Since the Orange Troglodyte re-entered the Oval Office, DEI has been firmly in his crosshairs, and in those of his obscenely wealthy sycophantic posse of white tech bros, biz bros and sex-offender bros.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) has, in a matter of weeks, become a lightning rod for controversy, and under this heartless administration, what was once widely accepted as a positive movement to create fairer, more-inclusive workplaces is now being demonised by an alarming number of businesses, politicians and media figures.
The term ‘DEI’ describes policies designed to improve representation and advocacy by promoting fair and equitable opportunity, participation and treatment of individuals of different races, genders, religions, ethnicities, disabilities, ages, cultures and sexual orientations in the workplace. Heinous stuff, right? Apparently so, because big names like Amazon, Google, McDonald’s, Meta, Target and Walmart, started to scale back their DEI programmes, driven by either a cowardly fear of controversy or an abundance of ignorance.
Right-wing commentators, certain politicians and even some high-profile business leaders have framed DEI as a ‘woke ideology’ that promotes ‘reverse discrimination’, or is ‘unnecessary’ in today’s workplace. In other words, they label it an extremist agenda rather than what it actually is: a very basic strategic effort to make workplaces more effective, innovative and welcoming. (Sidenote: there is a special place in both........

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