After taking a three-week hiatus, I thought I would “come out swinging” with a column on a controversial, yet critically important topic: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, or DEI. While the term DEI is a relatively new one, it has its roots in the civil rights movement in the 1960’s. While its origins are primarily race-related, over time, DEI addressed a number of identities, such as gender, sexual orientation, and ethnicity, along with race. Early on, DEI was primarily informed by affirmative action and other equal employment legislation, but DEI programming steadily grew in businesses and academia to address workplace culture. However, a watershed moment in DEI was the demonstrations following the death of George Floyd, which seemed to rapidly increase the growth of DEI programs to address the ongoing conversations about equity and inclusion in the workplace.
However, in the eyes of some, this growth went too far. Many companies, academic institutions, and other organizations built large DEI offices that became very powerful internally. Unfortunately, over time, DEI programming became a virtue-signaling device for organizations and hence, became more of an end rather than a means for improving organizational culture and opportunity for those who are discriminated against.
During the past twelve to eighteen months, DEI has become a hot-button issue, which like many issues in the United States lately, has divided the country into two camps, primarily along party lines. On the left, most remain proponents of DEI espouse significant ongoing programming and large DEI offices within organizations which promote and enforce DEI initiatives. On the right, most believe DEI programs and offices are racist and need to be abolished in all organizations.
However, as with most issues, DEI is much more nuanced than the two camps would lead you to believe. For example, if we decide to eliminate all DEI initiatives, we will probably end up “throwing out the baby with the bath water.” Unfortunately, many in the “DEI business” believe that the DEI problems are not solved until there is equity in outcomes. In reality, what we should be striving for is equity in opportunity. That is, we should not judge an organization’s commitment to DEI based on outcomes, but rather on its ability to provide equal opportunity to all.
A great place to start in terms of constructive DEI is with John Hope Bryant’s “The Business Plan for America,” in which he makes “A Case for the Big Tent,” which basically means equal opportunity for all. Bryant makes his case here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/business-plan-america-depends-diversity-case-big-tent-bryant-zi7he. However, let me give you a summary of some of his key points:
- Demographics are Destiny: The United States is now more than 40% people of color and by 2045, we will be a majority of minorities. Unfortunately, many in this group do not know “how finance, money, free enterprise, capitalism, and wealth creation actually works.” As Bryant indicates, “…most members of these groups are not prepared to take hold of the economic levers of the largest economy in the world.” It is important to ensure they will be prepared to do so. Our country’s economic security depends upon it.
- In Successful Capitalism, Diversity Wins: This country’s individual and collective success has been built on immigrants and our diversity. For example, Metro Atlanta, a beacon of diversity and inclusion in the U.S. South, has a GDP which would be amongst the top 40 of the world’s almost 200 countries.
- Racism Doesn’t Work and Being White Alone is not a Winning Plan: The bottom line is that going forward, there are simply not enough white men alone to drive the economy. We need our whole population to be educated and connected as middle-class aspirants and wealth creators. Therefore, all of our population needs to know how money works and how to build wealth.
- We are all “Better Together”: Since 70% of our economy is driven by consumer spending, we have a vested interest in everyone being successful for our economy to remain strong. So, DEI is important if it provides equal opportunity for success for all.
Bryant sums up his plan in the following paragraph:
What each of us should want is a country where everyone has the right to determine their own future and their own financial journey—as long as they are willing to work hard, play by the rules and obey the law, do the right thing, and be respectful of others. This society should provide the tools and resources to get a fair shot at success or failure based on merit. This is the business plan for America for the next 100 years.
I am completely onboard with that message. It is all about equal opportunity and meritocracy. The other area where Bryant and I agree wholeheartedly is that all of this begins with financial literacy for all! For our entire population to be able to run our economy, they have to be financially literate. In the CSRA, this begins with Junior Achievement (JA) and their great programming in the Discovery Center for all Richmond and Columbia County middle schoolers. From the above, I think you can see how important their work is. Do not hesitate to volunteer with JA…our future depends on it!
