Washington State Glossary for Inclusive & Equitable Workplaces
Welcome to the 4th version of the Glossary for Inclusive & Equitable Workplaces, previously known as the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging glossary!
The intent of this glossary is to provide state employees with a compilation of equity-related terms and their meanings. When we have a shared vocabulary and agree on the meaning of the words we use, we are better able to collaborate across departments, teams, and the communities that we serve.
Words carry meaning, power, and impact. It is important that we understand the meanings, recognize the power, and demonstrate reflection, continual learning, and accountability for the impact of the words we use in Washington State government. It is also important to understand that the human beings who are educating us about these terms are living the identities and experiences described in this glossary.
Because people are continually evolving, the words we use to describe them need to evolve as well. This resource is meant to support the work of improving access, advancing equity, and eliminating systemic racism and other forms of oppression from the work we do. This is not meant to serve as a primary resource in any specialized area such as law, medicine, or academia.
Thank you to the Washington State Business Resource Groups, the Washington State DEI Council Glossary Workgroup, The Department of Health, Department of Enterprise Services, Office of Equity, OFM Communications for your hard work and dedication to this body of work. The work that was poured into this version will directly impact those who experience disparities, exclusion, and systemic oppression in the workplace. Thanks to your vital contribution to this work our state will have a practical resource guiding us to maintain a growth mindset while affirming and embodying diversity, equity, inclusion, antiracism, and belonging every step of the way.
You may request a Glossary Edit if you would like a term added to or a definition edited in this glossary. Please note that the review committee meets quarterly to review these submissions and is committed to the shared-power process, so these edits make take several months to research and to respond to.
Term |
Definition |
|---|---|
| Environmental Justice |
The fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income in the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. It recognizes that there are communities that are under- resourced, marginalized, and oppressed across Washington that are disproportionately affected. Justice will be achieved when everyone enjoys the same degree of protection from environmental and health hazards, access to the decision-making process, and benefits of a healthy environment in which to live, learn, and work. |
| Equity |
The act of developing, strengthening, and supporting procedural and outcome fairness in systems, procedures, and resource distribution mechanisms to create equitable (not equal) opportunity for all people. Equity is distinct from equality which refers to everyone having the same treatment without accounting for differing needs or circumstances. Equity has a focus on eliminating barriers that have prevented the full participation of historically and currently oppressed groups. |
| Ethnicity |
A social construct that divides people into smaller social groups based on characteristics such as values, behavioral patterns, language, political and economic interests, history, and ancestral geographical base. |
| Ethnocentrism |
The belief that one’s own ethnic group or culture is superior to other ethnic groups and cultures. |
| Eugenics |
Framework that characterizes people as either fit or unfit. It assumes that to be unfit is to be genetically inferior, and genetic inferiority should be eliminated to strengthen humanity. Eugenics was used to justify killing millions of people through the Holocaust, and prominent Western countries have used eugenicist logic to justify practices such as forced sterilization, involuntary institutionalization, human testing, and the withholding of medical care. See Ableism13. Though eugenics is no longer embraced as a wholesale theory, it still influences and shapes public discourse and policy in many ways: • Forced sterilization and coercive birth-control practices happening in the U.S. and globally. • Immigration policies preventing certain people from entering or residing in countries based on eugenicist logic. • People receiving public benefits are disincentivized from having more children. • Trans people across parts of Europe facing mandatory sterilization to legally change their gender. • Legal conservatorship, allowing a court-appointed guardian full control of an individual’s financial and personal affairs, once deemed “incapacitated.”
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