Cultural humility
a team practice to bring us closer together
Melanie Tervalon and Jann Murray-García (1) are doctors at the Oakland Children’s hospital. They recognised that because of the enormously diverse population the hospital served, there was a need for a practice to support staff to recognise and respect the cultural needs of patients and of each other. (2)
They came up with the term Cultural humility, and this is my attempt to process and understand what this means and how I can apply it. All examples below are my own way of making sense of this practice, in relation to my role as a community organiser and facilitator.
I want to hone in on how Cultural humility, fundamentally, is an ongoing celebration of learning. Learning needs certain conditions to happen, so Cultural humility, the way I see it, involves fostering those conditions. It also involves, without judgement, contraction or reaction, recognition of power imbalances and a commitment to equity. Beyond orienting towards curiosity, it’s not a skillset to master, or knowledge to be acquired.
What are cultural needs?
Cultural needs overlap with individual needs, but they relate more to being part of a collective. For example, cultural needs relate to needs of:
respect (as being explicitly part of a particular group),
self-expression, and to be seen and heard (so that when you express cultural norms of your group, you are listened to, that your voice matters)
inclusion, community and belonging
safety (in your daily life, regardless of your cultural expression)
Everyone has these needs but they will require different strategies to meet them, depending on your social background. If you are from a minoritised culture, your need for inclusion might look different than if you are from a dominant or majority culture because the latter will be included more easily and readily anyway. And it might take more conscious effort for people from dominant cultures to include people from minoritized cultures, possibly with additional language needs, and different social norms around politeness, hospitality, self-expression and respect.
I like the term ‘minoritised’ because of its descriptive detail. ‘Minoritised’ suggests that a culture has become a minority because of immigration and diaspora. Bangladeshi people aren’t ‘minoritised’ in Bangladesh, but in the UK they are. Just as the term ‘minoritised’ is descriptive, cultural needs are also indicative of people’s relationship to the country and society they find themselves in
What’s another way of saying Cultural humility?
Let’s unpack the term Cultural humility because it’s not immediately obvious what it’s about. I wondered about other terms and what they added or if they didn’t quite fit.
For example, there’s ‘Diversity appreciation’ or ‘Diversity curiosity’ or ‘Cultural curiosity’. Cultural curiosity felt close, because curiosity is a key driver for the quality I’m talking about here, but what it lacks is the humility; curiosity without humility could be appropriative or extractive, it could objectify or disrespect. It could make an exchange ‘all about my curiosity without care for your needs’, which is the whole point.
If, and as, you learn Nonviolent Communication, you will become more empowered to express your needs and find strategies to meet them, and you will become more skilled at hearing other people’s needs, whether or not they are directly expressing them.
A commitment to curiosity about other people, other cultures, and quite simply, other ways of doing things to the strategies that you prefer or that you are used to, is essential.
Five pillars of nonviolence (we need each other)
When learning Nonviolent Communication, I like to consider 5 pillars of nonviolence
Nonharming (trying to not reproduce violence)
Understanding the perspective of the other
Courageous truthtelling
Interdependence (we need each other)
Self-care, Self-empathy and grief when your needs aren’t met.
Cultural humility of course relates to 1) Nonharming (trying to not reproduce violence), 2) understanding the perspective of the other, and also to 4) interdependence (we need each other). Together we inhabit neighbourhoods, cities and regions, and ultimately the planet, and we depend on each other more than we think we do.
To understand interdependence, we need a sense of curiosity about the other, as well as about how society is organised. Anti-immigrant narratives completely miss the point of immigrant contribution to essential services and industries, as well as the fact, in relation to many forms of immigration, that ‘immigrants are here (UK) because the UK was there (their country) in the form of colonialism. If you are from the dominant or majority culture, you might need to make an effort to learn about minoritised cultures. If you are from minoritised cultures, you are very, very used to learning about the norms of the dominant culture, as you have to do it, to survive and get by, or to get citizenship as in the case of the ‘Life in the UK’ test people have to pay for and pass, if they apply for citizenship.
Cultural humility isn’t about saying the right thing, or being seen to be a good person. Cultural humility is about us needing each other and it might lead to increased trust between us so we can get along with greater ease, enjoyment and sense of pride in our communities.
Learning about other cultures can be joyful, connecting and humanising. It’s what drives a lot of travel and language learning. This can be expansive and transformative. See this video of a White British paramedic speaking Punjabi as part of his job. (Find out the reason why he knows Punjabi and the cultural context of the story.)
All pillars of nonviolence can be nurtured when we orient to the mindset of learning.
Within an understanding of Cultural humility, there is an understanding of power imbalances and that we are all in different positions in society; some more central or dominant (typically, white, middle class culture) and some more marginal (for example, migrant culture, black culture or LGBT culture) with a lot of complexity around this (for example, women’s position is always somehow marginal and this fluctuates when you consider race, class and other factors too).
In the UK, not everything that is British, is part of dominant culture, I also consider there to be a people culture of the UK. I need this distinction, being a white English/UK citizen whose heart and soul is connected to a people-centred ethos, while also living in and having been conditioned in an extractive, appropriating culture with all its spoils and mindsets of empire. With an approach of Cultural Humility, which is ultimately people-centred, we could all learn about the suppressed cultures of dissent, anti-militarism, collaborative organising, battles for rights and respect in the UK that are definitely not part of the Citizenship test. We could also all learn about British people’s quiet love of gardening, of birdwatching, and the ways people are so connected to the land despite the complete erasure of our land-based spirituality in the form of druidry, (it’s making a comeback, but it’s an interrupted tradition). (3) And the ways people are so connected to the land despite the ever diminishing access to it starting with the enclosures, and the transfer of the commons into private ownership.
We could all learn about the quirks of UK life, the grounded humour, and the acceptance and tolerance baked into regional expressions, There’s nowt so queer as folk. (Yorkshire/Lancashire) Or the Cockney expression "Not your everyday cup of Rosie, but that’s what makes the pot interesting!" (Rosie Lee = tea)
What conditions does cultural humility, (aka learning) need?
We are going to ‘fail’ as we learn new things and encounter new situations. I don’t even think of it as failing, but parts of us do. It can be terrifying to ‘get things wrong’ because we worry about losing our sense of belonging. Cultural humility needs us to accept and even value failing, or a sense of failing. I include the above reminder in all Group Agreements and Aspirations, when organising trainings and social events, and even extend on this in the poem below. People report that it reassures and relaxes them and of course, I extend this permission to myself, as a person with some power in the training or event, that I might fail too.
If we are open to not knowing, Cultural humility can nurture a relaxing sense of joy of being together with different people and not needing to know everything, which some might say is a hangover from dominant British, upperclass culture, of being in control. A necessary condition is the acknowledgement of not knowing and openness to learning. For example, I’m learning French and in my French class, there’s all these English speaking people, really vulnerably getting words wrong, getting stuck, not finding the word. English speaking people aren’t famed for our language skills. One legacy of imperialism is that we continued to be able to travel without speaking any other language. It’s very humbling, and as a consequence, very connecting being together not able to express ourselves very well.
And then there’s this viral video that I can watch 5 times a day, it's so funny, this reminder to laugh when we ‘get it wrong’. Pemmy Majodina the minister of Water and Sanitation in S Africa has everyone in stitches in her swearing in ceremony, with her attempts to say ‘conscientiously’ in English, which of course, is a colonial and imposed language. Her infectious laughter is an embodiment of a condition for cultural humility. It’s OK not to know. In fact, it can be joyful when people display the humanity of not knowing. She even says to herself ‘That’s OK’ when she can’t get her tongue round the word. I don’t think i could say conscientiously in French - let me try. Consciencieusement - And, like Pemmy in the video, I had to practice that.
How can I practice Cultural Humility?
First of all, start talking about it. Include an item in your next group meeting to discuss responses to this article. See what stands out to people. See what emerges. You might agree that Cultural humility is a key value in your group or organisation, and name this on your website and at the start of meetings and gatherings.
Kit Miller talks about a team practice at the Gandhi Institute: Find the overlap and divergence in our understanding of frequently used terms
You need to keep a running list of frequently used language, such as (eg anti racism, privilege, restorative justice and nonviolence, although your list will differ).
Periodically, in your team meetings, choose 2-3 words
Individually write your definition
Discuss this in pairs
Discuss with a larger group.
The goal is not to find a shared definition, but to listen deeply and critically self reflect on the ways your understandings overlap and diverge.
This increases Cultural humility because there is no one right answer, it emphasizes connection and everyone’s contribution. It embodies the understanding that we are in different places and will have different reflections. And that’s OK. Sometimes words such as privilege will have hugely contested associations and assumptions around them. Is it possible to release a deeply ingrained habit or way of thinking, in order to meet someone where they are in their thinking?
Kit Miller, in Nonviolence at Work, describes the 3 tenets of Cultural humility:
Critical self-reflection and lifelong learning
Challenge power imbalances, which includes flagging up power-over communication and also organising in ways that include more people, for example, doing check-ins, pairwork and small group discussions.
Institutional accountability, which means taking the time to check we are living up to our values.
How does Cultural humility interface with Nonviolent Communication (NVC)?
Readers of this article may or not be interested in Nonviolent Communication but it is the primary framework that I use in my work and life; some of you might be learning Nonviolent Communication with me.
One pitfall of learning Nonviolent Communication is that you discover a means of communication, so refreshingly simple, and it feels so good, you want everyone to be doing it. And not only does not everyone know Nonviolent Communication, but there are many different ways of embodying NVC practices; some of us love the directness, some of us find ease with the consideration of other people’s needs, some of us deeply connect to the spiritual side of Nonviolent Communication, and for others it is hugely useful collaboration tool .. and our preferences here might be related to culture.
For example, I’m English and white. Culturally, white English people are generally conflict avoidant and have a habit of obfuscating things through delicate norms around politeness, acceptability and particularly around naming their own privilege or wealth. I find it very very easy to take a lot of care in my words, because of this politeness norm, so thanks to Nonviolent Communication, I’ve learnt how to increase transparency and directness, as well as retaining the sensitivity and understanding of nuance I am so well trained in so that now, hopefully, the care I demonstrate is real and embodied, and not only performative or superficial.
So as you learn Nonviolent Communication, get curious about what feels easier for you and what feels more challenging or unknown and keep opening yourself to different ways of doing things. Keep committed to learning, we never master being human, we will never know all there is to know about other human beings and different cultures.
Finally, as you are probably aware if you’ve looked into Nonviolent Communication, there is this framework of Observation, Feeling, Need and Request for authentic expression and compassionate listening, there is also this 5th component of Connection. If we don’t pay attention to the Connection, we can move through the framework of Nonviolent Communication in a way that only serves our needs, without full consideration of the other and of the wider community.
If we take time for cultural humility and curiosity, if we spend time on nurturing the energy of connection, the 5th essential component of NVC, we can all deepen our sense of belonging, inclusion and joy.
Culture Shift: Nonviolence at Work Kit Miller 2024— Pace e Bene Nonviolence Service
Druidry | Order of Bards, Ovates & Druids |
‘Permission to fail’ poem, used at the beginnings of trainings and social events. Feel free to use it if you wish. You can credit Ceri Buckmaster.
As a supply primary school teacher, in a great school, as a staff we did a lot of work on F A I L = first attempt is learning... Something that lifts!