How familiar are you with D.E.I? It’s an acronym for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. The term was coined in the early 60’s by President Kennedy. It morphed from being an Executive Order for equal opportunity of government contracts into a multi-billion dollar racial quota system. DEI particularly sky-rocketed after the death of convicted felon, George Floyd. And in his short time of being cognizant of his presidency, Joe Biden signed several executive orders pushing and expanding DEI. 

DEI then spread into large corporations, who find themselves in the crosshairs of unelected government bureaucrats threatening to sue for non-compliance. The result – corporations spent their money on DEI boondoggles rather than the quality or competitiveness of their goods, which in turn influenced investment decisions and pension fund strategies.

The soon-to-be-dismantled Department of Education was instrumental in pushing DEI at university campuses also. Do we need more liberal agenda’s force fed to our children. If that wasn’t bad enough, Biden’s Bunch pushed it on our military as well.

Now that Trump has won the presidency, lawmakers at both the Federal and state levels are looking to rolling back some DEI mandates. The House Oversight Committee held a hearing on the issue recently during a markup of the “Dismantle DEI ACT.”

As could be predicted, Republicans bringing up this matter received criticism by “firebrands” from the Left. Jasmine Crockett from Texas delivered a fierce tirade against sponsors of the Act, particularly Clay Higgins from Louisiana. She “reminded” him there has “been no oppression for the white man in this country, “when compared to slavery oppression. She didn’t mention the oppression of the many young White men fought and died for this country in its 250-year-history though. 

Crockett also stated White men comprise 30% of the country’s population but hold over 60% of elected offices. Not true. According to the 2020 Census Bureau, white folks make up 75% of America, with 49.5% being men – greater than her claim of 30%. She didn’t mention that Black folks make up 13.6% of the population, yet 40% of non-whites hold elected office.

Squad member Ayanna Pressley joined Crockett, stating DEI dismantling was a disgrace. Her venting was mostly aimed at Representative Michael Cloud from Texas. Cloud argued DEI undermines the progress made over generations, from the abolition of slavery to the victories of the civil rights movement that America has worked diligently on.

Pressley snapped at Cloud stating Republicans do not acknowledge America’s racist roots. At one point she said, “keep Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s name out of your mouth.” 

Folks, slavery by our forefathers was a shameful sin. Given what our forefathers produced though, are we to throw the baby out with the bathwater? The entire world looks admiringly at this country, not as racist. The entire world, including Africans and Muslims, have enslaved people since about 3500 BC. Only the United States has confessed and tried to atone for this barbaric system. It’s my hunch we might all get along better if people stopped calling other people racist or making accusations of people not acknowledging racist roots.

Ms. Crockett and Ms. Pressley, who hold positions of power and privilege, are paid better than most workers in this country. It is not their business to be indignant or “lib-splaining” at taxpayer expense, but to legislate on what is good for the country.

Since its inception, DEI has been bad policy, promoted by liberal politicians seeking re-election and unelected bureaucrats. Like everything else contaminated by Washington DC, DEI has morphed into a big business for others to profit from, often at taxpayer expense.

The Economist magazine states there is a consensus emerging among “academics” that anti-discrimination policies often backfire, more often than not, due primarily to costly litigation. My experience of raising four children and running a large company is that you can’t make someone do anything they don’t want to do.

It would seem to me that if I were a person considered disadvantaged, I would want to know that I achieved my position due to my accomplishments, not by bureaucratic mandates or racial quotas. Otherwise, DEI might as well stand for Didn’t Earn It.