Why The Right Fears Diversity, Equity And Inclusion
Why The Right Fears Diversity, Equity And Inclusion
There are unqualified people getting a leg up—just not the people conservatives are whining about.
When I attended an Ivy League school in the late 1980s, rich, White, male, legacy students lamented about the evils of “affirmative action.” The school—founded in 1769—only began to admit women in 1972 and people of color were few and far between until the late 1960s.
And not surprisingly, it was assumed by most that these admissions were given to unqualified individuals to meet a race or gender based quota.
They believed and preached the 200+ years worth of almost exclusively rich, White men were all highly qualified to attend an Ivy League institution and receive the lifelong benefits of being an alumnus. The women and BIPOC now in their midst were unqualified and unworthy individuals who stole a spot from a White man.
The absurdity of this mindset never occurred to them.
But as I pointed out in my piece How Men Like Donald Trump, Brett Kavanaugh And Brock Turner Are Made, the academic underachievers at my Ivy in 1987 were those crying the loudest about the unfairness of affirmative action programs. As far as test scores and GPAs of incoming freshmen, White, male students scored the lowest on average with some White students of sufficient means actually falling below the minimum scores required for admissions.
How does someone like Donald Trump who writes and speaks at a grade school level graduate—allegedly—in 1968 from University of Pennsylvania's prestigious Wharton School of Business?
Being rich, White and male.
And—surprise—that metric proves itself over and over again in academic institutions, corporate executive offices, and the halls of government to name just a few areas that have been tracked and studied.
Time and time again, elite athletes and legacy students—students whose families attended institutions for generations when those schools were exclusively for White males—score lower than so-called affirmative action students—women and BIPOC.
“DEI Hire” And The Great Replacement Theory
Today, the fear associated with the term affirmative action has lost its potency after the conservative majority of the United States Supreme Court decided enforcing equality in evaluating candidates for academic opportunities was unconstitutional.
In June of 2023, the SCOTUS ruled 6-3 that affirmative action programs at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina violate the Constitution’s equal protection clause, which bars racial discrimination by government entities.
It's that dreaded “reverse racism”, don't you know?
Today's new conservative scare tactics and insults use DEI—diversity, equity, and inclusion—instead. It ties in well with the Great Replacement Theory promoted by White/Christian nationalists which claims a coordinated effort is being made to replace the White, Christian majority with Jews and BIPOC.
Unlike affirmative action horror stories which are most often related to college admissions, private and public institutions and businesses and government entities in the United States have an office or officer dedicated to DEI.
Conservative talking heads have gotten their base worked up to the point where you routinely see calls for boycotts and backlash on social media because their favorite company has a DEI office.
One is left to wonder what rock these people have been under for the past 30 years.
Like most such efforts, these offices are a response to discrimination lawsuits. Human resources and the like are there to protect the institution, not the individual.
It would be a foolish company that opens itself up to such risks, but companies with a conservative customer base are announcing an end to their DEI offices and initiatives. They'll continue the CYA portions, but any efforts to diversify their workforce or customer base will no longer be public facing—if they even continue to exist.
writer exposed the insignificant numbers of people actually opposed to DEI in her piece Meet the conspiracy theorist and anti-LGBTQ extremist pulling the strings at major American corporations.Tractor Supply and John Deere were targeted by right-wing extremist and conspiracy theorist Robby Starbuck whose social media account is a repository of racist conspiracy theories, anti-LGBTQ+ bigotry, and other fringe views.
But for companies like John Deere and Tractor Supply, their message to consumers is clear. Pandering to White nationalists and White supremacists is more important than equity or inclusion.
What Is DEI Supposed To Be?
For the underrepresented or historically excluded, DEI offers a promise of a “place at the table” for everyone who should be there.
Diversity looks to fill in the missing pieces and support them once included.
Affirmative action programs focused on recruitment, but the individuals often found themselves in volatile, sometimes violent situations once they were admitted to the fold.
The United States military academies’ well-documented issues with sexual assault are an example of recruitment without support. Admitting women without any plans or protections once they arrive has had disastrous results.
But the solution isn't eliminating diversity. It's enacting and enforcing policies that should have always existed.
Discrimination and violence should never have been seen as acceptable behavior nor tolerated and covered up.
Equity and inclusion continue the work of supporting a more diverse workforce.
Equity ensures opportunities are free from bias and discrimination. It's pointless to have a seat at the table when the diversity table is tucked in a back corner by the kitchen while the old guard carries on like always.
Inclusion ensures everyone gets a chance to speak and be heard. In a past editorial job, our team discussed that the loudest voice in the room needs to be from the community affected.
For example, I'm a cisgender, heterosexual, Indigenous autistic woman. My opinion on whether something is or isn't offensive to a member of the LGBTQ+ community should always be secondary to them. But my opinion on Indigenous American or neurodiverse or women's issues should carry more weight than someone who is none of those things.
That's part of a successful DEI program.
So Why Does The Right Hate DEI?
In my public sector career, I served as an equal employment officer in an agency of the Department of Defense. I handled discrimination complaints and diversity programs.
One saying I used when speaking to employees was:
“When all you've known is privilege, equality can feel like discrimination.”
Going back to the seat at the table analogy, when you've always had reserved seating without requirements of effort or merit, those new faces look like threats.
I was reading Jeffrey Kass’ A Black Woman Stole My Job which addresses workplace diversity efforts and the backlash from mostly White men.
While these men see diversity as the problem, the author points out the real issue is their own privilege and entitlement. Underrepresented and historically excluded peoples will see a job that they are applying and competing for, those complaining see the job, the school admission, the opportunity as rightfully belonging to them.
Such attitudes are the backbone of modern movements like MAGA, White supremacy, Christian nationalism, and White nationalism. They believe the world belongs to them.
DEI disrupts this worldview and challenges their self-image.
What if they actually had to compete for their privilege?
Would Donald Trump be an executive at any company he didn't own? Would his children?
What if he had to earn his spot at Wharton? In a fair and equitable world, could he excel?
Does The Left Support DEI Just To Target The Right?
When I talk about the importance of diversity, I always bring up why NASA couldn't make a loaf of bread.
During the years of the space shuttle program, NASA asked school students to submit ideas for experiments. The winning experiment was about yeast bread—would yeast bloom and bread rise in space?
NASA spent months and millions of dollars designing the perfect self-contained bread oven.
The device included a chamber filled with flour and yeast to which boiling water/steam would be injected under pressure, the chamber tumbled to mix the ingredients, then the whole chamber heated to bake the bread which would be unveiled after the shuttle's return to Earth.
Scientists were disappointed to find what looked like bits of cracker crumbs instead of bread. But when the failed experiment made the news cycle, millions of home and commercial bakers pointed out the many things wrong with NASA's bread baking.
Yeast needs to be fed, water that is too hot kills yeast, the gluten in the flour needs to be activated through mixing or kneading. Even Betty Crocker weighed in, pointing out NASA engineers should have purchased one of the home bread machines found in any kitchenwares department and consulted the Betty Crocker cookbook.
So, what does this have to do with diversity?
Millions of dollars would not have been wasted and the experiment could have achieved usable results if even one person on the design team baked bread.
When the entire team mirrors each other, solutions to problems and suggestions for improvements aren't found because the team all shares a single, narrow perspective.
We're seeing this now with responses to environmental disasters and climate change. Bringing more people to the table generates innovative, effective solutions.
Diversity is a strength and an asset. Equity and inclusion encourage and sustain diversity.
Pushing Back On The Right's DEI Rhetoric
The right claims highly qualified individuals who also happen to be women, BIPOC and/or LGBTQ+ are all DEI hires.
That's misogyny, racism, and bigotry on full display.
Conservatives have actually taken to saying the quiet part out loud on a regular basis. Conservative organizer and influencer Charlie Kirk made it clear that when he is a passenger on a plane with a Black pilot, he gets nervous.
The implication being a White pilot would put him at ease simply because of the color of his skin.
Which exposes the hollowness of their “qualification” argument.
If DEI really were about unqualified people getting a leg up based on their gender and race, both Trump in 2016 and Vance in 2024 would be the real “DEI hires,” not Kamala Harris who has served as elected district attorney of San Francisco, Attorney General of California, U.S. Senator and now Vice President.
Call it what it is and call it out when institutions—like mainstream media—feed that narrative.
It shouldn't be assumed White men are automatically qualified and everyone else needs to prove their worth.
Are the same questions about qualifications and worthiness being asked of everyone?
Or just some people?
Is discrimination or bias actually occurring? Or are the privileged merely getting their entitlement checked?
Be an advocate for yourself and an ally for others.
DEI is an asset for us all.
~~~~~~~~~~
Brilliant example of NASA not knowing Thing 1 about baking bread—a skill so elementary that most of us have it. Brilliant. A more diverse table brings us all a better meal!
You don’t have to be a white supremacist to see the republican white supremacy going on here.