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Linda S. Wallace, a modern-day storyteller, is author of The Cultural Coach, an online column that provides practical tips for dealing with uncomfortable life situations such as sexual harassment, bigotry and racism.

The column, which is found at www.theculturalcoach.com, adds a deeper dimension to diversity dialogues by promoting cultural competencies as 21st century power tools. Companies, nations, and communities gain an added measure of security as workers use these skill sets to identify and manage their hidden biases.

"Trying to hide our prejudices is a bit like sweeping the crumbs under the dining room table so guests will think our home is clean," writes Ms. Wallace. "Sooner or later, a speck is going to get out and expose us. As word of our dishonesty spreads, people of all colors will be less likely to trust us, long after we’ve cleaned house."

A seasoned journalist who has worked for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, The Commercial Appeal in Memphis, the Dallas Times-Herald and the Philadelphia Inquirer, Ms. Wallace launched Linda S. Wallace Communications, a Philadelphia-based intercultural training firm, in 1996. She has led cultural communications workshops for the U.S. Navy; the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism; Community College of Philadelphia; Hearst Newspapers; and the National Liberty Museum in Philadelphia.

Ms. Wallace's columns have appeared in the Christian Science Monitor, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Portland Oregonian, the Houston Chronicle and the Columbia Journalism Review. In her opinion pieces, she takes aim at the "tutors of tolerance" who promote inclusiveness but seek conformity. "Freedom does not require conformity; rather, it requires the skills to disagree in productive ways and the conviction that, in the end, it will turn out all right," counters Ms. Wallace.