As we approach MLK Day 2022, it is fitting to examine just a handful of the ways that the housing industry continues to struggle with its participants, both clients and agents, being superficially and unfairly judged by their skin color and race as well as remedies in the works.
with permission from the author. It’s the second part of a two-part series.
As I mentioned in the previous part of this series, after George Floyd’s recorded and televised murder, I was devastated. However, after a few months, I heard that my area’s local association the Atlanta Realtors Association had started a diversity and inclusion council. I wondered if (and hoped) this moment would be perhaps another historic turning point in the South, particularly among Realtors.
But as I shared in Part 1, this initial initiative left me extremely disappointed. On its face, the association can say: “Look at us. We are so committed to diversity and inclusion that we have a council so named.”
Although some associations attempt to be a beacon of belonging, if you whip out a magnifying glass, it is glaringly obvious that these diversity and inclusion councils are in name only. Here are the ramifications of that.