D.E.I. – as in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion – has been the buzz-word term in academia and commerce the past few years. Some say the origins come from The Civil Rights Act of 1964 which President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law. This law prohibited discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Diversity brings together people of different backgrounds and experiences, equity tries to level the playing field for all concerned, and inclusion gives everyone “ownership”. DEI is often recognized for its commitment to fairness and representation.

There are, however, some negative results of DEI such as erosion of meritocracy. Others say that DEI began to unravel with the Supreme Court ruling that race cannot be used in college admissions.

Think back to last July in Butler, Pennsylvania. Everyone has seen the picture and read the story of the little lady trying to protect the presidential candidate. I am looking at the picture in a Judicial Watch newsletter under the headline “Secret Service Records Reveal DEI is Prioritized for All Agency Employees”. The article states that they have 311 pages of Secret Service records making DEI a top priority and demanding that 12% of its workforce be composed of people with disabilities. And, these are the men and women that protect the President of the United States?

This DEI infection is not limited to the government. It is in industry, education, and even the military. But there is change in the air and DEI is beginning to disappear. WALMART recently announced that it will phase out several major diversity, equity, and inclusion policies. Credit was given to Robby Starbuck who is an American conservative activist who has campaigned against DEI and other WOKE activities.

As recently as June 2024 Starbuck began using social media to speak out against companies because of their many woke initiatives especially DEI. Since then targeted companies to include Tractor Supply, John Deere, Molson Coors, Ford Motor Company, Lowe’s, Harley-Davidson, Brown-Forman, Microsoft, and Toyota Motor Company have implemented (or announced) a curtailment to their DEI initiatives.

The destructive impact of DEI in the military is well documented. “DEI Is Distracting Our Military From Its Primary Task” is the title of a short but impactful article from The Heritage Foundation published in The Washington Times. (It noted that the FY 2024 budget request was $114.7 million for the DEI program.) The CATO Institute published an article titled “DEI Should Be M.I.A. in the U.S. Military”.

DEI is also leaving higher education. UNC-Chapel Hill is dismantling their DEI programs. Virginia Commonwealth University and George Mason University will not make DEI-centered courses a requirement for graduation although they will remain as electives. The University of Michigan recently contemplated dismantling its DEI program. The Tufts University newspaper recently published “We need to say goodbye to DEI”. Closer to home, the State Legislature through the budgetary process caused the University of Wisconsin to greatly curtail their DEI efforts as well.

As a baby-boomer that grew up in the late 1950s & 1960s I well remember the famous misquote “What is good for General Motors is good for America!” It is time to turn that around, “What is not good for American businesses, the American military, or American higher education is not good for rest of America!”

But there is hope! The Family Policy Institute of Washington recently published an article “A New Hope: Goodbye DEI, Hello MEI – Merit, Excellence, and Intelligence”! The article’s lead paragraph includes “As the acronym suggests, companies that adopt this framework hire solely on the basis of merit, excellence, and intelligence, knowing that this method will, in turn, produce a diverse workforce built on the foundation of fairness.” And, Washington’s Family Policy Institute is not alone as I found an article titled “Why MEI Is Superior to DEI A Case for Merit, Excellence And Intelligence” by a Dr. Ken Keis.

With the spring elections coming soon, it is time for “We the People” to get engaged – again! Dig a little deeper than what I have shared on DEI (and MEI) and then question your local candidates for municipal and county governments to include local School Boards of Education. Don’t forget to ask the candidates for the State Superintendent of Public Instruction a few questions too!