Doing Evaluation in Service of Racial Equity: Diagnose Biases and Systems

Why focus on biases and systems? Everyone has racial biases, whether they like to admit it or not. They can have a stereotype positive or negative about a racial or ethnic group and when they meet someone from that group, they often treat that person differently without even realizing it. It is important to recognize that implicit biases are deeply rooted and that even individuals with the best intentions can have them. Good intention or not, racial biases can cause harm. And it is up to the individual feeling the bias to decide if it is harmful saying "that wasn't my intention" does not change the outcome for the person or community on the receiving end. This is why it is so important for us, as evaluators, to put in the time and work to uncover and address our implicit biases so we can better understand ourselves so can make better decisions and bring attention to others in our circles.