OUR PUBLIC COMMITMENT
Democracy Is Stronger
When More People Can Lead.
Democracy University is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, belonging, and anti-racism — not as side initiatives, but as part of how we teach, build, hire, partner, convene, and lead.
We are intentionally anti-racist. It is not enough to oppose racism in principle. We must actively identify and challenge the structures, practices, assumptions, and inequities that have excluded people from political power, professional opportunity, education, leadership, and recognition.
WHY THIS MATTERS
Talent is everywhere. Opportunity is not.
Too many people have been excluded from political and civic careers because they lacked access to the right networks, internships, training programs, mentors, financial resources, or professional connections.
We recognize that racism and structural inequity have shaped who historically had access to political institutions, leadership opportunities, funding, education, influence, and whose experience was treated as expertise. We want Democracy University to help change that.
Women
Black, Latino, Asian American, Pacific Islander, Indigenous, Middle Eastern, and multiracial leaders
LGBTQ+ people
People with disabilities
Immigrants and first-generation Americans
Young and emerging leaders
Working-class professionals
Rural leaders and people outside traditional political centers
Veterans
People entering democracy work from nontraditional careers or backgrounds
No one should need an elite degree, family connections, personal wealth, or an insider network to learn how democracy work gets done.
ACCESS TO KNOWLEDGE
Who gets taught matters.
Training is one of the ways power gets transferred. Professional knowledge should not be locked inside a small circle of institutions, consultants, campaigns, or political insiders.
We want high-quality democracy education to be easier to find, easier to afford, and easier to use.
Make practical political and civic skills accessible at different stages of a career.
Create learning opportunities for people who cannot afford expensive professional training.
Build pathways from learning to meaningful work, leadership, and continued development.
Offer resources for experienced practitioners and people entering democracy work for the first time.
Reduce unnecessary barriers created by geography, money, professional status, race, disability, or insider networks.
EXPERTISE
Who gets to teach matters.
Expertise comes from many places. Some of the most valuable teachers in democracy work are campaign managers, organizers, union leaders, communications professionals, field staff, data practitioners, fundraisers, community leaders, candidates, advocates, technologists, researchers, trainers, and volunteers who learned by doing the work.
Our instructors, contributors, speakers, authors, advisors, and featured experts should reflect the diversity of the democracy community itself.
We will deliberately seek out people whose expertise has too often been overlooked, undercredited, appropriated, or excluded from traditional professional networks — including Black leaders, organizers, strategists, thinkers, trainers, and movements.
HISTORY & CREDIT
Whose history gets taught matters.
Democracy work did not begin with any one organization, campaign, institution, or generation. Our curriculum should reflect the movements and people who built the strategies, tools, institutions, and traditions we use today.
That includes labor, civil rights and racial justice, women's, LGBTQ+, disability rights, immigrant rights, voting rights, environmental and climate, youth, Indigenous, community organizing, grassroots campaign, and international democracy traditions.
We believe in giving credit. When ideas, frameworks, strategies, research, or training traditions come from others, we should acknowledge the people and institutions that developed them.
ACCESSIBILITY
Accessibility is part of education.
Education is not truly open if people cannot access it. We are committed to building accessibility into Democracy University as we grow, rather than treating it as an afterthought. The goals below are commitments we are actively working toward — not a checklist of finished work. If something is not yet accessible to you, please tell us and we will prioritize it.
ECONOMIC ACCESS
Money should not determine who gets to learn how to lead.
Professional training can be prohibitively expensive. As Democracy University grows, we will work to expand free and low-cost educational resources, scholarships, sponsored participation, employer-supported training, and partnerships that make learning available to more people.
Our goal is not simply to invite more people into democracy work. It is to help more people gain the knowledge, confidence, connections, opportunity, and power to lead it.
COMMUNITY STANDARDS
A learning community requires respect.
Democracy requires disagreement. Education requires curiosity. Movements require debate. We welcome different experiences, strategic approaches, and perspectives, and we want people to challenge assumptions and learn from one another.
But disagreement is not an excuse for dehumanization.
We do not tolerate harassment, intimidation, discrimination, or targeted hostility based on race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, age, religion, national origin, or other marginalized identities.
That includes racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, antisemitism, Islamophobia, xenophobia, sexual harassment, threats, and retaliation against people who raise concerns.
Being anti-racist also means we will not treat racism as simply another viewpoint to be debated.
ACCOUNTABILITY
We will keep asking who is missing.
Diversity is not achieved by publishing a statement. Anti-racism is not achieved by describing ourselves as anti-racist. Both require ongoing work, measurement, listening, and change.
WE WELCOME ACCOUNTABILITY
Tell us where we can do better.
We will not always get everything right. We welcome feedback about accessibility, representation, racial equity, barriers to participation, curriculum gaps, discrimination, or ways we can make Democracy University more inclusive and equitable.
Share Feedback
Tell us what is working, what is missing, or what should change.
Request an Accommodation
Let us know what would make a program, resource, or experience more accessible.
Report a Concern
Raise a concern about discrimination, harassment, exclusion, or another community issue.
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY
Democracy University is an equal opportunity organization. We do not discriminate in employment, volunteering, programming, or partnerships on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, or gender identity), national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, or any other status protected by federal, state, or local law. We are committed to providing an inclusive and accessible environment for all staff, trainers, volunteers, partners, and participants.
Democracy belongs to all of us.
The knowledge required to protect it, strengthen it, organize around it, and lead within it should too.
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