The white community believes in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Each one of these words mean something to all of us, and can affect all of us some time now, or sometime in the future. Unfortunately, the conversation on DEI has been minimal, explaining DEI to the masses has been less than minimal, and the roll out of DEI programs to sectors of the government, companies and corporations, and to the general public, has been disastrous. It is no wonder people of all communities are upset with the disagreements and disappointments, that have fueled anger and accusations of racism and favoritism, from all sides. As someone who has conduct classroom type power point training sessions for the hospitality industry, if you look at the DEI training program, this would be a nightmare to put out this training for even a seasoned trainer, not to mention for some HR Director or Manager at a Target or Walmart store for their employees. I could only imagine the questions that could be asked from this program. You would have to be an expert to understand and train this type of complex social program. The general public is always being left in the dark, and with no explanations on what exactly is “Critical Race Theory,” “Affirmative Action,” or “DEI,” and therefor will usually disavow any of these programs simply because no one is explaining the history, the content, or the need for such programs over the years. Affirmative Action and DEI were definitely needed, in order to ensure equal opportunity for minorities and women. Remember, in any society, you are going to have a majority and a minority in population numbers of different groups. With the past history of our nation, these programs were to simply ensure that the majority numbers were fair to the minority numbers. This should be the case no matter how the population numbers shift. DEI emerged as an evolution of Affirmative Action. While Affirmative Action focused on specific actions to open doors, DEI broadened the scope to include the creation of inclusive cultures where diverse perspectives are valued. So, “Critical Race Theory,” came on the scene to remind us that the pillars of society benefited the white community more, since these pillars were set in place by members of the white community, and although they have evolved for the better, there were those that felt the white community was unaware of this or did not wish to acknowledge it. “DEI,” came on the scene to oversee these pillars of society to ensure that there was fairness, in order to achieve diversity and inclusion. There was a podcast with a prominent Governor years ago, who stated on the podcast, “black and brown people don’t have access to ATM machines or checking accounts.” The podcaster then took him to task on that statement and asked, “what do you mean they don’t have access, why those two groups?” The Governor got tongue tied and couldn’t answer the question. The podcaster kept pressing and it became a very awkward moment. First of all, if you are going to make such a damning statement, and an accusation of racial discrimination with regards to banking, and you know this is going on in the state that you are in charge of, why aren’t you attacking that issue head on? Not to have an answer on a statement that you brought up is also unacceptable. Fast forward to the aftermath of the George Floyd incident. Chase Bank announced a $30 billion dollar commitment to advance racial equity by investing in Black and Latino communities. This plan is to originate 40,000 new home purchase loans for black and Latino households, provide $14 billion for affordable rental housing, and offer 15,000 loans to small businesses in these communities. The bank framed these actions as a way to address “systemic racism” and the racial wealth gap. Chase is also expanding its community development efforts to include new or renovated branches in underserved areas. Now the reason there is DEI, is to ensure that businesses like Chase Bank don’t discriminate on the basis of race. These commitments tell us that Chase was already not committed as it should have been. Just the fact that they now agree with themselves to provide these loans and more branches in these neighborhoods, is proof of what DEI is, and why it was needed. The biggest problem with Affirmative Action, Critical Race Theory, and DEI, is that they were not well explained to the masses, as so you had a lot of negative feeling towards these programs, and towards this way of thinking. Great news for the Black and Latino communities who receive these opportunities, and more power to you. Sounds like Chase Bank had a guilty conscience. We Americans are now trying to get to the point where everyone has an equal shot at the American dream, and without having to subscribe to a sponsored program. As long as you do your best to succeed in school, stay away from criminal behavior, obey all laws, and try to better yourself and believe in yourself, you will succeed. There is plenty of help out there as well, and if you apply yourself daily and set goals for yourself, and keep a positive outlook, you can make it in America. if there are systems still in place that might create barriers for anyone from any community, then let’s recognize these barriers if they are there, and work together to eliminate them. The laws of society are constantly changing and evolving, and it is up to us as a society, to keep an eye out for any aspect of our society that could be changing in the wrong direction, so that we can prevent it. Let us all work together to ensure that there is already, equal access, equal opportunity, diversity, equity, and inclusion, without forcing us to sit in a classroom as adults and force upon us what we already believe in, for all of the people in America. “Unified as one, in our way of thinking, is our greatest strength as a nation.”
