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Signet Executive to Lead Second BIJC IDEA Session
Chief Diversity Officer and Senior VP Reggie Johnson will head a panel discussion on bias and racism in retail settings on Feb. 16.
Reggie Johnson is chief diversity officer and senior vice president at Signet Jewelers. He will lead a panel discussion on racism in retail settings on Feb. 16.
New York—A high-ranking Signet executive will lead the second session in the Black in Jewelry Coalition’s new education program, slated to take place next week.
Reggie Johnson, Signet Jeweler’s chief diversity officer/senior vice president, will guide a panel discussion titled “Encounters with Bias and Racism.”
The discussion will feature four panelists sharing first-hand accounts of times they have been the victims of biased and racist behavior as both retail employees and retail customers, and how each encounter could have been avoided.
The panelists are: Kecia Caffie, president of Signet’s Banter by Piercing Pagoda; Karen Smith, metal artist and founder of We Wield the Hammer; Jeffery Bolling, owner and designer at Jeffery B. Jewelers; and Malyia McNaughton, designer and CEO of Made by Malyia Jewelry.
The session, which will take place on Zoom, is scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 16 at 2 p.m. Eastern.
Registration is available here.
In addition, the session will be recorded, and the replay will be available through July.
Related stories will be right here …
Reggie Johnson, Signet Jeweler’s chief diversity officer/senior vice president, will guide a panel discussion titled “Encounters with Bias and Racism.”
The discussion will feature four panelists sharing first-hand accounts of times they have been the victims of biased and racist behavior as both retail employees and retail customers, and how each encounter could have been avoided.
The panelists are: Kecia Caffie, president of Signet’s Banter by Piercing Pagoda; Karen Smith, metal artist and founder of We Wield the Hammer; Jeffery Bolling, owner and designer at Jeffery B. Jewelers; and Malyia McNaughton, designer and CEO of Made by Malyia Jewelry.
The session, which will take place on Zoom, is scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 16 at 2 p.m. Eastern.
Registration is available here.
In addition, the session will be recorded, and the replay will be available through July.
BIJC launched its training program, called I.D.E.A. (inclusion, diversity and equity for all), earlier this year.
Diversity and inclusion expert Risha Grant led the first session, “Get Rid of the BS,” on Jan. 19. In it, she talked about the importance of recognizing one’s own biases, confronting them, and being an ally.
The recording of Grant’s talk is available for replay now via the BIJC website and, as with Johnson’s session, will remain accessible through July.
BIJC is offering the Jewelry Industry I.D.E.A. Training Program in partnership with the following industry organizations: the American Gem Society, Buyers Intelligence Group, Ethical Metalsmiths, Jewelers Board of Trade, Jewelers of America, Jewelers Vigilance Committee, Manufacturing Jewelers & Suppliers of America, Responsible Jewellery Council, and the Women’s Jewelry Association.
BIJC formed in the summer of 2020 amid the racial reckoning that started in the United States and spread worldwide.
It is the first international nonprofit membership organization for the advancement of Black professionals in the gem, jewelry, and watch industry.
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