How the middle class circumvents democracy in Nigeria? Before I proceed, I would first like to define what the middle class is in this conversation. And the middle class, of course, would be anyone whose literate, above secondary school level. So, it's not an economic definition, it is a political definition. Nigeria is a very complex nation politically. We all know that. Nothing seems to work normally. What is democratic landscape is made of a massive, politically illiterate group known as this middle class. Though the most literal group in the country, which of course can be fought, it's sad to know that they are the hunters in Nigeria's democratic landscape, planting booby traps for young democracy. Here are some clear-cut parameters to portray this uncommon point, or on popular opinion as some want to think without looking into the mirror. Despite being the channel through which the elite provide stomach infrastructure to the grassroots. Of course, do you see your big politicians in the remote hoods giving stomach infrastructure? No, hardly there. So the middle class is giving that burden to transfer the so-called financial benefits of voting for a candidate to the grassroots. Of course, they would live in self-denial. That's the middle class, that they aren't the conduit for such a bad practice. Now, despite writing and constituting the makeup of the average political party, it is not far-fetched or not uncommon to hear on news media that political parties have no ideology, or it's a tune playing to those who don't even know how many political parties exist, or are registered in Nigeria. Now, this is common within the middle class, but the great question is, who actually writes the constitution for these political parties? Of course, there are lawyers, people that are politicians within the middle class, and usually at the behest of the ruling elite. On social media, it is so simple to watch the middle class attack corrupt politicians. But guess what? On the same timeline, if I was invited to attend some politician's birthday or his daughter's wedding, the same commentators who were on my timeline to harass the corruption of politicians will see this picture with me in a birthday and say, wow, Kunle has really moved up in life, or he has moved up in politics, and that is the truth. But we will choose to ignore that part and just say government has generally been bad. Now, with the voter's register of almost 90 million in 2019, guess who has intelligent, bare parlor discussions? While posting great solutions on social media, on how government could change, on how the local government or state police is better, the arguments are way up. Trust me, I can tell you no parliament in the world will have the kind of discussions we have on social media. But guess what? There were less than 29 million voters in a general election in 2019, and in the recent by-elections in Lagos and other spots all over in Nigeria, less than 5% of total registered voters participated. To make these numbers more realistic to you, I'll tell you what they really are. We're talking of less than 200,000 voters delivering a senator, less than 100,000 voters delivering a federal House of Rep. I don't even want to mention how low local government chairman elections go. Well, we're looking at Lagos. I hope Lagos stands up to his local government elections. But we are on social media forums arguing and talking and discussing and hating. I don't know whether some people are waiting for air-conditioned units to be brought to polling units in Leki, or in Yenegwa, or in Busan. But the truth is, we will always remain so far from democracy and so far from elections, till we understand that we, the middle class, are the problem. Elections are not one on Twitter, on Facebook, on Instagram, or on our WhatsApp groups where we hold our conversations, but in the polling units. 60 million of the middle class mostly was missing in an election in 2019. If this set of people do not start to participate or actually hold the government accountable, and, most of all, actually read the Nigerian constitution, which they call, in quotes, not a constitution. Well, guess what? Most of them haven't read it. The country will continue to dwindle in political thoughts and directions, as they will continue to be the grave diggers of political development in Africa's most populous nation. You know, just simply saying to you, it's, quite frankly, was quite thought-provoking, I would say, on a level. I do think that for a country that is struggling to pay $30,000 as minimum wage to claim to have a middle class, we just might be playing to the fact that it's an illusion of middle class. An educated middle class, as you claim, who is not politically educated or politically literate, is no good to a society. And if you look at the last 20 years or 30 years, we have come through incisant military interregums. We've gone through nascent democracy that we still call nascent, even while it's no longer still that young. But the middle class has not been able to get an understanding of the role of politics. Just a decent enough life, a good enough car, they've removed themselves from the harsh realities of society by building taller fences and driving good cars on broken roads. So there is an inherent sense of selfishness that I think is the main disease of the middle class. The circumversion is actually more a consequence of selfishness. That many of them would rather fly out of this country weeks to election because they are afraid of insecurity and all of those things. And return after election, they've not been able to make the connection that governance and politics affects all our lives. And unfortunately, it is a game of numbers. And if the educated ones are not crystallizing the knowledge, those who are for sale who are more in numbers will always go for school, go for the highest bidder. So whenever we make this statement, those who are for sale, who tells the elite or the political ruling class that those people are for sale? The elite and ruling class are too far away to be able to tell who is for sale or not. That job is also done by the middle class. Now the middle class has built itself a blameless structure. And within that blameless structure, I will say our social media, our so-called gyms, whatever sort of outlet we have to deceive ourselves that we are not part of the problem. Or as usual, let me use what most people will say, what's the matter, just japa now, which thing they happen. You know, I'll tell you a story. Japa might save you, but I know of someone's uncle who thought he had japa during structural adjustment program. Well, he died, and his children had to come and bury him. And one of his children was shot at at 8 a.m. in Nigeria. He hadn't been in Nigeria for 17 years, but Nigeria still gets to you. Without you. Japa, you have beneficiaries here. So during elections, you go out to the polling stations. You see the so-called middle class. Those who turn up in their fancy cars, or they turn up in their umbrellas, they come to look at the queue, noses all up in the air, and they're like, I can't stand here. It's too hot, this place is too dirty, and off they go. And I would say to them, I always engage in conversation. I'm like, are you coming back? And they're like, I don't know, it depends. I have guests coming over. I have a barbecue in my house. I'm going to get up work today. It's a chance for us to kick back. And I'm looking at them and saying, are you serious? This is your country. And they're like, does it really matter? My votes don't really matter. So what's the point? Let me just go. And like you said, I have options. I carry a second passport. If it gets really bad, I'll be gone. You hear people talking and asking themselves, are your visas up to date? People will come and say, I hope your visas are up to date. Because if anything just happens, you need to consider getting citizenship somewhere else. For someone like me, I only have one passport. I have a Nigerian passport. So I don't have options. So for me, it's important. When I hear excuses like, oh, I don't have my voter's card. That's a completely different conversation in itself. I don't have my voter's card. That's why I'm like, oh, I tried to get it, but you know, I have work commitments. I went there and I saw a long queue and I just had to leave. And I'm like, are we serious? That is the middle class that we're talking about. So we are responsible for the problems that we have in this country. You know what's sad is that we do not understand that our voter's card is more important than your international passport, your diverse license, or anything else. Put together. Well, I think because the understanding of what it means to vote and the understanding of what your actual vote is has been so devalued. Right? People think, well, it's corrupt anyway. Yeah, well, why bother? No, you know there's this catchy phrase I think I heard in 2019. It was really very funny. And they will say, a vote for a smaller party. It's a wasted vote. It's a wasted vote. Oh yeah. Okay, if we accept it's a wasted vote. Now, watch how hypothetical it is. Why were the two big parties sending talks to polling units and buying votes? Say it's wasted and you've won now. Don't deceive yourself. Then why are you still going through that? And you know, we can't even pick that. Though if it's time to criticize something that we want to pay attention to, we of course will pick a topic on social media and trash it out. But we never trash out the little lines in politics. Someone tells you a vote doesn't count. Yet he's struggling to buy votes. Or he's telling you that a vote here doesn't matter. But he's struggling to buy votes. It's actually hypothetical. What should unite the middle class? Should be intellect, education, exposure. But that is not what unites them. No, I told you what unites them. Jim's club membership. And then on a level, and maybe they might even on a certain level embody the religious and tribal ethnic sentiments that many people vote with.  You should go back to Delta State. Really? Tell me about that. My point is there are people who are still caught up in those primordial thinking. But a middle class, I mean, they're educated based on your definition.  The whole state of origin thing, right? No, I've always been a proper... I've always been a proper state of residence, but you mentioned something. And this is religion. And this is where religion misses it. I don't understand how religion is comfortable giving with those 10 bags of rice. Instead of repairing the system, which... Repairing governance, which of course will improve and create a welfare system that the church doesn't need or the mosque doesn't need to be giving out rice and peas out. It depends what your goal is for that religion. And unfortunately, we're not talking... That's a topic for another debate, but I think also because people don't understand the political system, as you said. First, you need to be aware and understand the concept before you value it.  People don't value the environment.  Or next thing you think, they've thrown pure water out of the car. So why would they value the vote? You know, I've always pushed for this. People say governments corrupt, but I always remind them when last did any of us legally get a driver's license? When last did we wait in a queue when it really mattered? When last did you wait for your international passport to come out at the right time? Doing the right things are act of patriotism. We don't do it. But look, let me bring this up. Okay, I'm Nigerian, but I also have another option. I'm also British. But during the 2019 elections, while I knew people, as you say, were going abroad, my husband made it a point that we're staying. Why? Because we value our options, our privilege to vote. We are patriots. I love Nigeria. Despite all the badness, it's my country. I love it. Would you say it's the same for your children? Yes. So the key is that we buy local as much as possible. We want to do our fair part. But it's difficult in everyday life. When you're struggling for light, when you're struggling for food, when your car is being destroyed by roads, to say, okay, I need to go here to get my voter's guide, I need to do that. But people haven't kind of put the two together that going and making that vote can actually impact your everyday life, especially in the local government elections. So there needs to be kind of understanding of this concept of what our politics is and what voting is. We really have to dare live back to the very basics and educate people from it. Yeah, I think education is key. Well, it's always an interesting conversation on the advocates. There's certainly never enough time, but we make do with what we have. So please don't just listen. Remember what they say. Rome was not built in a day. Play your part. Even if it's just to share the advocate with your friends and family. The more diverse thoughts we share, the richer the solutions, they will inspire. Don't forget that the advocacy continues on our social media platforms on Facebook, plus TV Africa, hashtag the advocate NG. On Instagram, at plus TV Africa, hashtag the advocate NG. To catch up with previous broadcasts, go to plus TV Africa dot com forward slash the advocate NG. Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel, plus TV Africa. Join us next week. Same time on this station. Let's keep advocating for a better society. Bye for now.


What's up everyone it's your girl Kenzie here from Layton Sports Cards and I am ripping 2021 Panini Flawless Football Hobby 2 box full case break number 44 tiered random teams. Here's a look at the random results you can always find these at LaytonSportsCards.com underneath the results tab. Link is also in chat for you. All right let's do this. All right from all this time case break tiered random. That first break was pretty good. Say you got some nice quarter backs and some nice ink. Let's see something big out of this one. We do have uh Collegiate on Friday. Oh we do we have that's kind of nice because it'll be the first Panini product like the new guys. Yeah definitely a new way of research. Oh yeah my memorizing of everyone in the first round or at least like the top 15 draft picks you know. First up we've got 13 of 15 rookie on the dual color patch. Same as boys Screech. 13 of 15 to Wayne Eskridge Seahawks. We've got seven of 25 rookie for the Giants Cadarius Tony on the two colored patch. Looks like maybe part of a number there. What's up Nick? I know I was about to say where you at man busy day of basketball. Rookie debut five of 20 Niko Collins for the Texans. Niko Collins and we've got Giants rookie debut going back. Cadarius Tony two of 10. Nice little Tony box here two of 20. Dude it's like flip flop this one's cool. Wow Giants having a break. Who's got them? Giants tier two team too huh? Yeah David G. David G two of 15 patch auto Tiki Barber. Barber. That is so cool. It's got a beautiful autograph too. Tiki Barber. They are war knees material. We'll mag that 140 Giants. Wow this is a cool one. Green two of three for the Saints Archie Manning. Wow Harper B with the Saints on the tier two. Tier two teams hitting so far. Don't worry there's some good tier one coming on the end case. And we've got two of 25 rookie debut signatures. Devante Smith Eagles. As Uzi would say go birds. Going to Hilton T. We're going to start here even though it's an Emerald. Three of five Giants absolutely slaying this box. Lawrence Taylor. Wow David with the Giants on the Legends Emerald. Comes with the Diamond Guarantee there. Wow what is that four Giants hits? Yep. We're going to go over here. We've got a Ruby 2020 book and rookie Zach Wilson for the Jets. David G with the Jets too. Wow almost a personal box here for David. And last but not least going to Harper B with the Patriots. Matt Jones dual patch auto 14 of 15. Sam says it always Matt. There you go. Nice hit there for you Harper. Number two here. Lawless number two. T almost forgot about that and T case and then we've got our 10 box Tuesday. Do you see who it was? Yeah I did not see who it was. I thought that was somebody else. Oh my god. I'm sorry there's just some cards I can't control a poker face. That is nasty. I hope that's game war and I doubt it though but that would be why that seems to tier one. All right we've got two of 15 dual for the Broncos. Two of 15 there Broncos. We've got seven of 15 dual color patch rookie Kyle Trask for the Bucks. There you go Bucks. Going back to the Bucks. They always have the coolest patches. Six of 20 Ronald Jones the second on the one two three four five colored patch there. I've been seeing a lot of him out of this year's product like a lot. Yeah oh yeah he's in prison on the pretty heavily. Oh yeah player one on that. Dude. We've got Sapphire Gem Rookie Auto 10 of 15 Cadarius Tony. My gosh David G is going for like the rainbow of cards of Cadarius Tony. I'm not even that just giant cards. We'll mag that. We've got rookie debut signatures four of 20 for the Cardinals. Rondell Moore out of 20. Then we've got Patriots one of five great Drew Bledsoe. Harper pulling in some nice QB autos here from the Pats. One of five. We'll mag that one. And rookie debut signatures one out of 10 Broncos. Javante Williams started with the Broncos. Ended on the inner with the Broncos. Congrats on that one. Glenn W. All right y'all. Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness. Yep. Dang. Vaughn guessed it. Oh man thanks Vaughn. Way to go Vaughn. We've got Ruby 12 of 20 for the Bucks again. Chris Godwin. Bucks having a nice break here. Lee P with the Bucks. Third Bucks of this case. Third of this box. It's always hard to say case because it's technically a brief case but when you say case you're talking about both. Let me just skip over this next card. It's so big. I can't. There we go. We've got three of seven MVPs of the Sheriff going to the Colts. Peyton Manning Colts. Lee P with the Colts too. You know Lee. Love the blue color match on that one. All right y'all. This next card is so sick. Who had him again? Is that? I can't see the number now. That's gotta be a one of one. There's no way this is gonna be a one of one. Probably on the back. All right. We've got Booklet NFL Shield. Quarterback. That is veteran Booklet. One of one Aaron Rodgers. Wow. Packers is Curtis E. That is a beautiful card. One of one. A little bit of a scuff right here. You can see like a little curve right there on the mag itself. Wow. That is so cool. All right. That'll do it for flawless everybody. We got some NT coming up next. Thank you all so much.


Hey, everyone. Good afternoon Thank you for a moment as afraid of no one in the room I'm Larry Mido I am International correspondent at CNN such a pleasure to be here to lead this panel on advancing racial and ethnic equity And I'm really excited to have my esteemed panel joining me from the extreme left Miss Angela F. Williams president and CEO of United Way worldwide. Please give a bit of honor of applause Very enthusiastic. I love that. Mrs. Simon Freakly see of Alex partners Miss Pamela El Carter a member of the board of directors Hewlett pocket enterprise and My fellow young global leader means Luana de Sousa Martin's Geno executive director of the Brazilian Identities Institute I'm so glad we're having this conversation literally just a few days after the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr who was a civil rights icon and And when this initiative came up from the World Economic Forum, it came out of a place of hurt and pain and I In 2020 when George Floyd was murdered I was covering North America for the BBC and I've interviewed the Floyd family and covered the trial of Derek Chauvin Literally every word that was said in the courtroom And I think one of the beautiful things that came out of that experience was the diversity equity and inclusion initiatives from Organizations globally that have set to find a standard to make sure that they're walk places their organizations are more inclusive But there's a long way to go and we can all agree on that right There's still a lot more that needs to be done to make sure there's a way to track that and there's a way that companies are doing Better organizations from every corner of the world and so I'm glad on this panel We've got representation from Latin America from the US from Europe and we can have a real honest Conversation about this and I just want to mention a quick plug here that this panel Bills on the work the World Economic Forum is already doing And they're working towards better accountability to gain greater clarity on the current gaps at organizational level And so the World Economic Forum has an initiative called partnering for racial justice in business and this week just two days ago They launched a report It's called global racial and ethnic equity self assessment framework they launched a framework that you can download now for your own Organization the QR code is back there. It's up on the screen So please feel free to do that because it's useful to frame this conversation But also to bring back to your own organizations, but I want to go straight into it and begin with Where do you see the biggest challenges? currently for advancing racial and ethnic equity and Where are those the progress right? I don't want to just talk about the negative bits But there has to be some positive in this as well So the advantages or disadvantages the progress the weaknesses Luana, I'm gonna start with you. Oh, thank you So, yeah, I'm Luana, you know I come from Brazil from Rio de Janeiro and we work with basically inclusion the labor market especially with data policy making and You know providing tools and education for companies especially for decision makers White decision makers mostly to actually be more intentional on hiring decisions But in a holistic view as well. So I brought like six points But I'll be really quick to go through context on things or we are moving forward or not First of all, you're mentioning like a George Floyd situation in Brazil.  So That's our reality George Floyd's and ended up to be a broad-casid case But that case happens like in a daily basis. So we need to think more about that But we are we are going through now a plateau from our experiences So it means that we had a lot of companies who engaged with pledges around the world But now they're not pledging anymore or they are somehow stuck it in You know, the challenges they want of they are facing or even the good things they they have been doing I mean the pledges were good good measures, but now we need to move forward Second thing in Brazil right now. We changed our government now is a more progress is government But it doesn't mean necessarily that we will have like racial equity right away, right? So we need to have civil society companies and governments being to be intentional about it Otherwise, it doesn't move forward automatically Third I would say like keep up. We have we still are facing difficulty to keep up the pace I think like what we've we've experienced it from George Floyd's You know situation and murdered the crime we see we saw and we what we see now Is that we actually advanced a lot in this those past two years? But now we need to keep up the pace then is it because the matter is no longer in the news and therefore There's not that much interest. It seems like companies have a lot of difficulty to actually tie the ESG agenda with the diversity inclusion agenda Right, so they think that's a nor situation. Where is it and situations at least it should be so it takes me to the next point I think that they have a lot of difficulty to think holistically in DNI So we in Brazil I mean in our institution we tackle DNI I mean as within the E and the S and the G for example when we're talking about Environmental racism, so it means like what are the populations who are struggling to have like Sanitation or to have food so most most of them are no white population So we need to talk about environmental racism and the as part of it So where are going our investments our social investments mostly for white lead Company for white led institutions not for the indigenous or no white Institutions so we need to think about inclusion in the S frame and the G the governance We also need to think about inclusion in the government. So how are we treating for example racism or sexism? Gender issues in our in our system and how are how are we producing data for example? And also, I think we are having a lot of difficulty to you think Global and local both for example, there is there are a lot of programs who tackle like Who are who said they are a global? They have a global commitment on inclusion, but they are more US centered Okay, so they don't reach Brazil they don't reach other regions where there are black indigenous or no white population Okay, and that takes me to my last point is like we need to move beyond the US where we still have a lot of Challenges, but we advance it a little bit more than other regions where we still need investments And we still need to take to talk a lot more about that. For example, we had a coalition We have a coalition here as YGLs We build we build it like this agenda of hackathons and everyone is more than invited to participate and We are trying to tackle different issues in different parts of the world. My friend. He is from Nepal He also faced a lot of problems with caste issues We have problems in Canada, but we also have a lot of opportunities as we were saying to tackle those issues In a global perspective, but also respecting the local language the local context and to waste less talents and less Opportunities by tackling this issue global and locally. All right. Thank you so much for that And he and she was talking about Pradeep Parierre my friend another young global leader Yes work with the caste-based discrimination in Nepal and around South Asia is incredible His organization is called that lift lives matter. Please check it out Miss Carter the same question. Where do you see progress and what are still the remaining challenges in terms of advancing racial and ethnic equity? I am the great granddaughter of a slave and as a child I marched with dr. Martin Luther King and thinking about where he is and where we are today There is progress, but I'd say the first challenge is that it's not resilient enough We advance and then we regress and we often regress to Hustility and backlash and violence and then we have to regroup and it has to be an event Before we are ready to then create a new momentum And the question is how can we create the level of resilience? robustness and at some point similar to having a net to zero What is our global challenge and our global opportunity together, you know often? We can use technology at Hewlett Packard Enterprise We call it swarming swarming learning where we can all share data insights and figure out how we can together maintain Sustain and retain our momentum even during the backlash even during the intensity of the Hustility because often creates fear and anger the second thing I'd say is one of the biggest challenges It is did you realize that in this year 1.8 trillion dollars? Here in America is the black consumer spending power 1.8 trillion and yet this particular Demography is ignored and often underlooked and if they're treated they're treated badly in a lot of our commercial Environments we're talking about shareholder value and yet we leave stranded assets if you add African Americans Asian Americans Hispanics Latinx indigenous People with disabilities it is five trillion dollars and the question is are we really interested in growth? Are we really interested in shareholder value then? Why are we stranding a lot of the assets and the same thing with labor we kept saying there's a labor shortage? But there isn't and we have people that are being educated more every day that are of every race gender and Economic status and even if in the African-american Community there's an assumption that if oh you don't have any money. We have found that we are the best consumers We are more wily with apps That we are innovators and early adopters. We are skewing younger and growing faster Why wouldn't you want to incorporate us in every asset of what you're doing? It's incredible I think there is progress when you matched with Dr. King as a child a woman like your black woman would not be on the Board of HV and here you are right now. You were a groundbreaking Attorney general as well in the early 90s when you're the first to block attorney general of the state of Indiana Indiana yes, so there's progress certainly But would you say that as a society have we made enough steps forward or have we also gone too far back? Well, we always celebrate too soon And we let go too soon So when I ran and won the attorney general it was the year of the woman and we had made it and then we look today And we're having the same conversations Did we make progress? Absolutely. Did we learn and grow in power? Absolutely many of the attorneys generals are in all kinds of high Positions, but then the pipeline was not as robust And so we have to think past present and future in terms of the challenges on the opportunities though I've seen so many great opportunities where we can move to ownership another company that I am on the board We've just signed a contract with 23 first nations where we have given 11% of our pipeline for them to be able to handle whatever they need to do as Equal owners, so we're learning how to use all of the financial Consuming buying power and then also creating ownership with whomever. We are working with and for in our local communities All right, I saw you nodding very vigorously Miss Williams as she was talking because you agree certainly on the progress But I imagine also on the places where there's still gaps. Yes, I'll say I was the amen corner to So just a couple of things and I'm going to share the perspective from my organization United Way Worldwide We are have 1100 local entities that serve in 37 countries What makes us so unique is that my colleagues live in the communities that we serve so we're the neighbors We we understand what's happening and and that's where I I feel like I'll let me just give you an example of a story of how we're showing up when it comes to moving things forward So there was this city Called haytide named after Haiti, but they pronounced it haytide. It's known as the black wall street The second one is first one was in Tulsa, Oklahoma The second one is in the Raleigh Durham, North Carolina Well, there was a point in I think the 60s or 70s the city said we're going to tear it down Black Wall Street where there were black banks black doctors black stores business people and We're going to build a highway So I met a couple of months ago with the next generation of Those black bank owners and store owners and they are still grieving The loss of economic wealth. They are still living the trauma of Having their world destroyed by a decision of a government But what United Way is doing is we're now facilitating conversations where we're empowering And they're paying for the advocacy of these individuals We're bringing government together to say now you took this generational wealth away What do you owe this community and facilitating the conversations to rebuild this community and what was lost? We're also bringing to light There are so many black and brown people again in community creating solutions, but they don't get the funding They don't get the notoriety So what we did at United Way is said we're going to lift up all of the the black and brown leaders of nonprofits And let the business community know here's where the work is happening Here's where you can make a quality investment All of that to say that that gets to the heart I think the root of some of these issues that we're seeing in the US is the lack of Economic mobility the lack of education the lack of being able to have access to health care And all of these get to the root cause of systemic issues include which which basically under my or well under my racial ethnic Ethnic ropes gender as well, but we're here to talk about race So what's the opportunity that we have one again? We have to maintain the level of we're going to stay at this we're going to keep going we're going to set metrics We're going to hold companies. We're going to hold governments We're going to hold everyone accountable to these metrics We're going to create programs after we do the self-assessment of where we are to say What are we going to do to create that pipeline? What are we going to do to elevate people to train them up to give them the opportunity? That's what this is about and I'll just say one other thing that I Said made this statement and someone on social media attacked me Because I made it a couple of days ago here, but I'm going to say it again So what I said was that a lot of our systems and it doesn't matter what country you're in they were Based on and created on bad values, and they were created systems created for a particular population and Created to exclude other people So what do I say about that? Why don't we blow up those systems and do something different now And I got into it back and forth with one of my panelists and I said yeah, that sounds radical It makes people who are leading these systems makes their skin crawl However, what I'm trying to say is this that we need you can call it a new playbook a new table But equity is what we're talking about so I'll stop because I can go on and on I wonder if that's not controversial at all The only person who would find an issue with that statement is because they're invested in or they Benefit from that exclusion of other people, right? So it should not be something that controversial at least not in my books Well, I was called a left-wing something something Mr. Freakley your chance again progress opportunities or rather where you still see some work to be done great Oh, well you the audience might think what's this middle-aged white guy doing? We're all thinking it so what are you doing exactly? Our diversity panelist, please I have a personal perspective I have a business perspective. I'm going to talk mostly about the business, but personally I have two African-American children So I have a frontline seat on a number of these issues, but let me just talk about by business life I run an organization in fourteen countries over three thousand people and what we Realize is that having diversity in our firm in all ways But particularly ways that brings the very best talent from all Constituents and constituencies into our firm is going to be crazy Why wouldn't we bring the best talent in and then we realized of course that just Exposing a business value in and of itself isn't particularly compelling unless it's a value of the organization Unless it's something that we own as a value actually not a lot happens and so Inclusion diversity equity is a value of our organization and we seek to think about the practical ways that we can create that environment So we do welcome and include and give those people that we do include a sense of belonging in our firm So to your question Larry Other than the aspiration how do we make it happen and how do we capture it? Well, the only way that it happens is and there was I always like to say inclusion comes before diversity Unless one has an inclusive environment mean diversity is simply not going to happen. So it starts with inclusion. You know, there's somebody said to me recently Diversity is a reality inclusion as a choice. So we start with that choice now. How do Middle-age white people like me play a part in making that happen? Well, you start by being an ally How are you an ally to all constituencies to make them feel that they belong in this environment? How are you an advocate when that is required to make sure that not just that you? passively accept and support but that you advocate for the right things and when necessary How everybody is an activist to make that happen? And so we make it very clear that these things are not just a value of the firm They're actually in encased in people's objectives They're measured to make sure that we have our fingers on the critical pulses of whether we continue to be inclusive And then we do look at the output of those strategies to make sure we becoming increasingly diverse that we are welcoming more and more Colleagues with from ethnic minorities and by the way, you know people that are diverse in other respects to make sure we have the most Vibrant the most inclusive environment in which people feel they can belong and I just ask yes I know you're the moderator, but it just The question I want to ask you then what about the employees that don't want this that don't want to be measured that think You as a leader are going overboard Well, I have pretty straight conversations with people that will have me that conversation with me directly And I say this may just not be the place for you because let me be clear. This is where we're going. This is This is absolutely non-negotiable, and if that's not for you the world is a big place I like that So I think you would agree with the what Angela said that systems that are built to exclude certain people need to be torn down, right? quickly Look at that. I know is your communications person Because they would have other thoughts about that Luan I wanted to pick up on something you said about a lot of these DEI initiatives tend to be very US centric or at least European centric And you coming from Brazil who's been doing this work for a long time I wonder what kind of challenges you face and how you're overcoming them Yeah, I would say even more US centered than your European center because in Europe we observe that there are a lot of a Lot of DNI, but most focused on gender issues But this gender is a lot has a lot of difficulty to be intersectional for example, and especially they reach White women, but not the whole bunch of women who aren't this plural group So that's the real change here challenge here in Europe I think and also here in Europe We have the challenge of having Disaggregated data for example in France. We do not collect data for a race and ethnicity So I think that's a huge challenge, and I think we have an opportunity I mean not only Brazil but also in here in Europe Latin America as a whole to build a global agenda on inclusion in the labor market an agenda that will include for example Presidents from the country see see levels see the society to all together because I couldn't see this agenda put it in on place yet just in silos like there is this Conference in the United States or Colombia or Brazil, but not all together as we have like the foreign or the economic forum So I think that's our issue in Brazil I mean we have a very particular reality because we are the only a country in Latin America who speaks Portuguese and You know we have we have to deal with our racial Myth we have a racial democracy myth there where if you go to Brazil people say Oh there there is only like poor people, but all people everyone is mixed it which is which is not true We have a hierarchy in this mixture So the docu you are less opportunities you get lower down the hierarchy Yeah, yeah, so it means that we kind of look alike the the the reality in Nepal for example Where the caste system play a great role there racism plays a really a huge role in Brazil and in Brazil For example, we are the biggest African diaspora in the world So we have more than 110 million black and indigenous people But we only get like five percent of the leadership roles But when we go to you company companies based on the US they say oh You know you have a lot to do here in the US. You cannot invest that much in Brazil Right, so I think we need to shoot to bridge to to build bridges between our countries and to make this agenda Work in a global scale, so I think this is the big challenge here I like what you said earlier about the fact that the DEI agenda and ESG do not have to be separate because these are Deeply interlinked that would be ideal And I think the one thing that I'm going to take from what Luana said is that George Floyd? Obviously gotten it whole world to pay attention, but in Brazil there's a George Floyd killed every 23 minutes According to the Amnesty according to Amnesty International that is shocking I wanted to follow up here with Angela and Pamela about when We were in the height of 2020 and the pandemic and every company was big and making a big announcement and obviously that commitment Sometimes appears to have faltered and this is no longer a major issue in the same way it was in two years ago And do you feel how do you make sure that he let pocket for instance that you are sticking to those commitments and you're not off track The term unconditional and unflinching is the way in which our leadership Attacks and is passionate and committed to DEI and ESG and the fact that it's disclosed in our Publications those terms unconditional We also have to set the tone at the top in terms of strategy Hewlett Packard is in 170 countries We have over 250,000 channel partners And so and we have 60,000 employees so the opportunity to have an influence and an impact globally is huge and we haven't Shrunk from that responsibility at all I'm very proud actually of the fact that right after George Floyd The senior executive team and some members of the board went on a listening tour throughout the 170 countries not assuming that they already knew what the answer to the problems were and find out what's happening in our Environment in our culture and we set out our core values and our culture and our talent We feel very strongly about our commitment to people and human resources But that doesn't mean that we're perfect and so the opening Act was to go and do this listening tour and we learned and then from there We began to develop the work plans and from there We were able to put metrics in place because you have to be accountable and that's been said a couple of times already And then if you falter you falter and it's public we disclose all of our Representation statistics we let people know where we are with pay equity around the world and we are one-to-one We've been working on that a lot in terms of working where you live. We have for women six month maternity leave paid and US US UK India any place that we have and in the countries that we are if they have more Then we permit that but it's paid and that yes in the US as well because the US is a terrible paid leave policy and so there is an unflinching commitment To making certain that we're doing the right thing in terms of training in terms of development But I like what you said a lot of it is local and regional and we really cannot be chauvinistic in terms of our Cultural view writ large in terms of countries and so we are humble in this process We're learning a lot We're trying to lead and we'd like to be able to collaborate more with other technology companies because that's going to be absolutely essential Simon you've worked extensively across both the US and in Europe and obviously approaches to these issues differ Sometimes quite starkly in those two different geographies. What are some interesting takeaways you can share with us? So one of the things I've learned having worked a lot in Europe and the UK and the UK specifically in the States is that Many of the issues are the same But the narratives that surround them are different and so the narrative for instance We just take the the black community for instance the narrative in the UK is largely around the Windrush generation people that were brought in from the West Indies you know For economic reasons to help support infrastructure and utilities and transport Whereas the narrative in the US of course is for the black community African-American communities largely anchored in slavery and so these are two very different narratives that being said the issues That we're dealing with in both geographies are very similar And so what I've learned in this is I've tried to learn from others and just understand the Complexity and significance is that the key is to be intentional is it's really important to be intentional About what we want to do what we stand for as a firm of values what we want to manifest in terms of the business that we We hope to be and we're trying to be and be intentional about the things the specific things that include and support and develop All people and listen and understand With ethnic minorities. What is the best way to support them so that we can all be our best So I would say Larry the key is different narratives similar issue, but the key is for us to be intentional Speaking on the same issue of accountability miss Williams. What more do you think can be done to make sure there's robust accountability on advancing racial and ethnic equity and organizations around the world So I I like what wef is done by one launching this toolkit, which Gives companies a way in which to start looking at themselves Points to a pathway Secondly, I I Appreciate but also am disappointed that we're still having these types of conversations, I think it's important like he'll a pack it is doing and it's good to hear that you all report your numbers and are bold about it and Continuing to put pressure on companies from the inside meaning employees and externally from others that are partnering or working with Businesses or companies to say what are you doing different and I will just segue in and and say that my Board the United Way Worldwide Board After George Floyd issued a statement that said a racial equity statement that they asked all of our 1,100 local United Ways to adopt Now I will tell you we're in 37 countries in the US again as it relates to the narrative We understand historically what that would mean, but in on other continents like Europe and others They're saying well, we don't necessarily think this applies because what went along with that was we asked that boards our local boards Be go through a training on racial equity once a year So We built out a whole toolkit and everything else so again similar to Weff we were Moving and are moving in a direction, but I will just say we still get the pushback Where I received calls from in the US even well our community. We don't have any racial issues Okay, well you have some equity issues at least somewhere But there's just a lot that we have to do And I think that the transparency and the visibility and shedding a light on it is important to the accountability the public Accountability is important. It makes people uncomfortable. It makes leaders uncomfortable, but it's like being Alcoholic the first step to recovery is what? Admitting right and so we need to take that first Step in recovery and I'm not sure that a lot of people have done that or a lot of entities have done that still One thing in terms of tying your performance to compensation So I'm yes, I'm the chair of the company HR and compensation board And it is required of our senior executives through their MBOs that if they don't meet the variety of targets that we've set Dei ESG they get paid less So they've got they've got a skin in the game no fooling and and that matters And so that they take it seriously we take it seriously And we're on flinching about it as well If you don't like that kind of culture and expectation then maybe you should go somewhere else But with that said our voice of the employee surveys It's in the 80% in terms of great place to work and in our brand is even higher So that and we're retaining people so we're also measuring in a way to make certain that we're that what we're we think is the proper Approach is actually working and then if we do fall flat We will be the first to publicly acknowledge that and when we double our efforts and keep going forward But we'll be very aggressive about it. It's fantastic. All right fantastic. I wonder if mandating diversity awareness training and any sort of Employee company-wide training on these issues helps does it work do people? Rejected any insights on that for many of you just have to meet people where they are I think there are multiple ways in which to change culture and just like you just said it could be tying to compensation Or setting metrics and having the conversations, but I think all of it is important and then you know most important I found is that It comes with understanding each other understanding our lived experiences and actually fostering conversations Small group conversations. Let me tell you why I believe the way I believe let me tell you about my Experience and when you start sharing your own personal stories that person across me says oh, I didn't realize That's how you have to live And and or how that's how the what your experience is with law enforcement or this is your Experiences when you go to a doctor or this is your experience when in school so Conversation one-on-one sharing of stories. I think is also extremely important Yeah, I would like to add on what mrs. Williams was saying just because I mean I we do a lot of trainings and companies where we have our Yes, your racial quality seal there in Brazil and what we realize it's that most of the people who are in power positions in Brazil I mean especially before George Floyd they would deny there was a racial issue in Brazil exactly as we were saying Just head in the sand. This does not exist.  They would say oh, we need to do something So train the training part is still very important because we're still in a very basic Era Unfortunately, but I would I would add also that it's a man situation. Obviously we need training, but we also need a Goals tied to compensation so people can move forward even if you don't love this because Just because you want to earn more money and that's okay I mean, it's just a matter it doesn't matter if you like or don't like racial justice or ESG just do it because that's your work So we are trying to keep this is up as a best practice, but it's still we need to have a group like that putting pressure So companies governments put that in the plane They're playing because it's it doesn't happen like automatically Can I just say one thing we tend to have this conversation as it's as if it's a zero-sum game Like there's just one pie and here's this slice this slice And if if I get a slice that I'm taking something from you and it's not that's not the case And and so we have to shift mindsets that we're in this together And so if my purchasing power is not valued, it's going to affect you as a company It's going to affect the economy So we need to shift our mindset and when we're talking about de and I and it's not this one-off thing It's not about I lose power and I have to transfer it to you That is a brilliant takeaway racial equity ethnic equity is not pie Given that to somebody else does not reduce your own share of it. We'll take that away We want to get some questions from the audience in terms of okay, whoever gets a mic first fine Right First of all, this is an amazing panel. Can we give another round of applause? Thank you all So I have two quick questions. The first is we released at Harvard We released a legacy of slavery report in which we committed a hundred million dollars But if you dig into the if you look into the fine print There's it's interesting how When it comes to you know reparative justice We're comfortable talking about oh, we're investing programs. We're investing institutions. We're investing this No one wants to talk about actual reparations to the people who are harmed. They say it's too complicated How do we calculate yet all these countries paid off the slave onus? In fact, Britain just finished paying it off recently, right, right? So why I like let's dig into this issue. Why is it that for the people like? Madame Carter who you can do you can do the work, right? I mean skip gates has been going all over the place testing people and finding their lineage It's we know we have the technology to figure it out So why is it that when it comes to this particular issue of reparative justice? We're always shine away from that second question. We spoke a lot about racial Equity, but we didn't touch a lot on ethnic equity and that's something that you know coming from Ghana I come from the northern part of Ghana when the British came they divided us the south was educated the north was not educated In fact, the first person from my part of the country the north who got a university degree was in 1963 at Monalhasa, Bah Zamba, so Whereas from the south they've been educated for hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of years Yeah, because we all look alike No one talks about it and you see these sorts of inequalities pervade and persist What can we do and what lessons can we take from the fight and racial equity to ensure that we're also Leveling the playing field for ethnic and I want to take another question as well so we can take them together. Yes, ma'am Thank you very much. I have two questions, but I'll keep them very brief Yes, and thank you very much to the panel because it's been a phenomenal conversation And I really do hope of what is listening this needs to be on the main plenary next year because this really needs to have a wider global engagement But first I'd like to ask a question from the Americas perspective and then Larry if I may I'd like to ask you a question similar to also East African from the African perspective or just a pack other regions that were similarly affected by the colonial legacies Where we see these racial constructs Insidiously affecting wealth distribution But when you were talking about if there's no place for you here if you're not aligned with our goals What concerns me after George Floyd is as much as we've seen mobilization We've also seen mobilization on the other side Polarization right critical race theory was a way that certain groups were able to mobilize the voters in order to see see change in political Representation and that concerns me because when you're talking about we are trying to attract the best and brightest talent Yes, talent is equally distributed across all groups, right? They don't have equal opportunities to develop that talent So the educational system is important right and if you remove this type of education from there Then what next generation are you looking at it sets us back in terms of I'm thinking at the historic injustices We're trying to incrementally correct So I'm concerned about that in your views and Larry you've been asked my panelist. I can't ask the questions Thank you Can I have a crack at the first of your two go for it? The over it. Yes, so so it's a great question. Thank you and of course what in my own experience as we've lived through this is If the things that we're doing are not manifesting the outcomes that we want then we're mad just to carry on doing those things So we have to try different things all the time I give you an example so in in our in our value to manifest the best talent particularly with With all types of diversity in mind if we keep on recruiting from the same graduate colleges And we can't recruit enough diversity. Why the heck are we only recruiting there? We need to recruit in different places. So we took a very deliberate decision, okay? Brilliant people come out of Harvard and Princeton and Wharton and Penn great But we're not getting enough of the talent that we want and the broadest sense Let's start looking in different places So we now very deliberately look in a much broader range of places now people have to be just as bright We're prepared to work just as hard and have to hold our values and be Absolutely as committed to the future. We're trying to create but the places We used to look simply weren't facilitating the outcomes that we wanted so we had to change the way that we looked at it In terms of I want to be able to move this conversation to get everybody's voice in there a few minutes We have left I apologize and you don't have a crack at reparative justice and why reparations is a complicated question that is not quite easy to wrestle with Angela I go back to the last point I just made because people feel like if you're gonna make Reparations to somebody for something that happened, you know a hundred years ago You're going to be taking it for me today, and I don't want to give up what's mine All right and Pamela Well, I think that if you're thinking about what a next step would be is going through reconciliation you know they did that in South Africa because I think we have to acknowledge where we were in our past and Because you know as you know justice develops along a line of toward trust and confidence And you can't have that until you can acknowledge where we've been together and you know It's it's quite difficult if you come from a slave heritage and you come from a free heritage And so I think reconciliation is it's an issue and then when you're talking about criminal justice Who's the justice for anyway, and so I think we have to be thoughtful We don't have reparative justice in our system today, so I mean we're we still have a punitive justice system So I mean I think that the questions are from your generation and younger generations are going to be I think demanding some More accountability to our past in order for us because past is prologue Right, so I think you're going to hear a lot more about it But I think there are a whole host of steps prior to actually reaching it so that we can be resilient So it can be sustainable and robust in terms of our equity journey Loana you wanted to jump in here. Yes about the reparation thing. I think in Brazil We just don't have enough people especially black and indigenous people in power Empower roles in politics to actually build a plan or where we can do a reparation there Because that's a huge topic, but we cannot pass the laws to make it happen So we need to be more present in Parliament So we can maybe do a reparation plan there because we need it and about concerning Ethnicity, I really think myself really reflected in your reality in Ghana because for example black people from Southeast in Brazil they got more access than the black people from Northeast and the same thing with the indigenous people some some people like the two pinambas the Different different people within the indigenous community. They may get somehow some more access So we do have a lot of ethnical problems in Brazil, and I think it takes like more intentionality. So when we build An action plan for a company for example We say to them to hire people from not only black people from Southeast but also from the Northeast So that's a way to be more intentional and and try to actually be more Inclusive not only with the back black people In the places where they are used to hire but also in the other regions and from other ethnicities They are not used to you so yeah, and I think that is a something that's similar in many African contexts where we have tribes or ethnicities of different communities and companies even big Multinational that operate in the continent don't track that sort of ethnicity Numbers part of it is for political reasons It's like to be controversial and yet you can often see the sentiment that people feel they're not represented in the leadership of some of these Huge organizations yet. There's no way to actively Consciously make an effort or make a point that no you seem to have all the people from just the north of the country and nowhere else And that's not the representative of the nation or the society that we live in so a lot of work to be done there We only have 30 seconds left if somebody has a burning final point before we wrap it up I do just just really quick. We were talking here about the net zero Obviously commitment that our countries need to make our I was also wondering if we can do like a waste zero talents Commitment, so we could not waste more talents Which is also as important as the net zero because if we waste less talents will be Probably reaching the net zero point Quicker, so yeah, it would be great. Thank you Luana and that is a great place to bring this conversation to a close I think we two takeaways equity is not pie and To there's need for a lot more accountability on these matters. Please give a big round of applause to my panel. You've been fantastic Thanks a lot Well done


Have you ever been captivated by someone who seems to command respect and admiration effortlessly attracting people in both their personal and professional lives? What's their secret? According to organizational behavior expert, Dr. John Antonakis, high-value people possess a unique set of qualities that enable them to inspire and motivate others towards achieving common goals. Are you one of them? To discover the secret traits that high-value people possess, keep watching. Confident. How is it that some people seem to glide effortlessly through social and professional situations? It's almost like they possess some kind of magical charm that makes everything fall into place. Well, as it turns out, there are certain traits that these individuals possess that allow them to navigate these situations with ease. High-value people, as they're often called, are incredibly comfortable in their own skin. They don't need anyone else's approval to feel good about themselves. According to social psychologist Dr. Richard Petty, people with high levels of self-esteem and confidence are less likely to be swayed by the opinions of others and more likely to stick to their own decisions. If you constantly seek validation from others and get anxious when you don't receive the recognition you believe you deserve, there's probably an underlying psychological reason why. And there's hope. Feeling like you lack confidence can be frustrating and demotivating, but understanding the reason can help you break free from these self-defeating patterns. Growing up, your parents always expected you to excel in school and sports and you were praised for your achievements. This created a sense of pressure to always perform at your best, leading to a need for validation that has become a part of your personality. Although you're aware that this behavior can be exhausting and doesn't always lead to happiness, it's difficult to break the cycle of seeking validation and to focus on your own accomplishments and worth, while seeking positive relationships with supportive people. Remember that self-acceptance is essential for overcoming the need for approval. It may take time, but with persistence you can find greater happiness and fulfillment in life. If you find this video relatable and helpful, please give the video a thumbs up and subscribe to the channel. Now moving on to the next point. Reliable According to a 1999 study by Guilford Press, dependability and trustworthiness are key elements of the Big Five personality traits, which are widely recognized as the most critical aspects of one's character. These traits include conscientiousness, which is related to being responsible, reliable, and organized, and agreeableness, which is related to being kind, cooperative, and empathetic. People who demonstrate high levels of conscientiousness and agreeableness are perceived as dependable and trustworthy, making them more valuable in social and professional settings. It's completely understandable if you want to be liked and accepted by others, and making promises can be a way to show your commitment to them. However, it's important to be honest with yourself and others about what you can actually deliver. It's okay to say no, or to ask for more time, to consider a request, rather than making promises you know you won't be able to keep. Remember that building trust and respect with others takes time and effort, and it's better to be reliable and honest, rather than over promise and under deliver. Be kind to yourself and keep working on building authentic and fulfilling relationships with those around you. Empathetic and Compassionate What if we tell you that there's a fascinating science behind empathy and compassion, and understanding it can help you connect better with others? This point is important to Sai, and he wants to tell you a fictional short story to help make his point. In a small village surrounded by mountains lived Maya, a woman known for her compassion and empathy towards others. When her friend Priya was struggling with finances, Maya listened, taught her how to manage her expenses, and even introduced her to job opportunities. Maya's kindness and empathy spread beyond the village, making her a valuable asset to the community.  Dr. Tanya Singer, a renowned neuroscientist and director, found that when people engage in acts of compassion, their brains release oxytocin, a hormone that promotes feelings of trust, connection, and well-being. So not only does being kind and empathetic benefit others, it benefits you. It's a win-win situation. Growth Mindset Last but not least, a high-value person tends to have a growth mindset, characterized by a willingness to learn, adapt, and continuously improve themselves. The concept of a growth mindset popularized by psychologist Carol Dweck refers to the belief that one's abilities and intelligence can be developed through dedication, effort, and learning. People with a growth mindset embrace challenges as opportunities for growth, persist in the face of setbacks, and actively seek out new knowledge and experiences. Their focus on personal development enables them to stay ahead, acquire new skills, and contribute value to their personal and professional spheres. Can you identify with any of the signs we've discussed? What do you think makes someone a high-value person? Share your thoughts with us in the comments. And if you found this video helpful, don't forget to give it a like and share it with others who may also find it useful. Thanks for tuning in, and we'll catch you next time. We're releasing our first book, filled with fun psychology life hacks and amazing scientific studies that we couldn't fit into just a video. Available wherever you buy books and on Amazon. Check the description to find out how to pre-order.