversations before the meeting, after the meeting, on Webex, behind closed doors, at lunch, coffee and in teambuilding events. We’ve been in the trenches of work together. I know first-hand how having work relationships has made work better,  challenges surmountable and life at work richer, fuller somehow. In these moments, I feel like you see me for me and that we’ve gotten beyond the skin, titles and functional areas we’re in. I know and embrace the you you’ve shown me.   I think of many of you as my Sisters-and-Brothers-from-Other-Mothers. It’s time to take our work friend kinship/relationship to another level, a new normal. My world is filled with African American men, young and old, corporate and working class, executives and cleaning staff.  Mustached, clean-shaven, suits, jeans, erudite,streetwise, even some in earrings. They are my family, the husbands, brothers and sons of my ‘Momtourage’ mothers group, school chums, Boy Scout Troop 242, church members and friends. My world transforms into a cornucopia of brown hues when I leave the office. Every one of them are loved and valued. It’s important that my husband, son and dad make it home safely each day. That a chance encounter with an officer doesn’t result in me living without them. It’s important that your family and friends make it home safely each day. I know how much your family and friends mean to you. My world may be colored differently than yours yet our desires for a great life are largely the same. So today, I’m embarking on a new normal, sharing more of me with you in my heart’s deepest desire for you to see the dimensions and breadth of African Americans more comprehensively. We talk about everything else that’s available for public consumption-let’s add what’s on the news about African Americans and the police to our conversation. I believe you are just and have the horsepower and empathy to help dream up a new normal for America. Join me. Better yet, share the load and initiate a dialogue about this topic. It’s already front and center on my mind.   Let’s lead and light a way forward.