What the war on DEI reveals

Do they even know DEI "includes" inclusion?

President Trump and his team are using made-up culture wars around DEI and so-called "woke" culture to continue to divide us. Either he believes this stuff to be true (thus a misinformed racist) or he's using it to divert attention from other nefarious deeds. Probably both. Given his response to the plane crash, the first certainly seems true. After all, it's his "common sense" that tells him that this reason we had the accident. Either a person of color or a woman who had received special treatment was the cause. Guess what - not true!

An unexamined racist, the hardest kind to deal with.

The second point I want to make is that when I encounter DEI being disparaged, I hear race and gender as being “the problem.” Do these people even know that the I in DEI is inclusion and includes all sorts of reasonable accommodations for folks who possess different abilities than the majority of us. It’s one of the things that makes (made?) this country great. Imagine your community or workplace without some of the things on the list below. Furhermore, the Bible famously says, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." Removing DEI does not honor God, who they purport to accept in their hearts. Clearly, their hearts have been corrupted.

For educational purposes, this document was forwarded by a HR Leader ...

Some of what DEI is:

-ramps and sidewalk curb cuts

-subtitles & captions (TV & phone)

-family restrooms

-changing tables in men’s restrooms

-breast feeding/pumping stations & accommodations

-floating paid holidays

-pay equity & transparency

-parental leave (time & pay)

-coming back to a job after birthing a child

-not having to just accept workplace harassment

-work accommodations for a variety of disabilities

-flexible work arrangements

-size inclusive chairs and beds in medical facilities

-belt extenders on planes

-various food options for vegetarians/vegans/kosher/gluten-free/etc at medical facilities

-non smoking areas/end of smoking indoors

-being able to have medical professionals and your coworkers use your preferred name (not just queer people have those)

-wellness programs and incentives

-more relaxed & inclusive dress code policies

-rooms to pray/meditate at work & other public places

-employee recognition programs

-employee/network resource groups

-large print materials

-materials in different languages

-multiple religious options at hospitals

-accessible bikes and public transit accommodations

-businesses not becoming fully cashless

-company-covered mental/behavioral health resources

Some of What DEI isn’t:

-hiring an under qualified person for a job just because they’re a person of color

-hiring based on race just to meet diversity goals (this is illegal)

-a new fad or buzz word. DEI work has been going on for many many years, under a number of different names.