America.gov-Diversity: At Work

Business and Activism Intersect for Designer Kenneth Cole

Lea Terhune — Fri, 02 May 2008 17:52:30 GMT

Kenneth Cole, successful fashion designer, has aired his concerns about social issues in magazines and on billboards for years. In 2008, he launched an “AWEARNESS” blog and a fashion ad campaign themed “We all walk in different shoes,” a series of ads highlighting diversity of ethnicity, life choices, politics and even physical handicaps.

Women Deserve More Credit for Their Inventions, Author Says

Lea Terhune — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 18:03:04 GMT

Women have been discovering, innovating and inventing throughout history, and it is time to give them the credit they deserve, says author Ethlie Ann Vare. Her 1988 book Mothers of Invention was the first book in America on women inventors, and she has published two more on the neglected subject since.

Life of Nobel Laureate and Africanist Ralph Bunche Honored

Lea Terhune — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 11:29:06 GMT

The State Department’s Bureau of African Affairs honors Ralph Johnson Bunche, a scholar, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, career diplomat and Africanist who sought to study and understand Africa from the African point of view. The occasion celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Africa Bureau’s founding.

A Diverse Fighting Force

Lea Terhune — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 16:52:33 GMT

The U.S. Army educates its military and civilian workers to understand and respect diverse ethnic cultures. It makes an effective fighting force from people of diverse backgrounds by valuing the strengths and experience of all and uniting them in the Army's culture.

Congressman Takes Oath of Office on Thomas Jefferson’s Quran

Lea Terhune — Thu, 04 Jan 2007 17:39:16 GMT

Representative Keith Ellison, Democrat from Minnesota, became the first Muslim member of the U.S. Congress January 4, 2007, swearing his oath of office on a copy of the Quran that belonged to the author of the Declaration of Independence and the third president of the United States, Thomas Jefferson.

Acceptance of Religious Garb in U.S. Shows Diversity, Tolerance

Lea Terhune — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 16:37:50 GMT

Wearing the hijab (traditional headscarf favored by many Muslim women) at work is unlikely to elicit comments in the United States, primarily because the country always has embraced people of different backgrounds, faiths and cultures, says Seema Matin, an American Muslim who works for the U.S. Department of States.

U.S. Business Opens Doors to People with Disabilities

Lea Terhune — Mon, 20 Nov 2006 16:28:27 GMT

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) bars discrimination by employers and requires businesses to make accommodations to let a person with a disability to do a job for which he or she is qualified. Companies hiring workers with disabilities say they gain employees who often are skilled at planning ahead or communicating creatively.

Americans with Disabilities Act Transforms Lives

Lea Terhune — Tue, 06 Jun 2006 15:52:21 GMT

The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 protects the full and equal civil rights of Americans who have physical or mental impairments. It mirrors substantially the protections of the Civil Rights Act. The Census Bureau reports that more than 51 million Americans -- about 18 percent of the total population -- are in some way disabled.