This past June, I published a letter on behalf of PartySlate that stood in solidarity with the Black community against hate, intolerance, and racism. In the letter, I also outlined clear steps PartySlate planned to take as an organization to foster a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive community.
With the help of our newly formed Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) committee, I am proud to share the progress our team has made. Our journey is far from over, but these initiatives are the first steps toward driving meaningful change and creating a more inclusive PartySlate community.
- The PartySlate DEI committee meets every month and is committed to creating policies, partnerships, and opportunities that will ensure diversity, equity, and inclusion thrive and are at the center of all that we do.
- We announced Juneteenth, a holiday celebrating the emancipation of those who had been enslaved in the United States, as an official PartySlate company holiday. In the future, we will ask our team to take the day to listen, learn, and reflect.
- We added a diversity classification feature to event professional profiles, which allows individuals and companies to self-identify as a diverse business. We can now track the progress we are making in diversifying our community.
- We hosted an educational webinar focused on diversity and inclusion within the events industry, which was co-hosted by Nicole Deberry, Chair of the PartySlate DEI Committee.
- We consciously partnered with diverse webinar speakers and event partners to ensure all backgrounds, perspectives, and cultures were represented in our curriculum. We received positive feedback on our inclusive branding webinar.
- We researched and published our first curated lists of Black-owned event professional businesses — Black-owned businesses in New York and Black-owned businesses in Chicago to hire for your wedding or event — to elevate the talent of Black-owned vendors within the events industry. We plan to continue to put a spotlight on diverse businesses in 2021.
- We are more intentional with the photos and videos we feature both in our marketing materials and throughout our platform.
- We are more intentional with descriptive language we use in our marketing materials and throughout our platform so as not to make assumptions about groups or individuals.
As 2020 comes to a close, I turn my attention to the future and the work that still needs to be done. I appreciate your continued support, and as always, please email Contact@partyslate.com with any thoughts, ideas, or feedback.
I hope everyone has a healthy and safe New Year.
Sincerely,
Julie Roth Novack
PartySlate CEO & Co-Founder