***Disclaimer: this is an opinion piece. This article in no way reflects the views of The Cauldron and its staff. It only reflects the views of the columnist.
On Jan. 20, President Donald Trump signed an executive order titled “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing.” The order calls to dismantle Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) offices, positions, and initiatives.
The response to the order—and the broader conversation around DEI—reveals a deeper issue: nobody knows what DEI means, apparently.
The literal president of the United States blaming a tragic plane crash on diversity, equity, and inclusion seems like a bad joke, yet here we are.
I could write an article shooting down every myth about DEI. No, it doesn’t encourage hiring underqualified candidates of color. No, it doesn’t discriminate against white people. As a matter of fact, the demographic that benefits most from DEI policies are white women.
But would debunking every myth about DEI actually change anything? If the people calling Kendrick Lamar a “DEI hire” for the Super Bowl halftime show don’t care that he has twenty-two Grammy awards, why would they care about fact-based evidence?
I don’t think the misconceptions about DEI can be solved with a well-written article. The people who need to hear it the most won’t read it, and there’s nothing we can do about it. Some people refuse to listen to any perspectives other than their own, and new information won’t change that—only self-reflection.
If you see a person of color in a high-level position and your first thought is that they only got there because of affirmative action, you are racist.
Sorry you had to find out this way. Or maybe you already knew, and just don’t care.
If you dismiss a complete stranger’s achievements as DEI, that is because you assume that they are less skilled because of their race, either consciously or subconsciously. That is racism.
If this applies to you, you have to do some serious self-reflection. There is nothing anyone else can do for you.
I hate to put it so blatantly, but how long can you spoon-feed information to someone with their mouth shut?
I’m not saying that everyone who opposes DEI policies is inherently racist.
Critiquing DEI as a policy is one thing; automatically dismissing someone’s success because of their race is another. Implying that someone’s achievements are secondary to their race, is, by definition, racist.
But discussions around DEI have become so clouded in bigotry as the term gets more and more watered down that this prevalent racism completely dominates any discussion on this subject.
I’m tired of it!
All I can ask is that you self-reflect and think critically. Please, I beg.
