Athena Bulletin

By: Tevin Medley

“The places I’m drawn to in movement espouse a desire for transformative justice—justice practices that go all the way to the root of the problem and generate solutions and healing there, such that the conditions that create injustice are transformed.” adrienne maree brown

Accountability is a term we hear often but how does it get actualized in our everyday working relationships – especially when something hurts and we don’t know how to talk about it?

Over the years, I have worked with universities, nonprofits, and Washington state agencies on harm accountability. At Housing Washington in Spokane, I will facilitate a session on a practical guide for navigating these moments together.

Practicing harm accountability

Co-developed with numerous contributions over the years, this guide is about putting accountability into practice in a way that is easier to understand. So why the focus on accountability? We need ways to acknowledge what happened/is happening, to listen with compassion, to ask what making amends means to the person, and to make real change based on our learning.  

Transformative justice asks us to look at the roots of harm and the conditions that allow it to continue. Applied to our working relationships, that means asking how our habits, shared norms, and uses of authority contribute to what happens between us.

Here are five common scenarios to help us consider where to begin:

1. I was harmed in a group or one-on-one interaction.
2. I think someone else was harmed, but I may not be sure.
3. I think I may have caused harm, but I may not be sure.
4. Someone tells me directly that I caused harm.
5. Someone trusts me enough to tell me they were harmed.

Four A’s toward repair

The guide has four parts that overlap and are context dependent: Acknowledge, Ask, Amend, and Audit. It needs shared norms, practice, and refinement to fit an organization’s culture.

Acknowledge. Acknowledge that harm has occurred.

Ask. Ask the person or group harmed how they would like to proceed.

Amend. Define systemic repair in clear terms.

Audit. Return to what happened, review the response, and keep practicing.

Taking our own turn

Accountability cannot rest only with the highest person on the organizational chart. Leaders retain responsibility for the conditions they oversee, while colleagues need tools for the difficult conversations that arise between them. This guide supports that shared practice and importantly, it does not replace formal processes for discrimination, harassment, or violations of policy or law.

If you are attending Housing Washington, join me to practice the four A’s and consider how they might support your working relationships. We will also have a follow-up discussion and session for those interested in continuing the work.

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Tevin Medley (he/him) is a partner at The Athena Group and provides program evaluation and monitoring as well as Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) training, facilitation and consulting that meets a variety of needs for organizations of all sizes.