I recently made a trip to Costco, a place where you can buy a lifetime supply of nearly anything your heart desires.  Costco is a huge warehouse stuffed with consumer goods, food, and other delights.

I never joined a club like this before, since I have a one-person household and am not stocking a fallout shelter or doomsday bunker.  If I buy a package of 64 rolls of toilet paper, it can last for a year at my house. 

However, I decided to join Costco primarily because they elected to keep their DEI program, and as a former public school teacher, I am a big believer in diversity, equity, and inclusion. 

Diversity means that all are welcomed, regardless of religion, race, or gender.  Before I was born, my parents lived in Arlington, VA. My father was in the Army, stationed at Fort Belvoir.  My mother taught white students only at a school in Virginia.  The 1950s were still the days of Jim Crow laws.  When her class got new textbooks, the old ones were sent to the students in the “colored” schools.  Oh yes, my friends, that’s how things were done down South.  Diversity was not merely discouraged; segregation was the law. 

Oh, and by the way, thankfully Mom was able to hide her pregnancy (I was born in August) lest she be forced to leave her teaching position. Believe it!  “A 1948 National Education Association survey revealed that 43% of school districts had no maternity leave policies, but the rest had compulsory maternity leave, usually starting in the fourth to sixth month and lasting until well after childbirth. School boards opposing the presence of visibly pregnant women in classrooms feared that liability might arise in case of injury to mother or child, the sight of pregnant women would unfavorably influence students, or that pregnant teachers’ minds would not be on their work or that the physical demands of teaching could not be met by pregnant women.”  (repository.library.georgetown.edu/)

How enlightened! Now on to equity…

Equity means that everyone gets what he or she needs to be successful.  This concept has led to early interventions, extra support with classroom tasks, and recognition of different learning styles.  It can be as simple as providing free breakfast and lunch for students who don’t get it at home.  It’s difficult to learn on an empty stomach, and that shouldn’t stand in the way of student success.

Inclusion is “the practice or policy of providing equal access to opportunities and resources for people who might otherwise be excluded or marginalized, such as those who have physical or intellectual disabilities and members of other minority groups.” (www.qc.cuny.edu/). “Inclusion means that people across varying identities are and feel valued, welcomed, respected, included, represented, and heard and that they fully belong, can be authentic, can contribute to the collective, and have a voice.” (www.nu.edu/blog).

Dear readers, life is not a zero-sum game. One of my heroes is Chef José Andrés, famous restauranteur and founder of World Central Kitchen, which has fed people who are victims of war or natural disasters since 2010.  In 2024 World Central Kitchen served more than 109,000,000 meals in 20 countries.  His Substack is called Longer Tables. He lives by the credo, “When you have more than you need, build a longer table, not a higher fence.”

When we raise each other up, we all succeed. And if anyone is in need, I did purchase a lifetime supply of Pink Himalayan Salt at Costco.  Just let me know.