Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Topics

Megan Austin

4 Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Topics

The proposed client scenarios present opportunities to discuss diversity, equity, and inclusion. These topics can be part of a class discussion or an online discussion board to add meaning and context to the research problem.

Diversity, Equity, and inclusion in the craft brewing industry

Craft brewing is a multi-billion-dollar industry, but less than 1% of breweries in the U.S. are black-owned…not for lack of interest, but largely due to lack of access to seed money to start a business, lack of access to property suitable for brewing operations, and lack of access to employment experience and education/training programs.

People of color, as well as people in the LGBTQIA+ community, and women are significantly underrepresented in the craft brewing and other beverage alcohol industries. People of color have not only felt unwelcome as industry members, but also as consumers of craft beer. Fortunately, some members of underrepresented communities who are passionate about brewing and distilling have acted on their goals to make the craft brewing industry more inclusive and welcoming.

To learn more about the movement to make craft brewing more inclusive and diverse, explore the following resources:

The NPR program 1A recently presented a segment on diversity, equity, and inclusion in the craft brewing industry and community.
Entrepreneurship and Equity in Brewing offers a 10-week program that trains Black, Indigenous, People of Color, and other underrepresented groups in beer brewing and running a business in the craft brewing industry.
The Michael James Jackson Foundation funds scholarship awards to Black, Indigenous, and People of Color within the brewing and distilling trades.
The Brewer’s Association is a non-profit trade association whose purpose is to promote and protect American craft brewers, their beers, and the community of brewing enthusiasts. The Brewer’s Association offers a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Mini-Grants program to bring educational opportunities “to those pursuing entrepreneurship and employment opportunities in craft beer and those seeking to explore the legacy and importance of beer in culture.” The Brewer’s Association also maintains a resource hub for diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Several breweries are leading the way in creating a more diverse and inclusive craft brewing community.
There are several places to find stories of those who are underrepresented in the brewing industry and community, and even those who have been enslaved, oppressed, or threatened: The story of Patsy Young, a woman who was a brewer, weaver, baker, and a slave; a story from the LGBTQIA+ community: Beer is for Everyone; and perspectives from women in brewing.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in health care (and end of life care)

End-of-Life Doulas “can play a key role in shifting end of life care from a paternalistic to patient-directed system by bringing non judgmental support to patients and serving as their advocate.” (Medical Aid in Dying: The Role of Death Doulas, Feb. 1, 2021, Compassion and Choices, originally published in National End-Of-Life Doula Alliance Newsletter). The work of end-of-life doulas (or death doulas) brings up issues of access to health care, disability rights, and access to resources to make informed decisions at the end of life.

Access to health care:

Many U.S. residents struggle to access and afford health care: Approximately 40% of adults report having unpaid debt from medical or dental bills. In addition, Hispanic and Black working-age adults were less likely to have healthcare coverage than white/non-Hispanic or Asian adults in 2023. Unexpected medical bills and the cost of healthcare ranked as the top two worries related to affordability among Americans in 2024. Healthcare expenditures per capita averaged $12,555 in the U.S. in 2022, more than $4,000 higher than in other high-income countries. (Les Masterson, Health Insurance Facts and Statistics 2025, Forbes, Jan. 2, 2025, https://www.forbes.com/advisor/health-insurance/health-insurance-statistics-and-facts/).

Many marginalized people in the U.S. lack access to information about hospice and palliative care, as well as assisted dying.

Death doulas are not covered by health insurance, and therefore, are accessible to a limited population.

Assisted Dying (Death with Dignity):

Currently, physician-assisted dying is legal in 10 U.S. states (Maine, New Jersey, Vermont, New Mexico, Montana, Colorado, Oregon, Washington, California, and Hawai’i) and Washington, D.C. (Chris Haring, Medical Aid in Dying as an End-Of-Life Option Offers Death With Dignity, March 29, 2023, Death with Dignity Organization).

Many disability advocates raise several arguments against assisted-dying laws: the laws create direct or indirect pressure on disabled persons to opt for assisted dying; the laws devalue the lives of disabled persons; palliative care services are currently inadequate; the safe-guarding measures of the laws are ineffective and open to abuse; medical opinions are unreliable and often inconsistent, with some physicians misjudging quality of life. In essence, some disability advocates “fear that physician-assisted dying is a slippery slope and that if we legalize it in any form, soon we’ll be killing all disabled babies at birth, people will be bumping off their aging grandparents to get out of caring for them, and everyone in a wheelchair will feel obligated to kill themselves so as not to be a burden” (Joan Tollifson, Death with Dignity and People with Disabilities, June 19, 2015, deathwithdignity.org/news/2015/06/death-with-dignity-disabilities/).

These laws raise issues about the diversity of perspectives of what constitutes a “good death,” as well as the influence of cultural and religious values in perceptions of death and end of life care.

Resources:

Melissa J. Bloomer, Laurie Saffer, Jayne Hewitt, Lise Johns, Donna McAuliffe, and Ann Bonner, Maybe for Unbearable Suffering: Diverse Racial, Ethnic, and Cultural Perspectives of Assisted Dying: A Scoping Review. Palliative Medicine, 38 (9) p. 968, Aug. 10, 2024.

Cindy L. Cain and Sara McCleskey, Expanded Definitions of the “Good Death”?, Race, Ethnicity, and Medical Aid in Dying, Social Health Illn. 41 (6) p. 1175, Apr. 4, 2019.

Ben Colburn, Disability-based Arguments Against Assisted Dying Laws. Bioethics, 36(6) p. 680, Apr. 7, 2022.

Oregon’s Death with Dignity Act, Oregon Health Authority.

End of Life Choices Oregon.

National End-Of-Life Doula Alliance.

International End-Of-Life Doula Association.