Mark Your Calendar: Have the Courage to Lead Every Month, All Year
Issue 2848— June 2, 2025
May holds multitudes of identities.
It’s Asian Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Older Americans Month. Jewish American Heritage Month. Mental Health Awareness Month. Victorious Women Month. Military Appreciation Month. And—yes—Respect for Chickens Month.
June? It’s Pride Month. Also, National Iced Tea Month. Caribbean American Heritage Month. Men’s Health Month. Dairy Month. And don’t forget National Black Bear Month.
On the one hand, it’s easy to laugh at some of these designations. Yet these designated months exist for a reason: because too many people, too often, have been ignored, minimized, or outright erased.
I confess that until this year, I’d never heard of Jewish American Heritage Month. Turns out it has existed first as a week, then a month, since 1980.
But as a Jewish woman who grew up in small Texas towns, where we were reminded daily we were “different,” as a teen I yearned to be invisible. I now appreciate the recognition. I’ve come to realize what a gift it is to be different, because it gave me a natural empathy for anyone else who has been othered or discriminated against.
There’s my personal experience. But I’m not alone; there’s a reason why you find so many Jews in the forefront of social justice movements, such as Black civil rights, women’s rights, and diversity as a positive value at work and in society. Yes, it’s fundamental to our religion that we have an obligation to repair the world. But something more visceral is at work – a realization that at any moment, bias, epithets, and even violence such as happened in Boulder as I was writing this, could be directed at us, simply because of who we are.
So I am grateful that like the many identity or cultural groups recognized by their designated months, I am a stone in the beautiful mosaic of the American dream. My grandparents escaped oppression and came here with little but a burning desire to pursue their own dreams in freedom. I now wear that shirt proudly and boldly.
Shirley Chisholm had the courage to lead.
Visibility matters. Respect matters. Feeling seen, heard, and valued is oxygen for the human soul.
It’s also the fuel of a functional democracy. And not insignificantly, it’s the engine of innovation and a thriving economy.
As Jane Fonda put it recently, “Woke just means you give a damn.”
It takes courage to care. Courage to see others not as caricatures, quotas, or competitors, but as fellow human beings with stories, identities, and contributions that enrich all of us.
It takes courage to lead. Individual courage and collective courage.
That’s why we’ve chosen “Courage to Lead” as the theme of Take The Lead’s fifth annual Power Up Concert and Conference, to be held as it always is on Women’s Equality Day, August 26. Each week from now on, I’ll share latest news about it and links so you can join. Meanwhile, you can find out about all our programs and services rooted in the generative and creative” power to” as opposed to oppressive “power over.”
Today, there’s a full-scale backlash against DEI—Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion—from some politicians and business leaders intent on retaining their own privilege. In response, too many companies are backing away. Others are making headlines by dismantling DEI departments, like a law firm trying to un-write its values.
Let’s be clear: that’s not leadership—that’s cowardice wrapped in a press release.
It’s not just morally bankrupt. It’s bad business. And inclusion isn’t charity. It’s smart strategy.
It’s important to recognize and support organizations like:
💥 Costco and other companies that have stayed firm in DEI commitments.
🎓 Harvard University, continuing to defend diversity in education even under political fire.
🏥 Countless small businesses and nonprofits that are either quietly or publicly staying on mission and true to their principles.
Courage to lead doesn't always look like marching in parades or issuing bold public statements. Sometimes it’s quieter—and harder. It's:
Making hiring decisions based on potential and performance, not pedigree.
Listening to the person in the room who doesn’t look like everyone else.
Admitting when you’ve made a mistake—and doing the work to fix it.
Not erasing people’s identities to make others comfortable.
Refusing to trade enduring values for temporary approval.
And yes, sometimes courage is as simple as marking a month on the calendar and using it as a reminder to appreciate the richness of a heritage you might not share, but that shapes the country you live in.
Because when we give a damn, we don’t just respect chickens or iced tea or black bears—we respect the very idea of a society that sees people fully with the courage to lead with humanity.
GLORIA FELDT is the Cofounder and President of Take The Lead, a motivational speaker, and a global expert in women’s leadership development and DEI for individuals and companies that want to build gender balance. She is a bestselling author of five books, most recently Intentioning: Sex, Power, Pandemics, and How Women Will Take The Lead for (Everyone’s) Good. Honored as Forbes 50 Over 50, and Former President of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, she is a frequent media commentator. Learn more at www.gloriafeldt.com and www.taketheleadwomen.com. Find her @GloriaFeldt on all social media.