[Tweeters] Inappropriate posts

[Jane Hadley via Tweeters]

Dear Tweetsters - I served on the board of the Washington Ornithological 
Society for six years from 2009 through 2015 and have been a volunteer 
in the organization since then.

During almost all of that time, the board has regularly discussed the 
fact that the WOS membership is mostly older and white and that the 
board -- and the birding world generally -- should make an effort to 
diversify our membership. Countless discussions have been held about the 
need to attract and welcome younger people and people of color to 
birding. I believe everybody was very sincere about that.

I thus find it painful that when those very people who have been so 
underrepresented do start to show an interest in birding and do say that 
they would feel more welcome if bird and organizational names were 
changed, there is a hue and cry against it.

To change the names is not something that should be seen in a negative 
light but as something that could go a little ways toward the aims we 
have said for so long that we share: to diversify the world of birding.

Jane Hadley
Seattle, Washington
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