Belonging Is Not A Finite Resource

Diversity, equity, and inclusion strategies are sometimes criticized for being “divisive.”

The argument seems to be that when employees emphasize a component of their own identities at work, like their race, gender, or sexual orientation, they are “dividing” off from the whole group.

Critics say that employers should discourage affinity spaces such as Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) because they fuel conflict and dissatisfaction.

But in my experience, that’s not what actually happens.

When I was in college at Georgetown, I joined the student activities commission and student government—and I also joined the Black Student Alliance and the NAACP. 

All of them made me more loyal to Georgetown, not less. 

Even participating in protests against the university made me feel more connected to the university.

I thought of this again during the launch of Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign. The first major fundraising events were grassroots virtual rallies organized by identity groups—Black women for Kamala, white women for Kamala, “white dudes” for Kamala, and so on. These didn’t divide the Democrats. They were actually very successful in generating loyalty and engagement for a common cause.

That’s because belonging isn’t a finite resource. 

You can belong to more than one thing. And belonging builds on itself. When I feel the positive impacts of being in affinity spaces—the shared references, the empathy, the relaxed anxiety about being accepted and understood—I often associate these impacts with the institution that is enabling them. Even when these groups foster critiques or advocate for change, I feel more engaged, not less. Building deeper relationships in service of improving the organization makes me feel even more connected to it.

On top of the benefits to employees, ERGs provide concrete benefits to organizations as a whole—providing insights about internal culture and processes as well as products and services. For the Harris campaign, those benefits amounted to record-breaking funds.

So I encourage organizations to open the door to affinity spaces.

Maybe you’ll get the kind of excitement for your institution that she got for her campaign.