When we were doing the “Wellness Includes Me” training with Jess Thompson Wellness she talked often about “calling IN” before “calling OUT.” Said simply, it’s inviting them to have a conversation before exposing them to the world.

We have done this often in our work. We did it with our “Dear Karen” letter after we were asked not to host our Supper Club at a specific boutique hotel––because it was about diversity, equity, and inclusion. We did it after the super bowl when a local Nashville wellness studio posted a bunch of pro-Tom Brady content.

Most of the time we don’t get a response. We didn’t in the case of this wellness studio or the Karen letter. But this is the work we need to be doing as a community in order to create change.

We, (and here we are speaking to the white people in the room, self-included) cause more harm when we ignore the racist or ignorant behavior of our neighbors, friends, and family. We actively participate in the system of racism when we stay silent––in fact, the term is literally called "white silence." It is a violent act.

When doing this work we often hear that people are scared to call others out publically, and while we wish that wasn't the case, we understand it early on in your journey. The solution? Call people in. Invite them to have a conversation. You can use prompts like, "Hey did you know XYZ," or "Hello, I would love to have a conversation with you about how this might be harmful," or even "Would you be willing to have a conversation with me about this?"

We know that this might be difficult but nothing could be more important. For change to happen we must create it through conversation, action, and intention (and policy).

Actions and takeaways:

Are there people or businesses in your life that you could invite to the table by calling them in? Identify a couple and try reaching out.
If you call in and you don’t get a response then you can put some public pressure on with a call OUT.
This is not to tone police––especially BIPOC reading this. Honestly, if you want to start by calling someone out we support you 100%.

What other ideas do you have for calling people in? Have you done this before? Let us know below!