Language is powerful. In the world of equality, diversity and inclusion, the words we use can either open doors or close them. Over time, certain terms have become misunderstood, misused, or even feared — creating confusion instead of connection.

That’s why, at The Equal Group, we’re launching Beyond the Buzzwords: EDI Unpacked — a series designed to strip back the jargon, unpack the tension, and rebuild shared understanding around the language of inclusion.

We’re starting with perhaps one of the most polarising words: privilege.

How Privilege Is Being Used

Few words in today’s workplace spark as much tension as privilege. Once a framework for understanding structural advantage, it’s now a word that can stop conversations dead.

What began as a tool for empathy has become a cultural flashpoint that fuels defensiveness instead of dialogue. “Check your privilege” was never meant as an accusation, yet it’s often received as one. The result? Rooms fall silent. People retreat. Conversations about inequality become linguistic minefields, where fear of saying the wrong thing prevents people from saying anything at all.

We’ve reached a point where privilege doesn’t promote reflection; it provokes resistance.

What Privilege Really Means

Originally, privilege (in the context of EDI) was coined to describe the unearned advantages granted by social systems,  not personal guilt or moral failing. It was designed to build empathy, not encourage accusation.

The intention was simple: to help us recognise that not everyone starts from the same place. Some begin several steps ahead — with networks, safety, or access that make progress easier. Others face barriers just to reach the starting line.

Acknowledging privilege doesn’t erase hard work or effort; it simply acknowledges that effort doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It happens within structures that advantage some and disadvantage others.

Understanding privilege means seeing those systems clearly and deciding how to move forward as a result. 

Redefining Privilege

Privilege is a lens that should be used to help us see the systems shaping opportunities.

When we strip away the fear and the identity politics, privilege becomes a tool for awareness, empathy, and systemic change.

Redefining EDI language is about creating the clarity and courage to have what might otherwise be difficult conversations. 

For individuals, that means curiosity over defensiveness — asking where do I have ease that others don’t, and how can I use it?

For organisations, it means shifting from guilt to accountability — embedding fairness into recruitment, pay, promotion and leadership.

Privilege, when redefined, becomes an opportunity to change, rather than cause division.

Join the Conversation

Redefining words like privilege is about making EDI more impactful. When we understand the intent behind these terms, we turn defensiveness into dialogue and awareness into action.

This piece is part of our Beyond the Buzzwords: EDI Unpacked series — exploring the phrases that shape both progress and resistance in the workplace.

‍

👉 Next up: Inclusion: The Word Everyone Uses But Few Understand.

Follow The Equal Group on LinkedIn or subscribe to our newsletter to read the next instalment as soon as it drops.