Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies and initiatives in education, workplaces, and government institutions are facing extreme attacks by the Trump administration.
According to the American Psychological Association, DEI is a “conceptual framework that promotes the fair treatment and full participation of all people, especially populations that have historically been underrepresented or subject to discrimination because of their background, identity, disability, etc.”
The inception of DEI practice can be traced back to the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This banned discrimination in employment based on race, religion, sex, color and origin. President Lyndon B. Johnson issued Executive Order 11246 in 1965, which barred discrimination in federal employment and required federal contractors to implement affirmative action plans.
On Trump’s first day in office on Jan. 20, he signed an executive order, “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing,” which stated that federal DEI efforts are “immense public shame and wasteful discrimination”.
In addition, he signed another executive order, “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-based Opportunity.” This reversed multiple efforts to address racial and social justice, such as Executive Order 11246.
The administration placed all federal DEI staff on leave as of Jan. 21. In mid-February, the Trump administration gave American universities and schools two weeks to eliminate diversity initiatives or risk losing federal funding.
Critics of DEI are saying that such practices are unfair, racist and discriminatory towards white people.
Elon Musk, the billionaire investor, said DEI “is inherently racist and an illegal movement in its implementation even if it purports to work on the so called oppressed.”
Ryan P. Williams, president of the Claremont institute, a conservative think-tank, said the ideology behind DEI is “fundamentally anti-American.”
In May 2024, Donald Trump said, “I think there is a definite anti-white feeling in this country."
Ron Desantis, the Republican governor of Florida, previously stated in 2023 that DEI results in “discrimination, exclusion, and indoctrination."
According to NPR, more than half of white Americans believe that white people in the U.S. face racial discrimination.
“What critiques of D.E.I. tend to imply, but never quite openly say, is that competent white people are being replaced with incompetent Black people,” Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor said in his article, The War on Diversity and Inclusion.
DEI also includes aspects other than race, such as gender.
For example, white women have been the biggest beneficiaries of DEI programs in the workplace.
Within the chief diversity officer roles, 76% are filled by white people, while 54% of officers are women.
In addition, white women hold nearly 19% of all C-suite positions. Racial and ethnic minority women only hold four percent.
According to Deloitte and the Alliance for Board Diversity, “white women made the largest percentage increase in board seats gained in both the Fortune 100 and Fortune 500.”
Furthermore, DEI includes people of all marginalized backgrounds, such as LGBTQ+ people, people with disabilities and other historically oppressed groups. DEI fights against systemic barriers to make sure all people are on a level-playing field.
Some companies and corporations are ending their DEI policies, while others are choosing not to. Some companies that have ended their DEI policies include Google, Target, Amazon, Mcdonald’s and Walmart.
Companies that have remained committed to DEI, include Ben & Jerry’s, Costco, Delta Air Lines and Microsoft. Researching the morals and values of the places that you shop at is critical in advocating for and defending DEI.
During the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, boycotts were used to protest racial apartheid. The apartheid government was later dismantled in 1994.
Boycotts were also used as an act of resistance against the segregated seating of city buses in Montgomery, Alabama during the 1950s. Montgomery buses eventually were integrated, demonstrating the power has always been in the people.
As the backlash against racial and social justice continues, our commitment to DEI has too.
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By JOSHUA WEEKS
Staff Writer
*Joshua Weeks is the historian of Salisbury University's NAACP Chapter
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