Shared Sisterhood: How to Take Collective Action for Racial and Gender Equity at Work

Gender equity is gaining steam-but not all women are seeing the benefits. We need Shared Sisterhood.

Gender and racial bias persist in organizations and in society. And though strides have been made toward equity in the last few decades, it still has not been reached. Even more disconcerting, Black women and other women of color are being held back more than their White counterparts.

Most advice for women encourages individuals to speak up, be assertive, or lean in-to assimilate into a system modeled after White men. But individual action is not enough. We need collective action, where marginalized individuals work together, so all women experience the benefits of professional growth and equality. We need Shared Sisterhood, and anyone, regardless of gender, can join in.

In this book, Tina Opie and Beth A. Livingston explain how to build this crucial alliance through vulnerability, trust, empathy, and risk-taking, so that all women can advance in the workplace and create systemic change. Drawing from their research program of the same name, they break down three key parts of the process:

Dig into your own assumptions around racioethnicity, gender, and power Bridge the divide between women of all racioethnic groups through authentic relationships Advance all women across the organization and beyond

Balancing a mix of history, research, and real-life examples, this book encourages everyone to be a part of the sisterhood and push for gender equity that is equal for all.