Anti-Racism and SEL: An Interview with Cierra Brown Hinton, Executive Director & Publisher of Scalawag Magazine

Social Emotional Learning (SEL) originated as an educational method that fosters social and emotional skills alongside academic achievement. It is sometimes called "the whole child approach." There is already a wealth of research data on how SEL benefits students. But it is also regarded in the business world as a valuable approach to developing leadership skills. For example, in a recent study it was found that almost 48% of new hires fail not because they lack "hard skills" and competency, but because they lack "soft skills" -- inability to relate to or work with others, manage their own emotions, or see things from the perspective of their coworkers.

SEL takes on an added dimension and importance in an anti-racist context because it requires that we recognize the effect of the trauma of systemic racism. If we don't, we are merely perpetuating white supremacist culture and norms. If fact, business owners and leaders can benefit as much if not more from SEL training as the people they are hiring.

In a recent conversation between media influencer Kristen Hopkins, creator of the Black SEL Podcast, and Cierra Brown Hinton, Executive Director and Publisher of Scalawag Magazine, they discussed how SEL can impact the role of media, how we consume it, and therefore how we build our cultural awareness. Brown Hinton notes:

"I think about one of the tenets of white dominant and white supremacist culture, is actually praise of the written word" Brown Hinton notes, "I think that for a lot of Black people, indigenous cultures as well, but Black people, the way that we have always passed down information and narrative and storytelling is speaking. And so for me, the push is actually for media makers and creators to think about how the content that we're burying in written texts can be turned into auditory....the expectation is that we consume content and it's very white way when there are other ways of presenting that content."

Booksellers celebrate the written word. But for business owners SEL underscores the importance of becoming fluent in the many different ways people communicate, both for promoting your store and for attracting good employees. If your interview process is based on a series of standardized questions and doesn't look at the life experience of potential employees, you are not only missing out on finding great staff, you are depriving your business an opportunity to grow and evolve.