The Myth of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion: Is DEI Work synonymous to…not a damn thing?
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) sounds so nice and fluffy when falling off the tongue…but that’s actually part of the problem — it’s too nice, and it’s way too fluffy. It’s a trending buzz word that generously affords points to the individual spouting it off, irrespective of the real work happening behind the scenes. This brings up another point of concern. What does DEI work truly look like? It seems to transpire behind an ubiquitous, yet profusely obscure curtain. We only know it’s happening because they tell us so…right?
Major universities, tech giants, etcetera, shell out top dollars for DEI administrators and specialists. Many conservatives criticize the aforementioned efforts, labeling them as phantom racist policies. Yet, this type of reductionist commentary towards DEI is incendiary, and undermines its inherent potential. Efforts towards equity and diversity are fundamentals of democracy, civilization, and progress. Have we honestly forgotten our country was founded on the antithesis of DEI values? However, posturing DEI endeavors without tangible results is indeed phantom racism.
The University of California alone, has hired dozens of well-paid top officials exclusively dedicated to DEI. Many of these officials start with an annual salary of $250,000. Yet and still, enrollment numbers of academically eligible students of color continue to decline or remain stagnant. Many of us know underpaid highschool counselors single handedly producing more diversity, equity, and inclusion results than the highest paid DEI Chancellor. Tech companies, non-profits, and corporate firms also sport exceptionally trained DEI experts on their teams, and yet the board rooms continue to reflect a white male majority presence and / or mindset. And as my nana used to say, “All skin-folk ain’t kin-folk, and all kin-folk ain’t skin-folk”.
So what does this suggest about DEI work? Ultimately, it suggests the praxis of DEI is not in alignment with its theory. Luckily, there is a young Ethiopian-American power-house who is making waves outside the DEI sector. Her name is Aida Mariam Davis, and she is the founder and CEO of Decolonize Design. A self-described futurist, Aida holds a Bachelors of Arts from UC Berkeley in Political Science & African American Studies, as well as a Masters in Public Policy & Public Administration from the University of Southern California. She’s a polished community vanguard who dresses for the boardroom, while her heart and actions are guided for and by the people.
Decolonize Design jumps straight to the point, and brazenly poses the following question, “Is DEI designed to fail”? With the recent shake-ups seen regarding Black woman scientist Dr. Timnit Gebru, at Google’s Silicon Valley headquarters, one is forced to admit that DEI is drastically failing in areas that should effectively protect marginalized communities the most. In case you didn’t hear, Dr. Timnit Gebru, a Stanford trained electrical engineer and former co-leader of Google’s Ethical Artificial Intelligence Team was allegedly ousted from her leadership position, for highlighting concerns regarding artificial intelligence (AI) bias that disproportionately targets people of color. Her Google sponsored research also underscored the current environmental costs produced by AI due to the harmful carbon footprint generated to train large language models. Basically, Dr. Timnit was simply doing her job, but once her work began to impinge on Google’s bottom line, her inclusion was nixed, and equity was a mere afterthought. Dr. Timnit’s experience is not singular or rare, occurrences like this happen ad naseum. For Black excellence, inevitable exclusion is often the admission for entrance. This is just one of the innumerous ways in which DEI is injuring its thought leaders and community investors.
What sets Decolonize Design apart from the rest of the DEI pack is that it does not construct its identity around pillars of diversity, equity, or inclusion. Instead, Decolonize Design is a global community development firm invested in belonging, dignity, and justice. A belonging, dignity, and justice (BDJ) framework forges deeper than status-quo DEI. BDJ actually eradicates systemic barriers suffocating diversity, equity, and inclusion. If Google Research had been incorporating principles of belonging, dignity, and justice, Dr. Timnit Gebru would not have been pushed out for merely doing her job. I have not spoken to Aida specifically about her thoughts on Dr. Timnit’s ousting from Google, but I imagine she would hold no bars and succinctly call it out for what it is: an act of intellectual violence against a Black woman in leadership. Decolonize Design understands the inherent injurious mechanisms embedded within most of our firms. Subsequently, Decolonize Design intentionally uses liberation language in its strategies of approach and design prototyping. Attending a workshop by Decolonize Design might feel akin to experiencing Audre Lorde’s The Master’s Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master’s House, redesigned for corporate and community spaces.
Centered in creating measurable change through African and Indigenous approaches, Decolonize Design aims to solve the conundrum Audre Lorde posed decades ago. Can we truly dismantle systems of oppression using systemically oppressive tools? Evidently the answer is no. For this precise reason, Decolonize Design is a team of exceptional visionaries ranging from the dynamic Davis sisters (Dr. Angela Davis & Fania Davis, JD), Dr. Macheo Payne, and Alexandra Gessesse just to name a few. Collectively, the robust team is using a different language to deconstruct the systemic isms of our country’s social legacy.
Hence, if you’re looking for a DEI training, or for authentic structural change within your organization, go ten steps further and book a BDJ consultation with Decolonize Design. DEI talks about change — BDJ brings change. As the saying goes, don’t talk about it, be about it!
