Glossary of DEI Terms
We know that not everyone comes into the diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) space with the same vocabulary to discuss issues of DEI and social justice. The glossary below was developed to help members of our community have a better understanding of language and concepts they are likely to encounter while working to expand the university's — and their own — capacity to be inclusive and equitable.
In assembling this glossary, we have tried to use the clearest and most succinct definitions in common use. As is true for any word definitions, there may be other layers of meaning not included in these brief explanations.
If you have any questions regarding this glossary, please reach out to Dr. Chip Mc Neal, Director of DEI Education and Learning Initiatives.
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The intentional or unintentional discrimination or oppression of individuals with disabilities based on the belief that typical abilities are superior.
Everyone has access. The quality of being possible to get into, use, make use of.
All accomplices are allies, but not all allies are accomplices. While an ally is willing to stand in support of a marginalized voice, risk is rarely involved. An accomplice uses their power and privilege to challenge the status quo, often risking physical and social well-being in the process.
Refers to two concepts: a socially constructed way of thinking about older persons based on negative attitudes and stereotypes about aging and a tendency to structure society based on an assumption that everyone is young, thereby failing to respond appropriately to the real needs of older persons.
An individual who takes action to support social justice and works to eliminate oppression. Also see “accomplice.”
"To be antiracist is to think nothing is behaviorally wrong or right — inferior or superior — with any of the racial groups. Whenever the antiracist sees individuals behaving positively or negatively, the antiracist sees exactly that: individuals behaving positively or negatively, not representatives of whole races. To be antiracist is to deracialize behavior, to remove the tattooed stereotype from every racialized body. Behavior is something humans do, not races do."
The specific form of race-based oppression directed against Jewish people and the descendants of Jewish people. Anti-Jewish oppression is the early and preracialized roots of religion-based oppression.
Anti-Zionism is a prejudice against the Jewish movement for self-determination and the right of the Jewish people to a homeland in the State of Israel. It may be motivated by or result in anti-Semitism, or it may create a climate in which anti-Semitism becomes more acceptable. Anti-Zionism can include threats to destroy the State of Israel (or otherwise eliminate its Jewish character), unfounded and inaccurate characterizations of Israel’s power in the world, and language or actions that hold Israel to a different standard than other countries.
Prejudice in favor of or against one thing, person or group compared to another; usually in a way considered unfair. Implicit bias is unconscious; explicit bias is conscious.
The fact of having and expressing strong, unreasonable beliefs and disliking other people who have different beliefs or a different way of life.
Acronym for Black, Indigenous and People Of Color.
Caste discrimination is a form of social inequality based on a person's birth into a particular social class or caste system. In caste-based societies, members of certain castes are regarded as superior while others are treated as inferior based on their birth. This form of discrimination often leads to social exclusion, limiting an individual's access to education, employment, and other essential services based on their caste. Caste discrimination is a violation of human rights and has significant socio-economic and political implications, perpetuating a cycle of poverty and inequality for disadvantaged individuals and communities.
An adjective used to describe people whose gender identity matches the sex they were assigned at birth. Often abbreviated to "cis."
Refers to socioeconomic status based on factors such as wealth, occupation, education, income, etc.
Differential treatment based on social class or perceived social class. It is the systematic oppression of subordinated class groups to advance and strengthen the dominant class groups. It’s the systematic assignment of characteristics of worth and ability based on social class.
Counter-narrative refers to the narratives that arise from the vantage point of those who have been historically marginalized. The idea of “counter-” itself implies a space of resistance against traditional domination. A counter-narrative goes beyond the notion that those in relative positions of power can just tell the stories of those in the margins. Instead, these must come from the margins, from the perspectives and voices of those individuals. A counter-narrative thus goes beyond the telling of stories that take place in the margins. The effect of a counter-narrative is to empower and give agency to those communities. By choosing their own words and telling their own stories, members of marginalized communities provide alternative points of view, helping to create complex narratives truly presenting their realities.
A self-conscious critique that contains within it the need to develop a discourse of social transformation and emancipation that a) does not cling dogmatically to its own doctrinal assumptions, and b) demonstrates and simultaneously calls for the necessity of ongoing critique, one in which the claims of any theory must be confronted with the distinction between the world it portrays, and the world as it actually exists.
The capacity to (1) value diversity, (2) conduct self-assessment, (3) manage the dynamics of difference, (4) acquire and institutionalize cultural knowledge and (5) adapt to diversity and the cultural contexts of the communities one serves.
Learned and shared values, beliefs, languages and customs of a social group.
Acronym for diversity, equity and inclusion.
Acronym for diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility.
Acronym for diversity, inclusion and belonging.
A physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities. This includes people who have a record of such an impairment, even if they do not currently have a disability. It also includes individuals who do not have a disability but are regarded as having a disability.
Prejudiced treatment of a person on the basis of the social groups to which they belong, and stereotypes about those groups. When committed by an individual, discrimination can be broken down into two types: traditional discrimination (openly negative treatment) and modern discrimination (subtle negative treatment).
Efforts to increase representation of different types of identities within communities (e.g., demographics, sexuality, religion, etc.)
The ability of a particular social identity group to marshal social resources toward one’s own group and away from others. This process can often be rendered invisible and seen as a “natural order.”
The combination of being on guard to protect against bias, feeling different at work because of gender, race and/or ethnicity, and the associated effects on health, well-being and ability to thrive at work.
The state of being empowered to do something: the power, right or authority to do something.
Critically examining systems to identify biases that prevent equal access and opportunity to individuals.
A socially or politically constructed group based on cultural criteria, such as language, customs and shared history.
The belief that all genders have equal rights and opportunities. The female identity has been historically undermined because of white Eurocentric values.
Social constructed categories of masculinity/manhood and femininity/ womanhood.
The ability of a dominant or ruling group to impose its own values and ideas about what is “natural” or “normal” on a subordinated group, often defining the parameters of what is even considered an “acceptable” topic within the dominant discourse.
A term coined by social theorist and literary critic Michael Warner in 1991 to identify the ways in which social institutions and dominant culture are oriented around the assumed normal, natural, and ideal logic of heterosexual attraction and unions. Heterosexuality itself is premised upon the idea that there are two distinct sexes (male and female) and associated genders (masculine and feminine) that are inherently opposite and complementary for the purpose of reproduction and the organizing of life’s activities.
The assumption that heterosexuality is the social and cultural norm as well as the prejudiced belief that heterosexuals, or “straight” people, are socially and culturally superior to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, two-spirit and queer (LGBTTQ) people.
The irrational fear, dislike, hatred, aversion, intolerance and ignorance of homosexuality and of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, two-spirit and queer (LGBTQA+) individuals.
Valuing differences as a source of strength, innovation and performance; creating belonging.
Peoples in independent countries who are regarded as indigenous on account of their descent from the populations which inhabited the country, or a geographical region to which the country belongs, at the time of conquest or colonization or the establishment of present state boundaries and who, irrespective of their legal status, retain some or all of their own social, economic, cultural and political institutions.
A pattern of social institutions, such as governmental organizations, schools, banks and courts of law, giving negative treatment to a group of people based on their race.
Our intentions (what we want or hope to do) don’t always align with what we say or do which can impact how others receive what one says and does. "Intent" refers to what you hope or want to do when choosing to perform an action. "Impact" refers to the reality (e.g., results) of your actions or behaviors. The result may not always align with what you intended. "Owning the impact" is when one’s impact is called into question, especially if the action is perpetuating oppression. It is important to recognize the action is being called into question, not the person/overall character.
The interconnected nature of social categorizations,such as race, class, and gender, as they apply to a given individual or group, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage.
Acronym for justice, equity, diversity and inclusion
Presence of systems and supports (e.g., policies, practices, norms) that achieve and sustain fair treatment, equitable opportunities and outcomes for people of all races. Systematic, proactive reinforcement.
Gender-neutral form of "Latino," created by gender nonbinary and feminist communities in Spanish-speaking countries.
Gender-neutral alternative to "Latina" or "Latino. It is a term used to describe a diverse group of people who have roots in Latin America.
Acronym for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender/transexual, queer/questioning, intersex and allied/asexual/aromantic/agender.
To relegate to an unimportant or powerless position within a society or group.
A term brought into prominence by Jean-Françios Lyotard implying a "narrative about narratives of historical meaning, experience, or knowledge, which offers a society legitimation through the anticipated completion of an (as yet unrealized) idea." It is the "story that produces all other stories; or, to put it another way, the Big Story that lends coherence and shape to all the little stories... A master narrative is not a particular story; it is the story [we] are always writing when [we] tell the stories [we] typically tell."
The everyday slights, indignities, put-downs and insults that people of color, women, LGBT populations or those who are marginalized experience in their day-to-day interactions with other people.
Small events which are often ephemeral and hard to prove. Events which are covert, often unintentional, frequently unrecognized by the perpetrator, which occur wherever people are perceived to be different.
A term used in place of minority (noun) to highlight the social oppression that minoritizes individuals. The use of the term minoritized is increasingly favored over the term minority, which can be experienced as demeaning given that individuals likely do not incorporate this status in their identity. Rather, their status as a minority is a systemic function within a racialized hierarchy that advantages and disadvantages groups differently. Thus, the term minoritized uses active voice to reveal the system of social oppression that is often rendered unseen through the use of passive voice within the term minority.
The concept that there is great diversity in how people’s brains are wired and work, and that neurological differences should be valued in the same way we value any other human variation.
An umbrella term for people whose gender identity doesn't sit comfortably with "man" or "woman’." Nonbinary identities are varied and can include people who identify with some aspects of binary identities while others reject them entirely.
Systemic devaluing, undermining, marginalizing and disadvantaging of certain social identities in contrast to the privileged norm; when some people are denied something of value, while others have ready access.
The romantic, emotional and/or sexual attraction to people regardless of their gender.
When an individual or group of power/majority/privilege (e.g., white, male, abled, unqueer, etc.) loudly profess(es) their actions in the name of "allyship," while actively conducting harm to, taking focus away from, and generally being unhelpful towards the group they claim to support, often to receive praise and attention, without taking critical action to dismantle the systems of harm.
Acronym referring to a Person of Color.
Social identities in relation to power, which influences the way we understand the world and our interactions with others.
"Pre-judgement." Personal bias for or against anything. All humans have bias and prejudice.
Systemic favoring, enriching, valuing, validating and including of certain social identities over others. Individuals cannot "opt out" of systems of privilege. These systems are inherent to the society in which we live.
A socially or politically constructed group based on perceived differences in physical characteristics.
Belief that some races of people are better than others.
Involves institutions and systems of power. These are the unfair policies and discriminatory practices of institutions (schools, workplaces, systems of health, etc.) that routinely produce inequitable outcomes for oppressed people and advantages for privileged people. The policy may never refer to any social identity group, but their effect is to create and sustain inequities. E.g., Limited representation (gender roles, identities, curricula); E.g., White students disproportionally underrepresented in disciplinary action.
Beliefs about individual inferiority or superiority that are expressed as blame or hostility toward oppressed people and idealization of people with privilege. Private beliefs and biases about social identities, influenced by society. E.g., A belief that you or others are more or less hardworking, intelligent, or prone to engage in criminal activity due to racial identity.
An array of normalized dynamics (historical, cultural, internalized, interpersonal, institutional) that produce inequitable outcomes over time and in an ongoing way. E.g., Poor communities have impoverished schools, reduced access to higher education and higher wage jobs and wealth. Wealthy communities have increased access to well-resourced schools, connections with high prestige colleges and higher paying jobs and wealth. Overwhelming and overrepresented number of depictions of people of color as criminals in mainstream media, which can influence how various institutions and individuals treat people of color with suspicion when traveling, shopping, seeking housing or employment.
Abuse, discrimination, or exploitation based on rank; abusive, discriminatory, or exploitative behavior towards people who have less power because of their lower rank in a particular hierarchy.
Any act, gesture, visual representation, spoken or written words, practice, or behavior based upon the idea that a person or group of persons is inferior because of their sex, which occurs in the public or private sphere, whether online or offline.
A concept referring to sexual desire and preference for emotional and sexual relationships with others based on their sex/gender. Often implies that sexual object choice is an essential inborn characteristic, so may be problematic to some.
The notion that patterns of human interaction (often deemed to be normal, natural or universal) are, in fact, humanly produced and constructed by social expectation and coercion but is presented as “objective.” For example, the erroneous assumption of women being better at housework is not at all connected to their female anatomy, but to social expectations and pressures imposed on women.
Active engagement toward equity and inclusion that addresses issues of institutional, structural and environmental inequity, power and privilege.
Socialization is the process through which we become accustomed to societal norms, i.e. rules about appropriate or acceptable social identities, beliefs and behaviors. We are bombarded by these messages even before we are born. These messages are offered by a widening social network (interpersonal, institutional, structural). Through socialization, we learn about social identity categories, such as socioeconomic status, race, assigned sex, gender, religion, health status, sexual orientation, many other social identity categories, as well as the boundaries of human worth and value.
Assumptions we make about people on the basis of the social groups to which they belong
The experience of social dispossession, dislocation, and disempowerment relative to a dominant social group. This experience of being seen as “less than” or “minoritized” can often be rendered invisible and seen as a “natural order.”
Also known as structural racism or institutional racism. Systems and structures that have procedures or processes that disadvantage African Americans, Indigenous people, Latinx people and people of color.
The attitude of someone who is willing to accept someone else’s beliefs, way of life, etc., without criticizing them even if they disagree with them.
People whose gender identity is different from the gender they were thought to be at birth. “Trans” is often used as shorthand for transgender.
The state in which even a minimum amount of racial stress becomes intolerable, triggering a range of defensive moves [in white people]. These moves include the outward display of emotions such as anger, fear, and guilt, and behaviors such as argumentation, silence, and leaving the stress-inducing situation. These behaviors, in turn, function to reinstate white racial equilibrium. Racial stress results from an interruption to what is racially familiar.
A concept that highlights the unfair societal advantages that white people have over non-white people. It is something that is pervasive throughout society and exists in all of the major systems and institutions that operate in society, as well as on an interpersonal level.
Whiteness is a location of structural advantage, of race privilege. Second, it is a "‘standpoint," a place from which white people look at ourselves, at others and at society. Third, "whitenes" refers to a set of cultural practices that are usually unmarked and unnamed.