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DEI Does Not Mean Hiring Incompetent People
Do Americans even know what’s being lost?
If you’re tempted to cheer on Trump and Elonia’s dismantling of federal DEI programs nationwide, please consider first whether you even know what DEI is.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs do NOT mean hiring or promoting incompetent people over competent ones.
What they mean is if three equally competent candidates apply for a position, choose the one that will diversify the workforce. This is an effort to level the playing field for people who have been working to overcome the “hire the guy who looks like the rest of us” bonus points for decades or centuries — so are probably more qualified than the white male candidates beside them just by virtue of making it into the room.
But DEI isn’t only the right thing to do because we believe in equality (don’t we?), it also makes business sense, because it brings diverse perspectives to the table. Just as stock investors want to diversify their portfolio to protect against losses in a single segregated sector, so governments, companies, and churches need diverse leadership so they aren’t operating in echo chambers and fully get what’s going on.
“Yes, I was hired because America needs more Black people in leadership…
