Anti-racism community of practice at ID

How do we advance the IIT Institute of Design (ID) towards an antiracist future?

In 2020, following the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor as well as the increase in anti-Asian discrimination during the COVID-19 pandemic, I helped start an Anti-racist Community of Practice at IIT Institute of Design, through which we are examining our curriculum, policies and practices across the school.

As a community of practice, we have three goals. First, we address internal culture and processes at ID that contribute to inequitable outcomes. From there, we identify action steps to foster a culture of inclusion and equity. Second, we work to lead development of anti-racist design practices. By taking stock of design pedagogy, methods, frameworks, and mindsets that have contributed to creating inequitable outcomes, we intend to develop new ways to advance the design field. Third, we share with and learn from our community and partners, with an emphasis on supporting Black and Brown communities.

Through this experience, I have learned a lot about the experiences of graduate students and international students and how they experience bias and discrimination in US contexts, as well as how they perceive the US-based racism and protests.