The Death of DEI
So. DEI is dead, but why? How did we get here?
Before we ask how we got here, we need to understand where here is.
To understand the unraveling of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts, we must examine the key moments that chart this decline. A timeline of broken promises and systemic regression that brought us to this point.
2020: Corporate Pledges, Performative Activism, and the Remote Work Revolution
The summer of 2020 was marked by an outpouring of public support for racial equity in the wake of George Floyd’s murder. Corporations, eager to align themselves with the rising tide of social justice, pledged billions of dollars to DEI initiatives. Campaigns spotlighting Black voices proliferated, along with hiring surges for Chief Diversity Officers and the expansion of Employee Resource Groups.
Simultaneously, the COVID-19 pandemic forced a historic shift to remote work, reshaping the labor landscape. While remote work created opportunities for flexibility and access for some marginalized groups, it also exposed and exacerbated existing inequities. Black and brown workers disproportionately represented in essential industries faced greater health risks, while those working remotely often contended with a lack of support for caregiving responsibilities and digital accessibility.
Even as these dual crises unfolded, many corporate promises proved performative at best. Studies . It has since been revealed that much of the money pledged was either never allocated or funneled into short-term projects with little structural impact. DEI efforts became more about optics than systemic change, as corporations profited from the language of justice while avoiding meaningful accountability.
The pandemic highlighted another layer of inequity: those in privileged positions could retreat to the safety of their homes, while others, often from marginalized communities, were forced to endure unsafe working conditions to sustain the economy.
2022: The Overturning of Roe v. Wade
The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade dealt a devastating blow to reproductive rights, especially for Black people able to give birth. This ruling exacerbated systemic inequities, disproportionately impacting those already marginalized by race, gender, and class. Black women, overrepresented in low-wage and precarious jobs, faced compounding vulnerabilities as access to reproductive healthcare dwindled, often in states with the most restrictive abortion bans.
The rollback of reproductive freedoms set dangerous legal precedents, calling into question the security of other hard-won rights, such as access to contraception, same-sex marriage, and anti-discrimination protections (which have since been rolled back by executive order). Activists and legal scholars warned that this decision signaled the judiciary’s willingness to unravel decades of progress on civil rights and gender equity.
Black women activists sounded the alarm, expressing fears rooted in lived experiences and historical precedent. we emphasized how the erosion of reproductive rights echoed the control of Black women’s bodies during slavery, where autonomy was systematically denied. I personally gave talks and produced corporate events in the wake of the Dobbs decision. I and many others questioned whether the DEI commitments made by corporations in 2020 could meaningfully address the intersection of reproductive justice, labor equity, and racial oppression.
2023: Attacks on CRT and Affirmative Action
The year 2023 saw a surge of anti-critical race theory (CRT) legislation and a landmark Supreme Court decision dismantling affirmative action in education. These efforts, framed as a backlash against so-called “woke ideology,” reflected a growing hostility toward any attempts to address systemic racism.
Corporations began to distance themselves from their DEI commitments, citing “woke fatigue” and shifting economic priorities. Many Chief Diversity Officers quietly exited their roles, and budgets for DEI initiatives were slashed. The performative activism of 2020 was laid bare as companies abandoned equity commitments the moment they became inconvenient.
2024: A Crisis Point in DEI Leadership
Dr. Antoinette "Bonnie" Candia-Bailey, a DEI leader and Vice President for Student Affairs at Lincoln University, tragically died by suicide amidst allegations of workplace harassment and bullying. Her death sparked national conversations about the toll of institutional racism, the unique burdens placed on Black women in DEI roles, and the urgent need for mental health resources in the field.
Her passing highlights the stark contrast between performative DEI efforts and the lived realities of those fighting for systemic change, underscoring the emotional labor and personal risks involved in this work. Meanwhile, media outlets and news pundits began reporting that DEI Efforts were “mostly garbage”.
2025: Executive Rollbacks and Corporate Complicity
Within his first week back in office, President Donald Trump signed a slew of executive orders dismantling key Equal Employment Opportunity protections including executive order 1146 of 1965 signed by former President Lyndon B. Johnson and reinstating Schedule-F. These policies, designed to prevent workplace discrimination on the basis of race, gender, and other marginalized identities, were a lifeline for many.
With this rollback, employers have more power to discriminate—more power to hire, fire, and promote based on biases they no longer need to justify.
And all the while, American citizens were reeling from news coverage of multiple concurrent genocides in Gaza, Hati, and The Congo. Sparking worldwide conversations about US involvement in Israel and Palestine relations.
How Did We Get to 2020?
To move forward, we must first rewind even further back. The roots of today’s crisis stretch back to the 1970s, a decade marked by dramatic shifts in corporate and political power. During this era, major financial institutions and corporations began to assert greater influence over public policy and the economy.
This was a pivotal moment in the consolidation of corporate power. As banks and corporations began to take over the political process, they co-opted the language of justice, equality, and progress for their own gain. Instead of fostering genuine social change, these entities used performative activism and media distortion to bolster their image as champions of social justice, even as they lobbied for policies that perpetuate inequality. The rise of neoliberalism in the 1970s, which shifted the focus from collective liberation to individual survival, set the stage for what Alexei Yurchak, a professor of anthropology, terms hypernormalisation.
According to Yurchack, hypernormalisation refers to a phenomenon where many people within a system can recognize that it is failing, but no one seems able to imagine any alternative to the status quo. In this reality, politicians and citizens alike are resigned to maintaining the pretense of a functioning society. Over time, the mass delusion became a self-fulfilling prophecy, with the masses accepting it as the new norm rather than a source for abolition, reform, or critical thought.
As corporations gained a firmer foothold in politics, they began shaping public perception through media manipulation. The rise of corporate PR campaigns in the 1970s helped construct the narrative of progress while obscuring the underlying economic inequalities that were deepening. The media, instead of challenging corporate power, often served as a mouthpiece, promoting stories of corporate success while diverting attention away from growing economic disparity. By the time DEI initiatives were introduced decades later, the corporate machinery that shaped public policy was already in place—able to present diversity and inclusion as progress, even when these initiatives often failed to address the structural inequalities that lay at the heart of society’s ills.
The intersection of media distortion, corporate power, and hypernormalisation created a society where true social change appeared increasingly unattainable. Just as media and corporate PR in the 1970s distorted public perceptions of progress, the hypernormalisation of DEI initiatives in the 2020s cultivated the illusion of racial equity. The media and corporate messaging suggested that the promise of diversity and inclusion was enough, leading to widespread resignation, particularly among those most affected by systemic oppression. Black women, MaGes, and other marginalized groups, who had long been at the forefront of resistance, were left to grapple with a system that offered only symbolic change and hollow promises.
Black women and Labor
The relationship between Black women and labor in the United States has been fraught with exploitation, neglect, and resistance. From slavery, where Black women’s labor was extracted for free, to Reconstruction and the post-Civil Rights era, Black women have been systematically marginalized in economic structures. This marginalization continues today in various forms, with Black women often occupying the lowest-paying, least secure jobs.
For instance, according to a 2020 study by the National Women’s Law Center, Black women in the United States are paid just 63 cents for every dollar paid to white, non-Hispanic men. This wage gap is even wider for Black women who are mothers, earning only 53 cents on the dollar compared to white, non-Hispanic fathers. This stark economic disparity illustrates a long-standing toxic relationship between Black women and labor, in which our contributions are undervalued despite their critical role in sustaining the workforce.
Today, Black women remain overrepresented in industries that are both low-wage and underregulated. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Black women make up a significant portion of the essential workforce in sectors like healthcare, education, and service industries. These sectors are notoriously underpaid and often fail to provide the benefits and protections necessary for workers’ well-being. As of 2021, 60% of Black women worked in service-related jobs, a sector plagued by poor wages and limited opportunities for advancement.
Additionally, a 2021 report from the Economic Policy Institute found that Black women have consistently faced higher rates of unemployment compared to white women. In 2020, the unemployment rate for Black women was 11.4%, compared to 8.1% for white women, a disparity that highlights the systemic barriers preventing Black women from accessing stable, well-paying work. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated these issues, as Black women were more likely to be employed in sectors hardest hit by the crisis, leading to disproportionate job losses and economic instability.
The overturning of Roe v. Wade, the erosion of workplace protections, and ongoing economic exploitation compound the historical inequalities that Black women have faced in the labor market. Moreover, Black women are often left out of the conversations surrounding labor reforms, despite being at the forefront of efforts to challenge exploitative practices. The modern-day relationship between Black women and labor remains one of resistance, but also survival within a system that continues to devalue our contributions.
The Emotional and mental work
Beyond the financial and structural barriers, Black women are also tasked with significant emotional and mental labor. This mental strain is rooted in our constant need to navigate oppressive systems while advocating for ourselves and others. A 2021 study by the American Psychological Association found that Black women experience significantly higher levels of stress and mental health issues related to workplace discrimination than their white counterparts. Over 40% of Black women report experiencing discrimination at work, contributing to burnout, anxiety, and depression.
These emotional burdens are compounded by the intersectional discrimination Black women face, where both race and gender are leveraged as tools of oppression. For example, a 2019 report from the Center for American Progress showed that Black women are subjected to both racial and gendered microaggressions in the workplace, which not only affect their mental and emotional well-being but also their career progression. Such stressors create an ongoing need for resistance, making it harder for Black women to envision a future outside of this toxic relationship with labor and the systems that sustain it.
We must begin by rejecting the pervasive narrative that systemic oppression is inevitable. Hypernormalization, the idea that the systems in place are unchangeable, has only served to perpetuate the cycles of harm. It’s essential that we name and understand the systems of racism, patriarchy, and capitalism, and refuse to accept them as natural or unchangeable. We must confront the lie that these systems are inevitable and, instead, embrace the understanding that the fight for justice is ongoing, adaptive, and necessary. By rejecting this sense of inevitability, we can begin to forge new paths and challenge the deep-rooted inequalities that continue to shape our lives.
Reclaiming agency starts with recognizing the power we hold as individuals and communities. Collective organizing and mutual aid are lifelines for Black women in the face of systemic neglect. In our communities, we’ve always had the power to reshape our narratives, to heal, and to protect one another. We must prioritize wellness, both individual and collective, in our resistance efforts. This is not only about fighting against oppression but about nourishing ourselves and our communities so that we can continue the work of liberation. The fight for equity cannot be sustained without care for the soulwork that grounds us. We must make an internal commitment to healing, to community, and to survival.
This is our call to action: to refuse to settle for a life dictated by the old rules and the old oppressions. To reclaim the narratives of our lives, our work, and our communities. And to build, together, the futures we know we deserve.