On Wednesday, nearly two dozen Democratic state attorneys general sent a letter to heads of Fortune 100 companies warning them not to fold under pressure from conservative AGs to severely dial back — if not completely destroy — their diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
Last week, Republican AGs from 13 states sent their own letter to Fortune 100 companies, urging them to restrict the use of corporate DEI policies, which are designed to improve workplace environments for members of marginalized groups. Their letter claimed that the Supreme Court’s recent ruling banning the use of race-conscious admissions policies at colleges means workplaces cannot deploy DEI policies, which they dubiously characterize as methods of discrimination (presumably, against white people) in contracting and employment.
In their letter, the right-wing AGs urged companies to “refrain from discriminating on the basis of race, whether under the label of ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ or otherwise,” and they threatened “serious legal consequences” for anyone who defies their demonstrably warped view of racial discrimination.
Not so fast, the Democratic AGs said in their letter this week. These right-wing threats are meant to intimidate, they wrote:
The letter you received from the 13 state attorneys general is intended to intimidate you into rolling back the progress many of you have made. We write to reassure you that corporate efforts to recruit diverse workforces and create inclusive work environments are legal and reduce corporate risk for claims of discrimination. In fact, businesses should double-down on diversity-focused programs because there is still much more work to be done.
They added:
The July 13th letter claims that the existence of a few scattered articles evidences ‘commonplace,’ ‘overt,’ and ‘pervasive’ discrimination by Fortune 100 companies against white people. We urge you not to allow these false claims to prevent you from continuing in your lawful efforts to foster diversity. The letter’s attempts to equate these permissible diversity efforts with impermissible hiring quotas is a clear effort to block opportunities for women and people of color—especially Black people.
Republicans have long sought to frame policies meant to stem inequality — particularly racial inequality — as discriminatory against white people. On that note, I recently wrote about a push by conservatives to outlaw college scholarships and grants designed for underrepresented racial and ethnic minorities. I also recommend checking out this post of mine from 2021, on conservative claims that policies meant to aid Black farmers amount to anti-white discrimination.
Corporate DEI programs are, indeed, worthy of criticism — but that’s because they’re widely seen as too weak and ineffective in providing useful assistance to marginalized employees. Not, as Republicans claim, because these programs are giving marginalized people some kind of unfair advantage.
The Democratic AGs were smart with the framing of their letter. In our increasingly diverse country, DEI programs make smart business sense. And corporations that don’t prioritize DEI run the risk of permitting actual discrimination and other misconduct that can be very costly in court.
In essence, this was “F around and find out” in legalese.
Ja’han Jones is an MS NOW opinion blogger. He previously wrote The ReidOut Blog.