Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is a term people have become more aware of as the years go on. DEI is a set of practices that promote fairness and full participation for all people. It aims to create welcoming and respectful environments that celebrate differences. Beneath the surface of these well-intended policies lies a growing issue: the loss of merit-based positions. A new question has come to light: is DEI causing more harm than good?
My opinion
As a young woman soon to be applying to college and entering the workforce, I do not want my chances of success to be compromised to fit someone else’s ideology. I believe it is important to have diversity throughout various positions if, and only if, the individual is fit, qualified and experienced for the position. Race, gender and sexual orientation should not be put above competence.
I hold the view that hard work and dedication is what propels a person to new heights. People should not receive short cuts because of DEI. From a very young age, my parents have taught me that hard work is what gets you places in life; that my resilience and fortitude will determine my success and future.
The radicalization of DEI is not an issue of left or right nor wrong or right; it is an issue of not prioritizing merit and individual achievement over identity-based quotas and preferences. I find that this topic is important to talk about because it is often silenced. Debate is a crucial part of our First Amendment rights, if we’re afraid to speak out for fear of being labeled or ostracized, we lose the chance to have honest conversations about the best ways to create real equality. To me, equality means being treated fairly based on what we do and who we are—not on what group we belong to. That’s why I feel it’s necessary to speak out and advocate for a more balanced approach.
DEI is not a new concept; it has been around since the 1960s. Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act in 1964 after his predecessor John F. Kennedy was assassinated. The debate of passing the bill lasted over eight months in the US Senate after decades of advocacy by millions of Americans. Some older versions of DEI were called equal opportunity, anti-discrimination and affirmative action programs.
DEI has become a major part of corporate America within the last five years with many institutions highly valuing and incorporating it into their workspaces; now this isn’t necessarily a bad thing in itself. However, when social equity efforts overtake an effort or ability-based system, the narrative changes. High school students tend to ignore this issue but it is important that youth is aware that DEI prioritizes diversity rather than individual qualifications. Students’ future job markets may favor quotas over talent, potentially limiting their career prospects.
Meritocracy is the idea and belief in which people are chosen and moved into positions of success, power, and influence on the basis of their demonstrated abilities and merit. While many people believe that people are put into positions based on merit, radical DEI standards have run rampant throughout government, schools, public safety administrations and many other fields.
DEI in schools
Throughout America, DEI educational programs have been implemented in many school districts, spending more than $3 billion. Some program aspects include teaching young children about sexual orientation, transgenderism and critical race theory.
Many parents advocate for their children, saying that radical DEI agenda should not be put above reading, writing and math skills. National reading and math test scores have gone down across the board according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress. NAEP testing is done on fourth and eighth grade students every few years. Reading scores have gone down two points from 2022 and five points from 2019.
Charles Love published an article for Newsweek in 2023 about his experience being a parent of a kindergarten age son. Love and his family moved to New York in 2023, and saw first-hand how radical DEI has infected the American education system.
“But more often than not, these efforts don’t involve raising up those impacted by real racism and real academic gaps between the wealthy and everyone else; they instead drag everyone else down, canceling achievement benchmarks or eliminating standards altogether,” Love said.
From picture books to worksheets, young children are being exposed to an identity crisis. Minors as young as six years old question their gender, their God-given identity. A question many parents ask is; why is my child being exposed to this content at school? The answer is simple, to fit the agenda, narrative and ideology.
DEI in public safety
Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Kristin M. Crowley was sworn-in as chief in March of 2022. She prides herself on being the first LGBTQ Fire Chief in Los Angeles history. Crowley introduced the LAFD Strategic Plan in 2023 for the following three years.
She presented seven main goals of the department for ‘23-‘26 with number three on the list being committing the organization to embrace DEI in all aspects of the department. This goal was placed above embracing new technology, disaster relief, performance management and enhancing community resilience. Crowley established a DEI Bureau within the fire department even after exposing budgetary struggles.
Two years after publication, LA faced its biggest atrocity on record; over 54,000 acres decimated, 16,000 structures gone and 28 lives lost. LA residents recently have scrutinized the LAFD for their incompetence while handling the recent fires, saying DEI hires have been put above fighting actual fires.
Since then, Crowley has been fired by Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass in a desperate attempt to save her reputation.
We see this kind of conflict arise in many other safety administrations like the military. DEI hires run rampant and our military decays. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth makes his stance clear on DEI’s place in our military.
DEI in colleges
Colleges across America are mandated to embrace different identities, cultures and backgrounds on their campuses.
In California, demographically speaking, Latinos hold the largest undergraduate numbers with over 500,000 students. Demographics are a great tool to discover the lacking and prosperous areas of enrollment. When colleges see they are significantly underrepresented in a specific race, they tend to increase the amount of admissions of that demographic.
This idea raises a red flag. What about the hard-working students of other demographics that are “shoe-ins” but don’t get accepted for that specific reason? The reason being; quotas and statistics. There are many cases of students who excel incredibly in and out of a high school classroom but simply don’t fit the demographic. This ultimately illustrates that inclusion can actually lead to exclusion.
Palo Alto, California, native Stanley Zhong was the perfect student; 4.42 GPA, 1590 SAT and countless other attributes. He even had a job offer from Google before he graduated high school. In 2022, Zhong eagerly ripped open his 18 college acceptance letters, but instead of being amazed, he was grief-stricken. He had been denied from 16 schools.
The 16 schools include Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Caltech, Carnegie Mellon, Cornell University, Georgia Tech, MIT, Stanford, UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UCLA, UCSD, UCSB, the University of Illinois, the University of Michigan, the University of Washington and the University of Wisconsin.
After the devastating news Zhong is suing the university system for discrimination towards Asian-Americans.
DEI is dead
United States President Donald J. Trump takes a stance against woke and radical DEI evident. Within his first two weeks of his second term, he signed over five executive orders in favor of restoring meritocracy to the nation. Trump dismantled the Biden Administration’s Executive Order 13985 that mandated DEI.
Trump has warned corporations that if they secretly make DEI a part of their program to watch out. His administration has cut over $120 billion dollars in federal DEI funding. Trump’s actions have been very controversial; some applauding and some devastated.
The DEI debate will go on for many years to come and most likely will never meet a consensus on the issue. For now, DEI is dismantled in America and meritocracy is restored.
To read another opinion piece from the Feather, read Column: Echo chambers create unproductive environments for discussion
To read more from the Feather, visit Two Fresno Christian athletic teams make school history or Guest Column: Keeper Trinity Bannister reflects on monumental season
