In the days since Donald Trump was elected as our country’s 45th president I’ve watched more news than I ever have, read countless articles from both sides of the spectrum, and patiently listened to my students, friends, and yes even my brown and immigrant family members who voted for Donald Trump

Election years are a particularly exciting time for Public Speaking educators like myself. Being able to connect theory and course material to the rhetoric and presentation styles of the presidential candidates creates relevancy and invites rich classroom discussion for my students.

As a public speaking educator, I can not ignore the opportunity to discuss the speech Melania Trump gave at the Republic National Convention this past week. A portion of her now famous speech was admittedly plagiarized from a speech that our first lady, Michelle Obama, gave in 2008.

Unless you have been hiding under a rock, you are highly aware that Donald Trump is well on his way to becoming the Republican candidate for the upcoming presidential election.

If you read my last post (I apologize for the looong break- I was busy having a baby and taking care of a very fussy newborn!) then you know that listening is a communication skill and you also know that there are many obstacles that create barriers to effective listening.

Last week, I had the honor of facilitating a communication competence workshop for a company that was looking to improve their employee's listening skills. The upper management in this organization was frustrated by the lack of listening that was occurring on a day to day basis.

The topic of Microaggressions (the newest diversity buzz word) has received a great deal of media attention in the last few years. I have no interest in continuing the “buzz” about microaggressions but do hope to create awareness about this silent oppressor.

I am not a fan of beauty pageants. They value external over internal beauty, objectify women as sexual objects, and contribute to increased body insecurities. However, thanks to overt and unapologetic ignorance and racism directed at the new Miss America, beauty pageants have once again become significant.

Today marks the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s iconic “I Have a Dream” speech. King’s vision and hope was that America would be a nation where all people of all races would be treated equally. As a nation, we have definitely made progress and movement towards racial equality.

George Zimmerman’s not guilty verdict was shocking to many Americans- causing riots, protests, and uproar throughout the country. In the last week, my facebook and twitter feeds have been filled with overtly strong opinions regarding the George Zimmerman verdict

I’ll admit it- I’m not always proud of the “American” aspect of my Asian-Indian American identity. However, I feel my American pride has grown. This week, my pride was undeniably present when the Supreme Court ruled part of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)…

My name is Cindu- I am a wife, mother, professor, DEI practitioner, and now blogger!

If you have come across this blog, chances are you already have been to my website, www.shaktitraining.com. If not, check it out to learn more about myself and the DEI services my boutique consulting firm offers.