Words Matter

Words matter. Words train us what to notice.

Neuroscience shows that what we name becomes visible in our consciousness.

Consider the hare and the rabbit. Most of us think of hares and rabbits as the same thing. They are in the same Family and Order, but different Genus and Species. They have very different behaviors and needs when you're trained (aka have the words) to differentiate.

Hares live above ground and run when afraid. Rabbits burrow. Their diets are different. Their appearance is different. Baby hares are leverets born ready to go. Baby rabbits are kittens to be nursed for weeks before independent. Bunny is just a cute nickname we toss around.

Words matter. Really listen to the words we’re learning through DE&I efforts. Those words are allowing us to move topics into our collective consciousness. What is not named and understood is not counted. A hare is not a rabbit.