Inclusion & Diversity: Glossary
| A | |
| Ableism | Beliefs or practices that rest on the assumption that being able-bodied is ‘normal’ while other states of being need to be ‘fixed’ or altered. This can result in devaluing or discriminating against people with physical, intellectual or psychiatric disabilities. Institutionalized ableism may include or take the form of un/intentional organizational barriers that result in disparate treatment of people with disabilities. Source: Glossary of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) Terms by Harvard University Human Resources |
| Accessibility | The ‘ability to access’ the functionality of a system or entity, and gain the related benefits; the degree to which a product, service, or environment is accessible by as many people as possible. Accessible design ensures both direct (unassisted) access and indirect access through assistive technology (e.g., computer screen readers). Source: Glossary of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) Terms by Harvard University Human Resources |
| Ally | A person who is not a member of a marginalized or disadvantaged group (e.g. relating to gender, age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion) but who expresses or gives support to that group. An ally acknowledges oppression and actively commits to reducing their own complicity, for example by expanding their own knowledge and awareness of oppression. Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington / Glossary of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) Terms by Harvard University Human Resources |
| Alternative text (also: alt-text) | On websites, alt-text is text that describes non-text content, usually images, and is added via HTML markup. It can be read by screen readers and other text-to-speech programs so that users with a visual impairment and blind users are able to understand the purpose and function of the non-text content. Source: Glossary of Accessibility Terms by Pearson – Accessibility for Assessments |
| Anti-racism | “Anti-racism is an active commitment to working against racial injustice and discrimination. It’s making conscious and thoughtful decisions regarding your own behaviours and reflecting how they negatively influence and impact your own biases and actions. You do not have to be completely free of racism or bias to be anti-racist. Part of the role as an anti-racist person is self-reflection and self-improvement. An anti-racist is different from a non-racist due to the active nature of the position. […]” Source: A guide to race and ethnicity terminology and language by The Law Society UK |
| Assistant (also: carer, caretaker, escort) | A person helping people with disabilities that follows wherever the person they support goes. Sometimes, festivals offer trained assistants via a pre-order service to their visitors with a disability, other times PwD bring their own assistants. |
| Audio description | “An additional audio track in videos, animations, movies, tv shows, and live performances that describes visual detail on screen that’s not apparent from the audio alone, so that visually-impaired/blind users are able to understand all the content.” Audio description can also be used to describe paintings, drawings, sculptures, and live performances or appearance and the behaviour of people performing on stage. Source: Glossary of Accessibility Terms by Pearson – Accessibility for Assessments |
| Awareness | “Awareness refers to the conscious attention to situations in which the boundaries of others are or have been crossed. All forms of discrimination and violence can play a role in this, but it is also about sensitivity to a person’s well-being. […] Awareness work aims to ensure that all people, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, skin color, origin, appearance, and physical abilities, can feel as comfortable, free, and safe as possible. Border-crossing situations and (sexualized) violence should be prevented in advance by making people aware of structures and reflecting on them. […]” Source: Glossary by Awareness Akademie |
| B | |
| BAME, BME | Acronym for “Black, Asian and minority ethnic” that was frequently used particularly in the UK. In recent years, it has been dropped in favor of “ethnic minorities” or “people from ethnic minority backgrounds” because it was found that aggregated terms like BAME disguise huge difference between the ethnic groups they lump together. Source: UK government website |
| Bias; Implicit, unconscious or hidden bias | “A form of prejudice that results from our need to quickly classify individuals into categories.” Although this prejudice can be in favor of or against one thing, person, or group, it usually turns out to be unfair or negative. An implicit or hidden bias is the same prejudice that we unconsciously make about another person based on common cultural stereotypes, rather than on a thoughtful judgment. Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington / Glossary of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) Terms by Harvard University Human Resources |
| BIPoC | “An acronym used to refer to black, Indigenous and people of color. It is based on the recognition of collective experiences of systemic racism. As with any other identity terms, it is up to affected individuals to use this term as an identifier.” Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |
| Black | “Black is a self-identifying term by and for Black people of African or African Diaspora descent, but can also be used by other minority ethnic groups. Blackness does not refer to skin color, but is rather a construct that designates a common identity and mutual solidarity based on shared experiences of racism and colonialism. It denotes a structurally disadvantaged position within racist power structures. […]” Source: Glossary by Awareness Akademie |
| Braille | “Braille is not a language. Rather, it is a code by which text may be written and read. Braille is a system of raised dots that can be read with the fingers by people who are blind or who have low vision, and provides a means of literacy for all.” Source: Glossary of Accessibility Terms by Pearson – Accessibility for Assessments |
| C | |
| Captions; Real-time captions | The audio content in a video is turned into a text-based alternative to convey all auditory information (language, sound effects, background noises etc.) to users who are deaf or hard of hearing. Note: Although sometimes used interchangeably, “captions” and “subtitles” are not the same. Captions are a textual version of all audio information, whereas subtitles only represent the dialogue spoken. “Real-time captions, or Computer Assisted Real-time Translation (CART), are created as an event takes place. A captioner (often trained as a court reporter or stenographer) uses a stenotype machine with a phonetic keyboard and special software. A computer translates the phonetic symbols into captions almost instantaneously and displays them on a laptop or on a large display screen.” Source: Glossary of Accessibility Terms by Pearson – Accessibility for Assessments |
| Cisgender | “A term for people whose gender identity, expression or behavior aligns with those typically associated with their assigned sex at birth.” Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |
| Consent | “Consent, among other things, distinguishes sex from sexualized violence. In this context, consent means that all participants in a sexual act have freely agreed to it and can stop at any time. The prerequisite for consent is the ability of all participants to give their consent. This is not the case, for example, with unconscious or sleeping people and can also be affected by relationships with power imbalances or dependence, alcohol and other drugs, etc.” Source: Glossary by Awareness Akademie |
| Cultural appropriation | The term was originally coined to describe the effects of colonialism, but is now used in everyday discourse as well. Cultural appropriation generally entails adopting aspects of a minority culture by someone outside the culture (often from a dominant culture), usually in a non-consensual or misappropriate way, without sufficient understanding of its context or respect for the meaning and value of the original. Cultural appropriation done in a way that promotes disrespectful cultural or racial stereotypes is considered particularly harmful. Cultural elements that can be appropriated include symbols, art, language, customs, (hair) styles and more. Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington / Glossary of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) Terms by Harvard University Human Resources |
| D | |
| Disability; hidden disability (also: invisible disability) | Physical or mental impairment that affects a person’s ability to carry out day-to-day activities. Hidden disabilities are disabilities that are not immediately apparent when looking at the affected person. Hidden disabilities include chronic illnesses like asthma, diabetes, and epilepsy as well as mental disabilities and disorders like depression, ADHD, Dyslexia and Autism, and some types of cancer. Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |
| Discrimination | “The unequal treatment of members of various groups, based on conscious or unconscious prejudice, which favors one group over others on differences of gender, economic class, sexual orientation, physical ability, religion, language, age, national identity, religion and other categories.” Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |
| Diversity | “Socially, it refers to the wide range of human identities. It broadly includes ethnicity, gender, age, national origin, religion, disability, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, education, marital status, language, veteran status, physical appearance, etc. It also involves different ideas, perspectives and values.” Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |
| E | |
| Equity | “The fair treatment, access, opportunity and advancement for all people, while at the same time striving to identify and eliminate barriers that prevent the full participation of some groups. The principle of equity acknowledges that there are historically underserved and underrepresented populations and that fairness regarding these unbalanced conditions is necessary to provide equal opportunities to all groups.” Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |
| Ethnicity | “A group of people whose members identify with each other through a common heritage, often consisting of a common language, common culture (which can include a religion) and/or an ideology which stresses a common ancestry. It is the way that most countries and peoples choose to delineate groups and has superseded the idea of ‘race’.” Source: Definitions by the Institute of Race Relations UK |
| ETR (easy to read; also: easy read) | A standard for creating texts that are easy to read and understand. It was created with the needs of people with intellectual disabilities in mind, but texts prepared in this manner may also be useful to people with cognitive difficulties, second-language speakers, people with mental health issues, people who have poor knowledge of a language, or people who are stressed or in a hurry. ETR texts are written in simple, short, jargon-free sentences, accompanied by images. ETR is different from plain language because ETR texts are far less complex than texts in plain language. Source: AbilityNet |
| F | |
| FLINTA (also: FLINTA*, FLINTA+) | FLINTA is an acronym used to describe groups of people other than cisgender men that stands for female, lesbian, intersex, non-binary, trans, and agender. An asterisk or plus can be used at the end of the term to indicate that it it includes anyone whose identity isn’t explicitly mentioned in the acronym but is still theoretically included (e.g. genderfluid, bigender, and genderqueer). The acronym is also used in German. In this case, the F stands for “Frauen” (“women”). Sometimes the term FINTA is preferred, because unlike the other terms, “lesbian” refers to sexual orientation rather than gender identity. Source: https://minkaguides.com/flinta/ / Glossary by Awareness Akademie |
| G | |
| Gender, Gender Identity | “Gender refers to the social constructs and roles around sex. It is distinct from one’s biological sex. Gender describes the culturally constructed gender aspects of people, i.e. things that are usually considered typically female or typically male in a culture. This insight goes back to the feminist writer Simone de Beauvoir. In her book ‘The Other Sex’ (1949), she put forward the thesis that one is not born a woman, but is made a woman during life, and that the supposed differences between women and men are not a product of nature, but a product of society.” Source: Glossary by Awareness Akademie |
| Gender non-conforming (also: Gender non-binary) | “A way of identifying and/or expressing oneself outside the binary gender categories of male/masculine and female/feminine.” Source: Glossary of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) Terms by Harvard University Human Resources |
| Global Majority | An alternative to terms like “ethnic minority groups”, “people of colour” and “non-white people” that challenges the negative implications that many of these expressions have. It is estimated that 85% of the global population are members of the global majority, so the term tries to debunk the myth of white supremacy – from a global perspective, white people are not, in fact, in the majority, although language, art, customs, and schooling particularly in Western society leads us to believe this. Read this blog post to find out more (https://britthawthorne.com/blog/people-global-majority/). The term has been criticized for allegedly diluting language (using the word “majority” to describe groups who are in the minority in certain countries) and for not including white ethnic groups that are cultural minorities in white majority societies, such as Jews. Source: “https://britthawthorne.com/blog/people-global-majority/ / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_majority |
| H | |
| Harassment | Comments or actions that the target person perceives as offensive, embarrassing, humiliating, demeaning or unwelcome. Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |
| Hearing loop (also: magnetic loop, audio induction loop) | “A special type of sound system for use by people with hearing aids. The HL provides a magnetic, wireless signal that gets picked up by the hearing aid when it is set to ‘T’ (Telecoil) setting. It is the only assistive listening technology that can broadcast directly to a wide range of hearing aids, making them the most popular option for accessible audio in public spaces.” Source: https://www.hearinglink.org/technology/hearing-loops/what-is-a-hearing-loop/ |
| I | |
| Inclusion | “The act of creating an environment in which any individual or group will be welcomed, respected, supported and valued as a fully participating member. An inclusive and welcoming climate embraces and respects differences.” Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |
| Intersectionality | “The complex, cumulative way in which the effects of multiple forms of discrimination (such as racism, sexism, and classism) combine, overlap, or intersect, and have multiple effects on the same individuals or groups. Also refers to the view that overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination and inequality can more effectively be addressed together.” Source: Glossary of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) Terms by Harvard University Human Resources |
| Intersexuality | “Individuals are referred to as intersex if they cannot be assigned a clear gender at birth. A person may be born with physical characteristics which do not fit the binary social norm of male and female. This may be at the genetic, hormonal or anatomical level. Intersex is not a disease and generally does not affect a person’s health. Intersex support and advocacy groups criticize the practices of operating on or medicating intersex people, often in infancy and childhood, without consent, in order to make their gender ‘clear. […]'” Source: Glossary by Awareness Akademie |
| L | |
| Latinx; Latiné (also: Latine) | “Used as a gender-neutral or non-binary alternative to Latino or Latina to describe a person of Latin American origin or descent.” Source: Glossary of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) Terms by Harvard University Human Resources While both terms are gender-neutral, “Latine is what’s commonly used among Spanish speakers as it’s more easily pronounced than Latinx and can be used in plural forms.” Source: Hispanic Executive |
| LGBTQIA+ (also: LGBT+) | “An inclusive term for those who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual.” The + is used to indicate that the term refers to anyone from the LGBT community, even if neither of the terms accurately describes their sexual orientation or gender identity. Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |
| M | |
| Hegemonic masculinity | Hegemonic masculinity is defined as a practice that legitimizes men’s dominant position in society and justifies the subordination of women and other genders. Conceptually, hegemonic masculinity proposes to explain how and why men maintain dominant social roles over women, and other gender identities, which are perceived as “feminine” in a given society. Source: John Scott, A Dictionary of Sociology |
| N | |
| Neurodiversity | “When neurological differences are recognized and respected as are any other kind of human differences or variations. These differences can include Dyspraxia, Dyslexia, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Dyscalculia, Autistic Spectrum, and Tourette Syndrome.” Source: Glossary of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) Terms by Harvard University Human Resources |
| P | |
| Patriarchy | “Actions and beliefs that prioritizes masculinity. Patriarchy is practiced systemically in the ways and methods through which power is distributed in society (jobs and positions of power given to men in government, policy, criminal justice, etc.) while also influencing how we interact with one another interpersonally (gender expectations, sexual dynamics, space-taking, etc.).” Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |
| People of Colour | A collective term for those of Asian, African, Latinx and Native American backgrounds, as opposed to the collective “White”. Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |
| Plain language | “A communication is in plain language if its wording, structure, and design are so clear that the intended readers can easily find what they need, understand what they find, and use that information.” Source: International Plain Language Federation |
| Privilege | “An unearned, sustained advantage that comes from ethnicity, gender, sexuality, ability, socioeconomic status, age, and other differences.” Source: Glossary of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) Terms by Harvard University Human Resources |
| Pronouns; PGDs | “Words to refer to a person after initially using their name. Gendered pronouns include she and he, her and him, hers and his, and herself and himself. ‘Preferred gender pronouns’ (or PGPs) are the pronouns that people ask others to use in reference to themselves. They may be plural gender-neutral pronouns such as they, them, their(s). Or, they may be ze (rather than she or he) or hir (rather than her(s) and him/his) or other newly arising pronouns. Some people state their pronoun preferences as a form of allyship.” Source: Glossary of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) Terms by Harvard University Human Resources |
| PwDs | Acronym for ‘people/person(s) with disabilities.’ |
| Q | |
| Queer | “An umbrella term that can refer to anyone who transgresses society’s view of gender or sexuality. The definitional indeterminacy of the word Queer […] is one of its characteristics […].” Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |
| R | |
| Race | “A social construct that artificially divides people into distinct groups based on characteristics such as physical appearance, ancestral heritage, cultural affiliation, cultural history, ethnic classification, and the social, economic and political needs of a society at a given period of time.” Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |
| Racialisation | “Racialization is the very complex and contradictory process through which groups come to be designated as being part of a particular “race” and on that basis subjected to differential and/or unequal treatment. Put simply, ‘racialization [is] the process of manufacturing and utilizing the notion of race in any capacity’ (Dalal, 2002, p. 27).” Sources: CARED – Calgary Anti-Racism Education Dalal, F. (2002). Race, Colour and the Process of Racialization: New Perspectives from Group Analysis, Psychoanalysis and Sociology. New York, NY: Brunner-Routledge. |
| Racialised People | “Society assigns certain people with a racial category that subjects them to oppressive or discriminatory treatment — especially from formal institutions — through systematic and institutionalized racism […]. The term looks to highlight that race is a social construction imposed by dominant groups on oppressed groups. […] In today’s societies, white European/North American is considered the hegemonic race, and racialized people are those who do not fit into this category. The term racialized allows to emphasize race as an action exerted on a group of people, an action on one or various racial groups.” In contrast to terms like “people of colour”, this term doesn’t exclude white groups of people who experience racism, like (in Europe) Russians and Eastern Europeans. Source: Modii |
| Racism | “A belief that ethnic or cultural differences produce or are associated with inherent superiority or inferiority, which results in prejudice, discrimination or hostility against entire ethnicities. Racially-based prejudice, discrimination, hostility or hatred. Institutionalized racism, also known as systemic racism, refers to forms of racism that are engrained in society or organizations. It is when entire ethnic groups are discriminated against, or consistently disadvantaged, by larger social systems, practices, choices or policies.” Source: Glossary of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) Terms by Harvard University Human Resources |
| S | |
| Safe(r) Space | An environment in which everyone feels comfortable expressing themselves and participating fully, without fear of attack, ridicule or denial of experience. Since it is almost impossible to guarantee absolute safety, the term “safer space” is used more often. Festivals can declare an area, a room, a container etc. on their site as a “safer space” and assign people with some kind of psychological training to host it, so guests who feel unsafe and/or have become victims of harassment have a place they can turn to for help. Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington / Glossary by Awareness Akademie |
| Sexism | “Sexism refers to various forms of discrimination against people on the basis of their gender (actual or perceived). Sexism also refers to the ideology underneath this phenomenon, which establishes a hierarchy of gender roles: men are privileged, while women are devalued or discriminated against. Sexism manifests in culturally- and historically-specific ways. Its effects are visible in the marginalization of women, trans, non-binary and intersex people.” Source: Glossary by Awareness Akademie |
| Sexual Orientation | “An individual’s enduring physical, romantic and/or emotional attraction to another person. Gender identity and sexual orientation are not the same. Transgender people may be straight, lesbian, gay or bisexual.” Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |
| Sign Language | “Sign language is a visual language that uses hand shapes, facial expression, gestures and body language. Sign languages have their own vocabulary, construction and grammar. There are around 300 sign languages in the world. Like spoken languages, sign languages are natural, which means that they’re developed over the years by the people who use them.” Source: National Deaf Children’s society UK |
| Subtitles; Live subtitles | Subtitles are on-screen text for videos most often shown at the bottom of the screen provided for (hearing) users. They might be in a language different to the language spoken in the video to help users understand what is being said, or they might be in the same language to help users better understand the dialogue. Note that “subtitles” are different from “captions”, which are intended for users who are deaf/hard-of-hearing and convey more information than just the dialogue spoken. Live subtitles are continuously created during an event and displayed on a screen, smartphone or tablet in real time or with a slight delay. Most often used during debates, conferences and outdoor events. Source: Glossary of Accessibility Terms by Pearson – Accessibility for Assessments |
| T | |
| Tokenism | “Performative presence without meaningful participation. For example, a superficial invitation for the participation of members of a certain socially oppressed group, who are expected to speak for the whole group without giving this person a real opportunity to speak for her/himself. Tokenism is less about the individual or the abilities of an individual, but rather about individuals being reduced to representing a category.” Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |
| Transgender | “An umbrella term used to describe a person whose gender identity is something other than their Sex Assigned at Birth (SAAB). The SAAB is a person’s first association with gender, typically based on physical sex characteristics.” Source: Glossary of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) Terms by Harvard University Human Resources |
| U | |
| URM | Under-Represented Minorities. Some institutions have defined sub-groups within larger ethnic minority groups that are particularly under-represented relative to their size. “For example, in a given field, Mexican-Americans may be an under-represented minority, even if Hispanic people are otherwise proportionately represented.” Source: Glossary of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIB) Terms by Harvard University Human Resources |
| V | |
| Vibrating vest / backpack | Electronic devices designed for deaf people and people with hearing impairments that can be worn like a vest or backpack at live performances and transmit the vibration of different musical instruments to the wearer. They can also be worn by hearing people to enhance their live music experience. Source: BBC Science Focus |
| W | |
| WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) | A standard for creating and publishing accessible content on the Internet. Several versions have been developed by the Web Accessibility Initiative of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), the main international standards organization for the Internet. Source: W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 |
| White Privilege | “White privilege is the innate advantage white people have within society solely based on their ethnicity. This can manifest in a vast variety of ways. Some examples include representation in media, easily finding product which match your skin tone and hair type, being part of the curriculum, having a generally positive relationship with the police. The term does not discount the challenges white people have faced but describes the reality that, although white people and people of all ethnicities can have similar negative and disadvantageous experiences, white people will not suffer the biases of ethnicity in addition.” Source: A guide to race and ethnicity terminology and language by The Law Society UK |
| White Supremacy | “A power system structured and maintained by persons who classify themselves as White, whether consciously or subconsciously determined; and who feel superior to those of other ethnic identities.” Source: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Glossary of the University of Washington |