I like to think that most of us who are drawn to reading a post on diversity or, more specifically, on bias, are pretty good at seeing other people as individuals rather than merely as members of a group.
Despite that optimism, I do worry these days that, although we may be practices at shoving our biases aside when it comes to race, ethnicity, or nationality, we still struggle with generalizing about people whose political persuasion is different from our own.
Whether it’s “All Democrats are bleeding hearts” or “All Republicans are anti-immigration,” those generalities are automatically destructive to productive dialogue.
It’s one thing to stand up for what we believe and another to stifle productive dialogue with a tone of judgement and disrespect. We may feel differently, but we are still all human beings.
The material in this post reflects the ideas expressed in Dr. Thiederman’s book 3 Keys to Defeating Unconscious Bias and in the training videos Defeating Unconscious Bias: 5 Strategies and Gateways to Inclusion: Turning Tense Moments into Productive Conversations.
Sondra Thiederman can be contacted for virtual facilitation, and panel participation by clicking here or calling 619-992-3766. For additional information, go to this link to learn more about what Dr. Thiederman has to offer.
© copyright 2026 Sondra Thiederman, Ph.D.
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