What is DEI and why does it exist?
DEI stands for diversity, equity, and inclusion; thus DEI programs revolve around integrating policies and practices that encourage organizations to be more inclusive environments. This is not to say that all companies held the same biases, but the initial training that DEI programs offered would help employers, as well as employees, understand the impact of their exclusion on groups of people. The history of DEI in the United States dates back to the 1960s, where it started off as an attempt to decrease racial discrimination in companies through specified training that would attempt to uncover and dismantle employee biases. Hiring tests were also used to assess a candidate’s skills and qualifications as opposed to their personal background. These strategies were met with some resistance because employers felt that it made the hiring process too restrictive.
Through the 1980s and ’90s, DEI programs grew to encompass gender disparities, and eventually covered a much broader range of identity groups, including ethnic, religious, and LGBTQ+ communities. As social media grew in the early 2000s, DEI efforts only increased as people were sharing more and more stories of discrimination in the workplace. It became an essential part of any business, rather than a small side project. In more recent years, digital spaces have fostered a new sort of environment where people have felt more comfortable to speak up about the discrimination they may have experienced.
DEI programs differ from federal laws because they are about understanding how and why people have been excluded and work to find solutions together. It is about having conversations with people and asking what they might need, not just to succeed, but to be able to participate in the first place.
While the Civil Rights Act of 1964 officially outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin, it did not stop employers from finding ways to exclude certain groups. In a discussion about exclusion, it is important to note that inclusion is not just about being allowed in or being specifically asked to participate. It is also about opportunity, accessibility, the ability to succeed, and the crucial component of safety around speaking up. With this definition in mind, the scope of DEI is much broader and much more essential to our understanding of each other than merely being about meeting diversity statistics.
Why are DEI programs being rolled back?
According to the official executive order posted on the White House website, “the Biden Administration forced illegal and immoral discrimination programs… into virtually all aspects of the Federal Government, in areas ranging from airline safety to the military.” The order claims that these programs “demonstrated immense public waste and shameful discrimination.” The implementation of this order will begin with removal or revision of all programs and policies in the Federal Government. Going forward, the intent will be to “reward individual initiative, skills, performance and hard work and shall not under any circumstance consider DEI or DEIA factors, goals, policies, mandates, or requirements.” The funding from these programs will now be allocated in different directions. People working in any of these departments will be placed on paid leave until further notice.
What will the absence of DEI funding mean for the future?
White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt spoke in a press briefing about what this will mean, stating, “… no more funding for Green New Scam that has… cost American taxpayers tens of billions of dollars. It means no more funding for transgenderism and wokeness across our federal bureaucracy and agencies.” She goes on to say that people receiving individual assistance will continue to receive that assistance, and that “President Trump is looking out for you by issuing this pause because he is being [a] good steward of your taxpayer dollars.”
Looking at any right-leaning news source, you will find excitement towards the idea of Trump abolishing DEI offices throughout the nation. These orders encourage larger companies to follow suit, but some, like Costco and Apple, have stood their ground on the matter. Costco released a statement saying that their “commitment to an enterprise rooted in respect and inclusion is appropriate and necessary.” A group of Republican attorney generals is even demanding that Costco stop their efforts, but Costco has yet to respond.
Despite the strong positive response from the right towards the idea of getting rid of DEI, federal workers that were involved in these programs and were interviewed by NBC reported that their work environments have already been impacted. Aside from official employee resource groups (ERG’s) being shut down, the reach of the executive order has not stopped there. Support groups, voluntary efforts and outside events are all being shut down, either by official order or by the members of the groups themselves, for fear that they may lose their jobs altogether because of their involvement in these groups.
The impact of this executive order will continue to reach far and wide, in possibly unpredictable ways, and the question that lingers at the front of the minds of many Americans, despite what some may argue, is who will really benefit from this? Who gets to decide where all of the funding from these programs will go? Wherever they go, will we find our own values reflected in the decisions made? Or will we see the values of powerful politicians, who do not give second thoughts to people with perspectives that go against their own, reflected throughout the country, as well as in our individual lives?
The White House claims that DEI programs are shamefully wasteful and discriminatory, but before nodding in agreement at how good it might sound for these programs to disappear and for the funding to go towards whatever the government deems appropriate, I would urge you to take a moment to think about the ramifications that this order will have on real people in the United States. DEI is not just a program or a policy, it is a value that we share in this country for diversity, equity, and inclusion among all people. It is to support, in so many different ways, the communities that have been ignored and marginalized in the past. This kind of support does require funding, the kind that uplifts and celebrates people who have not always been, but I know that I want to live in a world where we support one another, in any and every way possible, even if it means sacrificing in other areas.
It is one thing to ensure that these identity groups are housed and fed, but it is another to encourage them to take up space and to help others learn about their history, their passion, and their pain. Despite the actions of the government, we have to move forward together, knowing that our first and most important job is to support our neighbors, near and far, especially when it feels hard. It is when we stop being willing to open our ears and our hearts to people who are suffering that we must take a step back and reevaluate how we are living.