Jen Reeder
When Baltimore resident James Evans ran a marketing company, he had several high-profile clients in the animal welfare space. As a Black man, he was taken aback by how frequently he heard comments like, “Those people” and “If only they understood,” and “I don’t know why they don’t want to spay/neuter.”
He worked to develop campaigns to offer free and low-cost mobile spay/neuter clinics while also repeatedly urging the staff of predominantly white nonprofits to not judge people from afar and assume they don’t have similar passions.
Evans also heard from relatives that they’d tried to volunteer at animal shelters and never received callbacks, and from friends with zip codes in underserved communities that their adoption applications kept being denied.
One retired police officer named Leslie saw a commercial touting the “Adopt, Don’t Shop” mantra and decided to adopt a dog after her police dog passed away. But she’s been denied over 16 times from different rescue organizations, presumably because of racial bias about her zip code’s neighborhood.
So in 2020, supported by Chetana Mirle at Spring Point Partners, Evans founded the nonprofit Companions and Animals for Reform and Equity (CARE), which works to expand and diversify animal welfare with a variety of initiatives. The group’s tagline is “Inclusion = Lifesaving.”
The first step is acknowledging that bias and racism exist. To that end, CARE’s research division is conducting a longitudinal story of adoption records and animal control records to identify “pain points for people of color” across the country.
In the meantime, Evans points to results of the Harvard Implicit Bias study of over 3,000 animal welfare employees, of which 84 percent identified as white. The results found that while participants self-reported to prefer the company of poor people to rich people, Hispanic people to non-Hispanic people, and Black people to white people, their implicit biases proved exactly the opposite.
So when applications for people of color are denied, a lot of animals lose out on the chance for a forever home, according to Evans.
“We estimate a three to five percent increase in brown and Black adoptions alone will save 2 million animals a year,” he says. “That’s not a small number.”
To help change misperceptions about Black pet owners, CARE produced an upbeat music video by Baltimore rapper Dapper Dan Midas (aka DDm) called “That’s My Dog” that can easily be shared by animal welfare groups on social media.
Shelters and rescues should also work to diversify not just their adopters, but their board, volunteers and staff, Evans says. This can appeal to donors, who might potentially increase their donation amounts to support diversifying the field.
A BIPOC board member or employee can also introduce their personal network of potentially hundreds of new supporters, he says.
“It’s not as though this is a gift to people of color to hire them – it’s a gift to the shelters that have employed them,” he says. “That person is bringing potential adopters and potential donors to the table.”
Human resources execs often ask Evans where to find people of color to join their board or volunteer – volunteers are often a hiring pipeline, he notes, adding that “It’s hard to have too many volunteers.” He believes executive directors of nonprofits should go into Black and brown communities and approach people walking or training their dogs in local parks.
“It would be nothing to say to those people, ‘My name is X. I am the ED at X. It looks like you have an amazing dog. Where are you getting the dog groomed? Who else in the community is taking care of their dog the way you are? Would you like to be a volunteer? Do you know someone that would like to be a volunteer?’”
A complementary option is outreach to social media groups for Black dog trainers, groomers, and other professionals, he adds.
“Either with your feet or with your fingers, you can certainly find people of color who are passionate and are promoting that passion,” he says. “Maybe that one person you spoke to can’t volunteer, but they know somebody else that is another dog lover, because they’re not alone in their passion.”
To help animal welfare professionals hire BIPOC employees, CARE is developing a “matchmaking” database of people of color who currently work in animal welfare or are interested in doing so. The nonprofit also funds work of people of color starting their own nonprofits, hosts webinars about increasing equity in animal welfare, and will be offering a Racial Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (REDI) certification course this fall, thanks to Maddie’s Fund and PetSmart Charities.
CARE worked with the Black DVM Network and other groups to create the Dr. Jodie G. Blackwell Scholarship Fund for African American veterinary students. As the pandemic has led to increased caseloads, burnout, and staff shortages, America faces a shortage of veterinarians and veterinary technicians. Diversifying the talent pipeline is one way to combat the looming crisis, since around 90 percent of American veterinarians identify as white, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Other groups are also working to diversify animal welfare and the veterinary industry. A 2020 study by Banfield Pet Hospital found that by 2030, an estimated 75 million pets may not have access to veterinary care. So last year, Banfield launched an initiative with the Boys & Girls Clubs of America and promoted by “Saturday Night Live” star Kenan Thompson (who played a Banfield veterinarian in the “Clifford the Big Red Dog” movie) called Next Vet, a paid internship for high school students from underserved communities. It’s part of a $10 million commitment to support educational pathways for veterinary professionals.
Initiatives to help diversify the veterinary industry are welcomed by Kwane Stewart, DVM, chief medical officer of Papaya Pet Care and founder of California-based nonprofit Project Street Vet, which provides free veterinary care to pets of people experiencing homelessness.
When he was in high school, he told a coach that he wanted to be a veterinarian when he grew up. The coach chuckled and said, “I’ve never met a Black veterinarian before.”
Dr. Stewart respectfully responded to the coach – who was also Black – with, “I guess I’ll be the first one that you know.”
“More than ever, we need to kick open the doors and allow anyone who has an interest, a desire, an aptitude, and loves animals, to come into this profession to do so. We don’t want there to feel like there’s barriers because of race or societal views or resources, right?” he says. “Pet owners come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. I think the more my profession reflects the pet parents in our country, the better for all of us.”
This article was reviewed/edited by board-certified veterinary behaviorist Dr. Kenneth Martin and/or veterinary technician specialist in behavior Debbie Martin, LVT.
