Community Vision’s DEI Journey
Equity and inclusion have been the main threads in the fabric of Community Vision since day one. The end goal has always been about including people with developmental disabilities in society by making the dream of personal independence—specifically, the choice of where they call their home and community—achievable.
Over 30 years later, we remain focused on including people with disabilities, forging equitable paths towards personal goals, and celebrating the diverse communities we have helped cultivate.
While our mission has always been about the diversity, equity, and inclusion of people with developmental disabilities, our understanding of the intersectionality of race, class, and gender have gone nearly unquestioned, until recently.
In order for diversity to truly flourish, we must broaden our scope of what it means to be inclusive and equitable—and who is impacted when we are not. We employ people who are marginalized and experience many barriers in life; and we still live in a world that remains inaccessible to many of the people we support. Therefore, we are committed to asking tough questions, examining our biases, and making changes to create a community where everyone can contribute and thrive.
Equity Vision Statement
At Community Vision, we see equity, inclusion, and diversity as essential to our organization’s health and sustainability. Through strategic and intentional planning and practice, we will:
- transform the way leaders think, interact, and lead; creating a culture that prioritizes psychological safety so everyone can show up as their whole selves;
- expose every employee to the reference points, language, and learning tools needed to understand the historical, social, economic, and psychological impacts of living within a culture that normalizes and rewards whiteness;
- increase access to the disability services system for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color with developmental disabilities; and,
- spread knowledge and experiences among non-disabled community groups and individual members in the Portland Metro Area so they too can become champions of community inclusion of people with developmental disabilities.
March 2023 Update – Our DEI employee resource group is actively meeting as Community Vision finalizes the next iteration of our diversity initiative, and are eager to share more soon.