Now I already know what you’re thinking. You’re here because you’re angry, or maybe you’re here because you have some close-minded views that you think I may agree with. Sorry to disappoint you, but what I want to address today is the effectiveness of DEI policies. These policies are probably better than open racism, but that’s about it.
But first, let’s get this out of the way: I am a firm believer in equity. Everybody should have equal opportunity in life. I’ve spent over 10 years living and working overseas, and during this time, I worked with a multicultural team of people from dramatically diverse backgrounds and circumstances. In spite of these differences, I am continually struck by how much we have in common.
Okay, now that’s out of the way, let’s talk about why DEI policies must die.
So what is DEI?
DEI stands for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. All this means is that everyone has the right to be treated fairly and with respect regardless of their skin color, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disabilities, or anything else. This is especially true for any group that has been historically marginalized.
That doesn’t sound like something we should be rallying against, does it? Well, no, at least not as it’s written. While the intentions of these policies are important, few are actually achieving these goals. In fact, many are having the opposite effect.
DEI Policies = Virtue Signaling
For starters, many DEI policies are just another form of virtue signaling. In other words, it’s a way that people, schools, and businesses try to show others that they are virtuous and moral so you should be giving them your money. These companies are willing to go so far as to put this policy on their website hoping to impress you with their fancy words. Now they can claim: mission accomplished! Since they’ve already told you that they’re doing the right thing, there’s no reason to actually follow through and do anything else. They don’t really care about having a multicultural team. These mission statements are empty words.
Diversity in Practice
Let’s focus on a couple of specific examples from schools since I have firsthand experience in that industry. However, this behavior is far more widespread.
For example, a school cannot say that they’re committed to a DEI policy if they’re a private institution that charges tens of thousands of dollars in annual tuition with no scholarships. This means there’s no economic diversity at the school, which usually leads to a lack of ethnic diversity. Their actions speak louder than their shallow DEI statement.
They also aren’t committed to a DEI policy if they don’t have a multicultural team of people working there. It’s essential to have a diverse group of educators, administrators, and staff who can serve as role models and mentors for students of all backgrounds. Representation matters, not only in the student body.
Finally, according to the Harvard Business Review, “without metrics to measure their current status and monitor progress, DEI efforts will always amount to shooting in the dark.” Who is tracking the outcome of these initiatives? All too often, it’s no one.
Inclusion in Practice
On the flip side, these same schools often accept students regardless of learning needs, also referred to as learning challenges. It’s not automatically a good or bad idea for all students to be in a mainstream classroom, but it is a bad idea when these students receive no additional support. If schools are going to accept students who have high learning needs, they need to be supported by qualified people with specialized training.
Otherwise, inclusion is abandonment.
Tossing a high-needs child into a classroom with 25 other students and a single teacher helps no one. It’s not equitable for the student, who doesn’t receive the support that they need. Additionally, it’s not equitable for the rest of the class when a single student is monopolizing the teacher’s time. Now the other students are more likely to learn to resent rather than accept their new classmate–the literal opposite outcome of this intention.
DEI Training: Only slightly less useless than a policy
You may be thinking, “My workplace is different. We had a meeting and paid a corporate trainer to speak to the employees about DEI issues, so now we’ve solved our problems.
Maybe some of the people who hired speakers had only the purest intentions in mind. But the question is: Did anything change as a result of those meetings? Were any meaningful actions taken? Or did it just lead to a feedback loop of more training and meetings?
Taking Action
To review, just having these policies does nothing to address or fix the actual problem because that takes real work. If you actually do want to embark on some meaningful change in your workplace, though, here’s where you can start.
First, figure out the what and the why? What do you want to accomplish regarding DEI and why?
Does your workplace actually want to be more inclusive and diverse?
You really need to think about the answer to that question because if that’s not what you want, then there’s no need to read any further.
Assuming you actually do want to be more inclusive, then what does that mean to you?
This is a very important question to answer. In some locations, it may be impossible for your organization to be truly ethnically diverse. Businesses are a reflection of their communities. For example, in rural Vermont, there may not be a large Moroccan or Samoan population. However, you may find diversity in other terms such as religion, beliefs, or socioeconomic backgrounds.
That doesn’t mean that companies can’t recruit outside of their immediate area, or even add some remote positions to increase representation. While it’s easier than ever to do that, it is critical to understand that this can’t be forced. Encourage different groups of people to apply by reaching out beyond the usual (and local) places you recruit but understand that someone might not want to be the token nonbinary Brazilian Bahai representative for your company.
Why isn’t your workplace diverse already?
The demographics of America are changing. According to the US Census Bureau, ” the population as a whole has become more racially and ethnically diverse in just the last decade, with the percentage minority climbing from 32.9 percent in 2004 to 37.9 percent in 2014.” Younger applicants should naturally be coming from a more diverse group of workers.
However, if you’ve identified that the problem is not the community, but the fact that people from different backgrounds don’t feel comfortable or welcome in your workplace, then you need to ask why? Are they being excluded or targeted in some way? Or are they feeling isolated because they don’t have much in common with their coworkers?
If it’s the first reason, this is a problem that should be addressed immediately. People who target or isolate others for being different need to face real consequences for their actions. Otherwise, this creates a hostile work environment. Bullies need to face consequences for their actions, even if you think they’re a strong employee or a friend. Additionally, retaining a toxic employee isn’t just morally wrong, it’s a liability–one that can have long-lasting and destructive repercussions for an organization.
However, if someone feels isolated because they’re just a minority in the larger community, then you need to find ways to help celebrate their culture without making them the go-to person for everything about that culture. A coworker from Bogota shouldn’t be regularly teased about Colombian drug cartels or subjected to jokes in badly accented Spanish. By all means, ask them if they’re able to bring an authentic Colombian dish to the next potluck, but understand they may tell you that they hate arepas. Build connections with them in the same way you would anyone else. In other words, show interest in their culture, but don’t make everything about it.
Perhaps a corporate speaker covered these scenarios. Employees may have even been forced to sign a diversity pledge, and now middle management considers the problem solved. But those pledges are empty, and the actions minimal which can do more harm than good. And no, having middle-aged white guys lead more meetings about microaggressions is not going to solve anything, either.
The DEI Cycle Continues
The current trends today are reminiscent of the political correctness and multiculturalism movement from the ’90s, which was about as subtle as a nail in the eyeball. To be fair, a more blunt approach may have been needed then, but it’s been 30 years. Haven’t we made some progress in that time? In some areas, such as gay rights, we definitely have. But in others? It’s not so clear. It can be difficult to tell if there has been a rise in bigoted behavior and violence in recent years, or if there has merely been a rise in the reporting of this behavior, exacerbated in part by social media. Exposing this behavior is one thing, but how can we, as a society, actually do something about it?
Breaking the Cycle
True change is difficult. It’s not going to be solved by having an outside speaker come to tell the people in your organization that they’re a bunch of racists. People don’t get over their bigotry because of a PowerPoint. They get over prejudice by normalizing diversity and finding common ground with others. Then they can begin to support each other, instead of antagonizing each other. People began to accept homosexuality when their children came out of the closet. Now they learn that not all Arabs are terrorists when the beloved kindergarten teacher is from Syria. They aren´t swayed by arguments on Twitter, but by conversations around the water cooler.
People do not overcome their bias due to a policy in an employee handbook or a mission statement on a web page. Empty words don’t affect change, but actions and honest conversations can. These are so much more meaningful than yet another mission statement, vision, transformation, big rock, or corporate nonsense initiative.
