Checklist for budding allies

1. Thomas Shaw
Systems Engineer
@Riot Games
How To Become A
Better Ally

2. Take a minute to think ...
Think about a time when somebody
stood up for you, when someone
encouraged you and when you felt heard.

3. Take another minute ...
Think about a time when you stood up for
someone else, when you encouraged
someone and when you listened.

4. How did this make you feel ?

5. Many people in
minority and
marginalized groups
have never shared this
same feeling.

6. What can we do ?

7. If this was a production issue, how
would we fix it ?
Root Cause Analysis (RCA) ?
Create a fix or workaround ?
Add more resources ?

8. How do we ensure everyone has a
voice ?
Simple.
Build a diverse and inclusive culture in which allyship is
the default, not the exception.

9. What is Allyship ?
Allyship is a lifelong process of building relationships
based on trust, consistency, and accountability with
marginalized individuals and/or groups of people.
Allyship is not self-defined—our work and our efforts
must be recognized by the people we seek to ally
ourselves with.
Source : “Allyship : The Key To Unlocking The Power of Diversity”, Sheree Atcheson

10. “There are no words to
express the abyss between
isolation and having one
ally.”
G. K. Chesterton

11. Allyship begins with you …

12. ❏ Check your biases
❏ Check your privilege
❏ Listen and learn
❏ Empathy not sympathy
Allyship Checklist

13. Project Implicit : Free online
Implicit Association Tests (IAT)
Recommended reading :
Blindspot: Hidden Biases of Good
People
Everyday Bias: Identifying and
Navigating Unconscious Judgments
in Our Daily Lives
Check your biases

14. This may be uncomfortable for
some but :
● It’s okay to have privilege.
● The more privilege you have the
more good you can do if you
choose to.
● With great privilege, comes
great responsibility.
Check your privilege

15. Effective listening is a skill and can
be used to build strong
relationships.
Give your undivided attention.
Learn more about the struggle of
the individual or group you want to
allie with.
Listen and learn

16. Empathy fuels connections.
Sympathy drives disconnection.
Put yourself in the shoes of the
individuals you are allied with.
Avoid unsolicited advice and pity.
Empathy not sympathy

18. “Empathy is seeing with the
eyes of another, listening
with the ears of another and
feeling with the heart of
another”
Alfred Adler

19. ❏ Check your biases
❏ Check your privilege
❏ Listen and learn
❏ Empathy not sympathy
Allyship Checklist

20. ● Be intolerant of intolerance
Example : “We don’t do that here”
● Seek out marginalized voices and
perspectives
What’s next ?
Source : https://www.upworthy.com/7-ways-to-be-a-better-ally-in-2018

21. ● Give your time, energy and money*
● Be proactive about inclusion in your
daily life. Build inclusion into the
blueprints of your culture
● Avoid segregation
What’s next ?
Source : https://www.upworthy.com/7-ways-to-be-a-better-ally-in-2018

22. Resources
Better Allies on Twitter : @betterallies
Guide to Allyship : http://guidetoallyship.com
Allyship - The Key To Unlocking The Power Of
Diversity by Sheree Atcheson
Blindspot : Hidden Biases of Good People
A Harvard Study Shows That Men Are 5 Times
More Believable Than Women

23. Thank you
@tomwillfixit
@shipitcon
@diversitymanifesto