Perspectives Matter - The Challenges with DEI

2024 was not a good year for DEI. It’s become a controversial topic, with companies and educational institutions which once embraced Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Many are openly withdrawing their support.

Is DEI dead?

Major companies, Target, Walmart, Meta, McDonald's have rolled back their initiatives in the wake of a Republican-driven effort to eliminate such efforts.

Not so long ago, all but 14 Fortune 500 companies had a DEI statement, a DEI department, or mentioned it in their annual report. That’s no longer the case. When corporate leaders are asked to define DEI, they struggle.

DEI programs first began to surface during the implementation of affirmative action initiatives, which served to address the historical underrepresentation and mistreatment of certain groups.

According to the House of Representatives' Committee on Education & Workforce, the Department of Education spent $1 billion on DEI programs in schools during Biden's presidency.

Joining Host Jim Falk to  talk about this issue  are :

Dr. Erec Smith, a research fellow at the Cato Institute and President of Free Black Thought, an organization that celebrates viewpoint diversity among Black Americans and

Dr. Meagan Mobbs, a West Point graduate, and a former Army officer.  She is the director of the Center for American Safety and Security.

We asked  our experts to explain how DEI went from becoming an essential component of good corporate governance to now being

the subject of debate and intense scrutiny.

The Society for Human Resource Management recently removed the “E” (equity. Why did the term equity become the flashpoint, drawing the most criticism?

Join us to find out more about DEI initiatives and why they have become so polarized.