The following are excerpts from a column by Whitney Mestelle: Braving Idaho: The importance of inclusion and the hard work ahead for Idahoans

When you set out to create change, you will not always get it right, sometimes in fact you will get it very wrong. Your actions should teach bravery, not perfection, and when you mess up, own it, learn, do better, get up and keep trying.

A mistake is not what disqualifies you from the work but rather your reaction to it. I’ve made plenty, I’ll make some more and so will you. Keep learning and loving people. This is our required response. This work is never about being right, only better.

When you make it your mission to meet people where they are in their thinking, life, and work, it happens. You are handed a front row view to the pain of those clinging to what little belonging there is in a place that holds tightly to majority culture and identities. You see clearly the fear of those who have lived in generations of families, friends and communities who reflect their skin, religion and orientations. You hear the doubt of those who have taken on this battle long before you ever dreamed of it.

Check out the resources at: https://www.inclusiveidaho.org