Race, Gender, and Class: How Much Of A Role Do They Play In Mediation? (6/29/09)
Elizabeth Moreno
Recent studies have come to life as to the role race, gender and class of the mediator plays in mediation. Does race play any discernible role in mediation compared to gender or socioeconomic class?   6 Comments

Success Leaves Clues: A Profile Of Elder Decisions (6/22/09)
Tammy Lenski
“There is a great deal of opportunity to create a niche in your community once you have the training and if you are willing to put in the time to market your practice and develop the network of referrals you will need in order to grow,” say Arline Kardasis and Rikk Larsen of Elder Decisions, which scored a major marketing success with National Public Radio in April.

The Sovereignty Claims Of Indigenous Peoples (6/22/09)
Larry Susskind
Think about it from their perspective. Assume you are part of a group that has inhabited a place for at least a thousand years. Your ceremonies and traditions date back a lot farther than those of the interlopers who now control every aspect of your life. Your people have been connected to that particular place for all of recorded history. Yet, now, the national government that surrounds you wants to dictate what you can and cannot do with your land and how your children should be educated.. That national government has sold the mineral rights out from under you (and kept all the money), polluted the waters you depend on, and stripped the forest that has always been your primary source of food. Wouldn't you be angry?

Mediation And Equal Justice For The Poor (6/15/09)
William S. Harralson
Throughout the history of America, justice and injustice have co-existed in a fierce struggle to determine which contender would emerge in victory. Money and the lack of money remain decisive factors in determining the extent to which an individual will have access to our civil court system. Alternative means of resolving disputes, most notably mediation, have gradually positioned themselves as attractive options especially for those who live in a condition of poverty. This brief essay will explore the extent to which mediation serves to advance or impede the goal of achieving equal justice for every American.

Negotiating Justice: Anchoring, Bias, Dad And Sotomayor (6/15/09)
Victoria Pynchon
The fact that people are still questioning whether a woman, an African American, a Latina or (gasp: clearly for a more equitable society) a gay, bi-, Lesbian or transsexual, jurist will be "biased" by his or her unique perspective is dispiriting to say the least.

The Greatest Generation (6/08/09)
Phyllis Pollack
I know that mediation skills are useful in everyday life, and I have often used my own life experiences to build commonality, and trust with parties, but, to see it played out with such southern charm, sincerity and empathy was something entirely else. In all of my mediation training, I have not seen these skills so well displayed and exemplified. They are skills that only a member of The Greatest Generation could have. Us baby boomers aren’t there yet.

Should Age Matter? (6/08/09)
Jeff Thompson
Is it ok to ask for age specific facilitators? Over at the wonderful NY-DRC listserv hosted on the CUNY John Jay servers (see below on how to join the listserv), there has been many comments on the following request.

Negotiating Disability (3/09/09)
Diane J. Levin
Last summer an online magazine for entrepreneurial women elevated form over substance when it advised its audience to accessorize for that big negotiation and mimic the “look” of the person on the other side of the table. I responded with a post criticizing the undue focus on physical appearance:

Environmental Justice (2/03/09)
Larry Susskind
We care about environmental justice because it doesn't seem fair that poor communities of color should suffer disproportionate health risks. If we can demonstrate that companies have purposely located polluting facilities in minority neighborhoods, the law provides a remedy. When we can't prove intent, though, it's hard to make charges of environmental racism stick.

Class-Action Discrimination Claims Against Dating Service Sent to Mediation (1/07/09)
Keith Seat

A California case alleging discrimination by the dating service eHarmony for refusing to extend its services to gay and lesbian customers was certified as a class action and sent to mediation. A similar case in New Jersey was just settled, with eHarmony agreeing to open a new website for gay customers, which the company asserts should resolve the California case as well.

PC Magazine (November 21, 2008)

Delaware Joins EEOC’s Universal Agreement to Mediate (1/07/09)
Keith Seat

Delaware is the second state to enter into a Universal Agreement to Mediate with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, following New Mexico in October. Based on Delaware’s formal agreement to resolve disputes through mediation, all eligible discrimination charges filed with the EEOC naming Delaware as respondent will be sent to the EEOC’s mediation unit.

US State News (November 19, 2008) (Subscription Required)

New Mexico First State to Join EEOC’s Universal Agreement to Mediate (12/02/08)
Keith Seat

While over 1,200 employers have entered into Universal Agreements to Mediate with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, New Mexico is the first state to do so. With New Mexico’s formal agreement to resolve disputes through mediation, all eligible discrimination charges filed with the EEOC naming the state as respondent will be sent to the EEOC’s mediation unit.

Bizjournal.com (October 31, 2008)

A Glimpse into the Separation of Two Gay Couples (11/24/08)
Dr. Lynne C. Halem
Gay couples, not unlike straight couples, have different stories to tell, different issues to resolve. Yet since Massachusetts’s legalization of gay marriages, the “divorcing” population can be divided clearly into two distinctive sets: one group “living together outside of marriage” and the other “married.”

Mpho Tutu Receives First Marvin Johnson Divesity & Equity Award from ACR (10/07/08)
The Rev. Mpho A. Tutu, an Episcopal priest and founder and executive director of the Tutu Institute for Prayer and Pilgrimage, has received the first Marvin E. Johnson Diversity and Equity Award from the Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR).

Mediation Resolving Psychological Harassment Complaints in Quebec (9/09/08)
Keith Seat

Mediation successfully reaches agreement in 95% of the workplace psychological harassment cases mediated by the Commission des norms du travail in Quebec. In the four years since legislation was enacted protecting employees from psychological harassment, about 8,600 complaints have been filed and a little over a third have been resolved through mediation. Of complainants using mediation, 85% reported they were very satisfied with the mediator’s work.

Canada Newswire (July 3, 2008) (Subscription Required)

Citizens Group and City Defuse Racial Tensions Through Mediation (9/09/08)
Keith Seat

After seven months of mediation facilitated by the U.S. Department of Justice Community Relations Service, a settlement agreement was signed by Fountain Inn (SC) city leaders and a citizens group concerned about police misconduct against African-Americans. Tensions had escalated with the hanging death of a jail inmate in July 2007. The resolution reached to improve police relations requires the police department to seek state accreditation and the city to establish a Citizens Review Committee to hear complaints, review appeals and oversee police handling of complaints.

Greenville News (August 12, 2008); Greenville News (August 13, 2008)

Peer Resource Extraordinaire: An Interview with Rey Carr (8/24/08)
Gini Nelson
This is an interview by Gini Nelson of Rey Carr. Rey Carr is the Chief Executive Officer of Peer Resources.

Hip-hop video blog explains how to tell someone they're racist (8/11/08)
Diane J. Levin
Jay Smooth, founder of New York’s longest running hip-hop radio show, WBAI’s Underground Railroad, hosts ill doctrine, a hip-hop video blog featuring hard-hitting, thoughtful social commentary. Smooth recently posted “How to Tell People They Sound Racist“, a video with advice on having one of the most difficult conversations there is, and underscores the difference between the “what they did” conversation and the “what they are”...

Shari'ah Principles And Mediation (8/05/08)
Geoff Sharp
For those following the debate around the Lord Chief Justice's view that there is no reason why Shari'ah principles should not be the basis for mediation in the UK here is a Muslim perspective which responds to the likes of the Telegraph's Is cosying up to Muslim extremists the best way to defeat terrorism? and the Spectator's A careless talk.Full text of Lord Phillips' speech at the East London Muslim Centre on July 3 here.

Recognizing And Validating Diversity In Mediation (8/04/08)
Malcolm Sher
When they become involved in disputes, whether litigated or not, people from differing cultural or ethnic backgrounds often bring to the table differences that may have caused or contributed to the dispute, and that may well govern its outcome. This article will examine some of those differences and emphasize the need for all participants in the mediation process to learn about and validate them in order to bring about a mutually beneficial settlement.   2 Comments

Where are women who mediate, part 2: how can you hold a panel discussion on diversity and forget to include women? (7/21/08)
Diane J. Levin
Last week fellow mediator, blogger and rabble-rouser Victoria Pynchon published a post with a confrontational title: “Dispute Resolution by Old White Men: Gender Prejudice Sinks Arbitration Award“. Lobbed like a Molotov cocktail, Vickie’s post blew gender bias apart, as she recited a litany of examples of discrimination spanning decades against women inside and outside the legal profession. It’s not just the persistence of gender bias that makes women like Vickie and...

Facing ourselves: new tests for hidden biases at Project Implicit (7/21/08)
Diane J. Levin
This is by no means the first time I’ve encouraged readers to plumb the depths of their hidden biases with the help of Project Implicit and its Implicit Association Test (IAT), an instrument which “measures implicit attitudes and beliefs that people are either unwilling or unable to report.” With the recent discussion here and elsewhere of gender bias, I thought it was time to revisit the IAT. The IAT tests for biases across a range of...

Consideraciones para hacer mediación comunitaria con latinos en los EE.UU (6/25/08)
Sandy Bacharach
En este ensayo, escribo sobre mis experiencias trabajando con mi agencia en el desarrollo y aumento de un programa de mediación y resolución de conflictos exitoso para latinos en los EE.UU.

Generational Differences in Negotiation (6/17/08)
Nancy Hudgins
One aspect of diversity which is sometimes overlooked is age. Phyllis Beck Kritek, in her provocative presentation at the ADRNC annual conference earlier this year, got all of us thinking about age. She included the table above in her handouts. While it focuses on age differences in how people approach their jobs, it is an insightful and useful tool to remind us that age affects how we look at the world. This is especially a good reminder for me, as my default thinking is that (of course)...

The Influence Of Culture On Negotiations In South Africa: An Attempt To Promote International Collaborative Dialogue And Research (6/16/08)
Sharron K. Jenkins, Judy Rashid
In August 2007, two faculty persons traveled to South Africa to establish collaboration in the development of AIDS Online International (AOI), developed by Dr. Jenkins for college students in AIDS education, prevention, and behavioral research. This article describes the project and how culture influenced the negotiating practices and styles of the participants.