“It was never about DEI. DEI was only the crumbs they allowed us to have, while simultaneously undermining any advancement with harmful policies.”

This column is from The Recombobulation Area, a weekly opinion column and online publication founded by Dan Shafer, now part of the Civic Media network. Learn more about The Recombobulation Area and subscribe here.

By now we have all seen the disrespectful reaction from President Trump and Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy to the fatal plane crash in Washington D.C. As many of us were wondering, “How could this happen?” — a fair question when a tragedy occurs — within hours, Trump was already placing blame on the air traffic controllers, people with disabilities, and the pilots in the military helicopter.

At a time of a national tragedy, when the country needed leadership, President Trump once again chose divisiveness. So did Wisconsin embarrassment, newly sworn in Transportation Secretary, Sean Duffy. Blaming DEI for the plane crash is not rooted in any fact and is only meant to further otherize marginalized people. Duffy is taking an opportunity to carry out Trump’s hateful legacy even when it doesn’t directly relate to his department. Trump, Duffy, and the rest of the administration want to continue to power grab and shred the constitution and to do it, they need to get diverse folks in positions of power out of the way. Because of this false narrative that is taking hold, even transportation is becoming another weapon of hate.

The backlash to these comments were immediate as we’ve seen folks challenge the president’s claims. A lot of us know that it’s not about DEI specifically. A lot of the time, it is code for anti-Black policies. The backlash to companies cutting their DEI programs is justified in that it is another way to dehumanize whole communities.

At the same time, there’s a bigger conversation we should be having.

Dr. Monique Liston posted on Facebook, “DEI was never the answer anyway.” We can be upset that our accomplishments, history, holidays, and creativity are at risk of being erased and whitewashed, and we can also acknowledge that DEI trainings have fallen short in actually dismantling systems of oppression. I was meeting recently with a group of Black political friends and we cracked jokes about the terrible DEI trainings we have been to and how they were more like scenes from the “Diversity Day” episode of The Office. I remember feeling similarly when Juneteenth became a national holiday in 2021. We had just seen millions of protesters take the streets to protest the murders of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, and in many ways, declaring Juneteenth a federal holiday felt like a performative consolation prize. Police brutality continues to go without justice, but at least now the rest of the country has a day off to celebrate a holiday we’ve celebrated all of our lives.

“By pacifying us with performative trainings disguised as real change, the real villains are finding ways to protect their corporate interests — even if that means erasing communities that DEI supports.”

Last year, I sat in the headspace that multiple truths can be true. We can be upset with the broad signaling of trying to erase multiple communities, and we can also acknowledge that DEI was never meant to solve racism — the same way Barack Obama’s historic election didn’t put us in a “post racial” society. It was never real for some of these corporations because they bowed out immediately when they thought their profits would be impacted. Or, companies sold things during Pride and Black History Month not because they wanted to support the community, but because they saw an opportunity to turn a profit off of our history and culture. Target having Black creators and influencers will not change the mass incarceration and racial profiling in our communities.

While the devastating plane crash is still under investigation, we do see a telling timeline from former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg asking for more air traffic controllers since last April. When asked by reporters what the evidence was that DEI was the cause of the crash Trump said, “Because I have common sense and unfortunately a lot of people don’t.”

It was never about DEI. His comments made that loud and clear. Just like DEI was never about seriously dismantling systems of oppression when corporations capitalize off of Black history when it’s convenient.

This is not to say DEI shouldn’t exist. DEI done correctly is important right now. If we’re serious, we need to talk about white supremacy and racialized capitalism and how Trump and his administration of rich cronies are shredding the constitution daily, conversations often deemed too uncomfortable to be included in DEI trainings.

By pacifying us with performative trainings disguised as real change, the real villains are finding ways to protect their corporate interests — even if that means erasing communities that DEI supports. DEI is often seen through the lens of racial equity but DEI protects women, veterans, the disabled, LGBTQIA. In fact, white women disproportionately benefit from DEI programs the most. We also know that airline pilots are often disproportionately white and male.

Again, it was never about DEI. DEI was only the crumbs they allowed us to have, while simultaneously undermining any advancement with harmful policies. Yes, we can be outraged at the messages the Trump administration is sending by doing mental gymnastics to find a way to further dehumanize and degrade our communities, and we can also say that DEI on its own is wholly ineffective to making a dent in oppressive systems.

We can see the bigger concern and the fear and terror his messaging inflicts, but protecting DEI programs will not on its own liberate us.

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