October 7, 2020
Creating a space for Gente in the Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½á¹û¼Ç¼ family.
In late August 2019, we began having conversations about forming a Latinx-centered Employee Resource Group (ERG) at Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½á¹û¼Ç¼. The United States had just witnessed , aimed directly at Hispanic Americans, and many of us wanted to create a safe space for employees to come together to discuss, reflect, and offer community to one another.
Last year, Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month (September 15th - October 15th) presented an opportunity for our newly forming ERG to establish itself. We opened up a dialogue about immigration, the current state of the world, and the Latinx experience from the perspective of fellow Fiber Googlers with thoughtful programming and the occasional juntada (“get-together”).
This year, the pandemic has made our work and community both closer and more crucial. So in May 2020, we officially — and virtually — introduced Gente as the ERG for Latinx employees and allies. With COVID-19 , and in the wake of violence against Black and transgender communities, we’ve centered Gente’s efforts on not only the importance of coming together as a community, but in building strong intersectional alliances, too.
The word gente means “people," and also serves as a term for the deep-rooted connection that comes with community, family and a rich cultural history. Bringing this ERG to life within Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½á¹û¼Ç¼ also means a new opportunity to give Latinx employees and allies a voice in critical business conversations around diversity, equity and inclusion — a voice that is representative of the diverse workforce and customers that make up our Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½á¹û¼Ç¼ family.
As a part of this year’s Latinx Heritage Month, we invited , Cultural Anthropologist and Professor in the Department of Comparative American Studies at Oberlin College, to share her thoughts on the importance of this work. “To be Latinx is to be a part of a collective that has a history of resistance, resilience and a beautiful capacity to change,” she said.
Gente and Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½á¹û¼Ç¼ are celebrating that collective action, not just for this month, but every day. We look forward to seeing the growth that our group will encounter this year — and to the future opportunities we will have to serve our Latinx customers in all our cities.
Posted by Gabrielle Aguilar, Sales Training Specialist (Austin, TX) and Co-chair, Gente
