Dawne Lucas, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chaitra Powell, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries
Morgan McKeehan, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Our institution has had a very robust set of initiatives related to DEI before and since 2020. We represent a committee of diverse practitioners who have been charged to share information about current initiatives, charge new groups, and in some cases sunset exisiting projects. In many ways, we are a barometer for how our staff is feeling about the future of DEI. Similiar to the Toots and Maytal song alluded to in the title, we long for a scenario in which staff ("it is you") could feel empowered to pursue DEI work alongside other types of work, and our committee would not need to exist ("pressure would drop"). Our talk will discuss the current work of our committee and our efforts disrupt some of the gatekeeping notions that tend to accompany groups like ours.