The following blog post was first published on Cleveland.com on 2/26/2025:
The shock and awe of the Trump administration’s wanton dismantling of federal government agencies has our heads and hearts reeling. The wiping out of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts, both directly by the federal government and proactively by many private companies and organizations, has been stunningly swift. Here in Ohio, Senate Bill 1, which among many controversial provisions would ban DEI programs, offices and practices at state institutions of higher education, passed the Ohio Senate on Feb. 12.
While many of us are grimly bracing for an extended period of retrenchment in our nation’s progress combating racism, I also see a compelling opportunity for a fresh and, perhaps, ultimately more effective approach.
At their best, DEI initiatives help educate us about the root causes of decades-long social disparities and inspire intentionality about expanding opportunity to a much broader segment of our increasingly multiracial society. Millions of Americans of color and women of all races have benefited from efforts to cultivate and support more diverse workplaces and schools.
However, the DEI industry has also helped sow the seeds of its own demise. Far too often, DEI programs are overly preachy, influence through guilt, and pit social groups against each other. Pledges and commitments to DEI are often more performative than substantive. Many DEI workshops are steeped in facts about historical and current disparities while offering little practical guidance about the day-to-day application of that knowledge. One-off workshops generate momentary awareness with limited long-term impact.
Many of us aspire to a world where there would be no need for DEI positions, offices or programs because our boardrooms, executive suites, workforces, and institutions of higher education would reflect societal diversity, and we all would have the opportunity, through merit and personal effort, to access those spaces. The conundrum is how to ensure a fair playing field on which all can succeed without a DEI process that can stigmatize its beneficiaries as unworthy and alienate those in the majority who feel unfairly impeded.
What if there were an approach to antiracism that relied more on inspiring a shift in mindsets and behavior than on legislating or shaming it? What if this approach made social inclusion efforts harder to attack and disrupt because they are active in organic ways throughout our personal and professional lives and not centralized in DEI offices and programs?
“Everyday antiracism” is one antidote to DEI retrenchment for those of us seeking a way to continue progress in this devastating moment.
To continue to promote fairness and equalize access and opportunity, I recommend focusing on curiosity, structure, perception and belonging. This means approaching daily conversations about race with a greater willingness to learn, keeping attention on root causes of inequities, being vigilant about our unconscious biases, and avoiding unintentional othering.
And to continue to seek racial reconciliation, I recommend a focus on truth, healing, restitution and power. This means finding ways each day to be honest about ugly past and present realities, acknowledging the pain caused by racism, making up with those who have been wronged, and working to share influence more broadly.
Consider these approaches when designing a program, recruiting a new employee, prepping for a meeting, managing a workplace dispute, meeting a new neighbor, or anticipating a family gathering. As we grapple with the rollback of formalized efforts to generate greater opportunity and fairness, let each of us commit to the daily work of everyday antiracism to advance racial progress within our own spheres of influence.