Alex Morgan sat in the back of the seminar room, nursing a cup of lukewarm conference coffee. The workshop on diversity and inclusion had sounded promising—until they noticed the title slide featuring a stock photo of a suspiciously diverse group of people giving each other high-fives in an empty office. Hannah Vos, seated beside them, nudged Alex. "At least it's not just another lecture. We get to play a game."
Alex scanned the handout. The Dilemma Game—a structured discussion activity where academics debated tricky workplace scenarios and made collective decisions. This could either be enlightening or a complete disaster.
As the session began, the facilitator introduced the first dilemma: A student tells you that they feel excluded in group work due to their background. The other students claim they were just ‘working with friends.’ What do you do?
"Well," said Dr. Lars Meijer, a young assistant professor, leaning back in his chair, "obviously, you tell them to be more assertive. The real world isn’t always inclusive. You have to fight for your space."
Hannah raised an eyebrow. "Or, we could recognize that not all students feel equally empowered to ‘fight’ for their place and actually address the group dynamics."
Lars waved a hand. "Of course, of course. I’m all for inclusion! People just can’t handle directness nowadays. I had a group of girl students complain once because I told them they weren’t allowed to plot in pink. They said I was suppressing them."
Alex set down their coffee. "…You banned pink?"
"Well, it’s not a serious color for data visualization. We should be using perceptually uniform color scales."
"Uh-huh. And instead of explaining that, you forbade pink?"
Lars shrugged. "I was just trying to keep the standards high. But you know how people get these days."
Hannah exhaled audibly. Alex pinched the bridge of their nose.
The game continued. Another dilemma was read: A colleague misgenders a non-binary student during a lecture. You notice, but they don’t correct themselves. What do you do?
Dr. Ruben van Leeuwen, another assistant professor, shifted uncomfortably. "Actually, something like this happened to me. I got a student’s pronouns wrong last year. They corrected me, and I felt so bad. I still worry I handled it clumsily."
A senior professor pursed her lips. "You should worry. It’s basic respect."
Lars nodded quickly. "Yeah, exactly! Like, it’s just common sense. People just need to be aware of these things from the start."
Ruben’s ears turned red. "I know. I try to be better now— I just… I wish I had done it right the first time."
The room was silent for a beat. Then Hannah spoke up. "I think it’s good you’re reflecting on it. We all make mistakes. It’s how we handle them that matters." Alex nodded. "Yeah. And the fact that you’re still thinking about it means you actually care. That’s a lot more than some people." They did not look at Lars, but the message was clear.
The workshop wrapped up, and as they left the room, Hannah, Alex, and Ruben lingered by the coffee table.
"That was… an experience," Hannah said.
Ruben sighed. "I was worried about sharing that story, but I guess it’s better to be open about these things."
Alex smirked. "Definitely. And hey, at least you never told anyone they couldn’t plot in pink."
Ruben chuckled. "I would never. Good data viz is all about contrast anyway."
Hannah raised her paper cup. "To learning."
Alex and Ruben clinked their cups against hers. The coffee was terrible, but at least the company was good.
Let's write another short story about Alex Morgan. Let's revisit the character of Hannah.
Have them in a workshop on diversity and inclusion, playing the dillemma game explained on this website: https://www.uu.nl/en/organisation/equality-diversity-inclusion/edi-for-you/activities/the-dilemma-game. Include a male assistant prof that thinks that he is inclusive, but makes a comment about girl students complaining that he said they werent allowed to plot in pink. Also include a male assistant prof that wants to do better, and shares a story where he made a mistake, and have some people in the game judge him for that. End it with Hannah, Alex, and the last prof having a positive moment reflecting on diversity and inclusion.
After "It's basic respect" add a line where Lars agrees with the senior professor in a clumsy way. Remove ‘And to never being that guy’. Remove ‘I apologized right away, but’.
I edited in “People just can’t handle directness nowadays”.