So-called DIE (Diversity, Inclusion, Equity) initiatives are being challenged and opposed. As noted in the Wall Street Journal, “Texas became the second state, after Florida, to ban DIE initiatives at publicly funded colleges and universities. Texas A&M University had already announced in the fall that it closed its DIE office and reassigned the team’s staff members.” (WSJ, R. Smith, and L. Weber, 1-4-24).
Why would this be happening?
Several factors have likely contributed to the opposition. Among them the fact that the U.S. Supreme Court last year struck down affirmative action in colleges, removing a false but resilient justification for the policy, the testimony before Congress of the three college presidents of Harvard, UPenn and MIT who simply could not bring themselves to condemn calls for the murder of Jews or concede that such calls would violate school policies against hate speech, and the boycott of major American corporations for their Woke views.
It would be difficult to identify a more succinct description of such a corrosive policy than the one offered by New College school president Richard Corcoran in his article New College Is a Haven for Harvard Refugees:
“Our school … refuses to ostracize certain groups at the expense of others in the name of “diversity, inclusion, and equity”—a misnomer for offices whose purpose typically is the opposite of what their name suggests.” Harvard’s Office for Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity (DIE) says in its “DIE Commitment Statement” that it welcomes “people of color, women, persons with disabilities, people who identify as LGBTQIA, and those who are at the intersections of these identities.” In other words … Jews and others not on the list need not apply—unless they fit one of the delineated identity buckets. An organization truly dedicated to “diversity” and “belonging” shouldn’t establish such narrow parameters for inclusion. This regrettably is typical of DIE office charters, which often signal which groups are “worthy” of membership. We don’t tolerate that at New College. In February we dismantled our DIE office to ensure that no group is singled out for punishment or preferential treatment.”
In fact, “critics say colleges focused on the goals of DIE have cultivated an environment where students see the world as divided between the oppressed and their oppressors, leading to an anti-Israel or anti-Jewish sentiment on campuses.” (WSJ).
Further, Harvard professor Iris Bohnet stated:
“About $8 billion a year is spent on diversity trainings in the United States alone. Now, I tried very hard to find any evidence I could. I looked not just in the United States but also in Rwanda and other post-conflict countries, where reconciliation is often built on the kind of diversity trainings that we do in our companies, to see how this is working. Sadly enough, I did not find a single study that found that diversity training in fact leads to more diversity.” (Jonathan Butcher, The Heritage Foundation, 1-30-23).
At the very least, no taxpayer dollars should be used in connection with DIE and “state lawmakers should ensure that no teacher or student is compelled to profess or believe any idea (especially ideas that violate the Civil Rights Act of 1964). Such ideas would include the notion that individuals today are automatically guilty of racial crimes committed by others decades ago who happen to share the color of their skin. In public colleges and universities, lawmakers should prohibit school officials from using DIE statements to screen job applicants. Similar prohibitions on compelled speech should also apply.” (Id.).
But DIE is where we are with the Woke American Left. According to the brutal dictates of the Thought Police, there can be no diversity of opinion or viewpoint or thought itself. A citizen is either Woke, or silenced, driven out of a job, banned on social media, and more and more frequently threatened physically with retaliation, or worse.
As a culture and as a nation we are thankfully moving in the direction of ending discrimination based upon race, religion, ethnicity, or gender, and hopefully moving in the direction of building a ‘more perfect union’ based upon Dr Martin Luther King’s timeless principle that Americans should be judged only upon ‘the content of their character, not the color of their skin. ‘
In truth, the only way to end institutional discrimination based upon race, ethnicity, religion, or gender, is to end discrimination based upon race, ethnicity, religion, or gender.
DIE should be defunded and ended.
Shreveport attorney, Royal Alexander, worked in D.C. in the U.S. House of Representatives for nearly 8 years for two different Members of Congress from Louisiana.