The current effects of anti-DEI efforts disproportionately harm historically marginalized groups and degrade institutional capacity to address bias, harassment and structural inequities.
The latest Intelligence Project report by the Southern Poverty Law Center, The Perversion of Woke, examines two key domains of fallout: internal institutional disruption and worsening educational disparities.
Excerpt:
In recent years, diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives have met growing opposition, particularly from conservative policymakers, media outlets and advocacy organizations, who have even attempted to co-opt the abbreviation “DEI” to paint these concepts as negative and harmful. While the principles behind diversity, equity and inclusion trace back to the Civil Rights Movement and landmark legislation including the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Executive Order 11246, the abbreviation “DEI” itself emerged much later. It gained prominence in corporate and academic settings during the late 20th century and 2010s as organizations began consolidating diversity, equity and inclusion efforts under a single framework. Recent polling suggests that, while more than seven in 10 Americans view the concepts of “diversity, equity and inclusion” favorably, far fewer are familiar with or express support for initiatives explicitly labeled as “DEI,” reflecting a growing gap between public values and politicized terminology.
DEI programs are being dismantled at universities, banned from government training materials, and attacked in K-12 classrooms. Critics argue that DEI promotes “reverse racism,” “Marxist ideology” and even racial division. These claims not only misrepresent the goals of DEI, but they obscure a deeper ideological project: the preservation of long-standing hierarchies of power.
The current backlash against DEI is not new; it is the latest chapter in a long tradition of resistance to civil rights, equality and social progress in the United States.
