Countering Reversity: Strengthening DEI Strategies Post-Supreme Court Decision
In the face of a growing push back to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, it is crucial for savvy DEI practitioners to adapt and incorporate new approaches into their toolkit. The recent Supreme Court decision, viewed as part of a carefully orchestrated strategy to diminish America’s growing diversity, highlights the need to counter this pushback and combat the concept of “reversity.” DEI practitioners must employ counter narratives that challenge the forces of reversity and promote lasting change. By embracing these narratives and building competency in systems and organizational change, DEI practitioners can fortify their strategies and create a more inclusive society.
Counter-Narratives
Challenging Reversity: To counter the pushback and reversity, DEI practitioners must actively challenge and dismantle the narratives that seek to impede progress. These counter-narratives provide alternative perspectives that promote inclusivity, justice, and social advancement. By presenting compelling arguments and evidence, DEI practitioners can effectively counter the rhetoric and tactics employed by those seeking to hinder diversity and equity.
The concept of “reversity” was coined by Effenus Henderson, and it refers to a carefully orchestrated strategy employed by conservative policy makers to diminish the power and impact of America’s growing diversity. Reversity seeks to reverse the progress made in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts by reinforcing exclusionary practices and reinforcing the walls that marginalize certain communities. This strategy aims to leverage actors and champions of white nationalism and privilege to counteract the momentum towards a more inclusive society. Henderson’s term “reversity” captures the deliberate and systematic nature of this strategy, highlighting the need for DEI practitioners to actively counter it with resilience, steadfastness, and a commitment to promoting social justice for all.
Imagine a DEI practitioner, Lisa, who has been leading transformative DEI initiatives within her organization. However, she faces opposition from a group of individuals within the company who actively seek to eliminate or undermine the organization’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Gather Evidence and Build Support: Lisa begins by gathering evidence that showcases the positive impact of DEI initiatives. She collects data on increased employee engagement, improved team dynamics, enhanced innovation, and positive business outcomes linked to diversity and inclusion efforts. This evidence will help build a strong case and garner support from stakeholders who believe in the value of DEI.
Educate and Communicate: Lisa takes a proactive approach to educate employees and leaders about the importance and benefits of DEI. She organizes workshops, town hall meetings, and training sessions to address misconceptions, provide evidence-based arguments, and clarify any misunderstandings. By fostering open dialogue and providing information, Lisa can help dispel resistance and encourage a more inclusive mindset.
Develop Allies and Engage Leadership: Lisa identifies key individuals within the organization who are supportive of DEI initiatives. She engages them in conversations, shares information and evidence, and seeks their advocacy. By building a coalition of allies, including influential leaders, she can create a stronger foundation for defending and advancing DEI efforts.
Address Concerns and Misconceptions: Lisa actively listens to the concerns and misconceptions raised by those opposing DEI initiatives. She empathetically acknowledges their perspectives and takes the time to address their concerns with accurate information, examples, and case studies. By offering clear explanations and showcasing the value and positive impact of DEI, Lisa can help bridge the gap and alleviate resistance.
Showcase Success Stories: Lisa highlights success stories from within the organization, showcasing how DEI initiatives have positively impacted individuals, teams, and the overall organizational culture. These stories can be shared through internal communication channels, newsletters, or internal recognition programs. By demonstrating the tangible benefits of DEI, Lisa can counter arguments against its effectiveness.
Strategic Partnerships and External Support: Lisa leverages external resources and networks to seek support from industry experts, DEI organizations, and thought leaders who can provide insights and validation of the importance of DEI in the workplace. This external support can help strengthen Lisa’s arguments and provide additional credibility to counter the opposition.
Uphold Accountability: Lisa ensures that the organization’s commitment to DEI is embedded in policies, practices, and performance evaluations. By establishing clear accountability measures, including diversity goals, progress tracking, and regular reporting, Lisa reinforces the importance of DEI as a strategic priority and helps protect it from attempts to undermine its progress.
In challenging situations where DEI is confronted by opposition, Lisa remains resilient, evidence-driven, and strategic in her approach. By educating, engaging, and building support, she can effectively address resistance and advocate for the long-term success and sustainability of DEI initiatives within the organization.
Social Mobility
Empowering Marginalized Communities: DEI strategies should focus on empowering marginalized communities through social mobility initiatives. DEI practitioners must actively embrace social mobility as a counter to the pushback against marginalized communities. This involves implementing strategies and tactics that facilitate upward class movement for the marginalized, poor, and economically disadvantaged sectors of society. Overcoming communication and language barriers, as well as addressing cultural differences, becomes imperative in empowering individuals to overcome obstacles and achieve upward mobility.
Consider this hypothetical example: Meet James, a talented young professional from a marginalized community. James grew up in a low-income neighborhood with limited access to quality education and economic opportunities. Despite the challenges he faced, James possessed a strong passion for technology and a determination to break free from the cycle of poverty.
Through DEI initiatives, James was able to access educational programs specifically designed to provide opportunities for underrepresented communities. He received scholarships and mentorship support that enabled him to pursue higher education in computer science. The DEI-focused educational environment fostered an inclusive and supportive atmosphere, helping James develop his skills and build a strong network within the tech industry.
After completing his degree, James was connected to internship and job placement programs that specifically targeted diverse candidates. These initiatives aimed to bridge the gap between marginalized communities and industries where they are underrepresented. James’s skills, combined with the opportunities provided by these DEI-focused initiatives, allowed him to secure an entry-level position at a reputable technology company.
As James gained experience and honed his abilities, he continued to benefit from ongoing DEI efforts within the organization. The company prioritized diverse talent recruitment, ensured equal access to career advancement opportunities, and fostered an inclusive work culture. This enabled James to progress through the ranks, eventually reaching a senior leadership position within the company.
James’s journey exemplifies the transformative power of DEI strategies in facilitating social mobility. By providing access to quality education, mentorship, career development opportunities, and fostering inclusive workplace environments, DEI initiatives help individuals like James transcend their socioeconomic backgrounds and achieve upward mobility. Through targeted efforts to address systemic barriers and promote equal opportunities, DEI strategies contribute to a more equitable society where individuals can realize their full potential regardless of their starting point.
Adversity
Supporting Resilience and Overcoming Setbacks: In response to reversity, DEI practitioners must prioritize providing support and resources to individuals facing adversity. This includes assisting those affected by personal hardships, natural disasters, homelessness, opioid addiction, mental health challenges, and other setbacks. By offering comprehensive support services, access to education and job opportunities, and fostering resilience, DEI practitioners can help individuals rebuild their lives and contribute to society.
Adversity affects individuals and communities in various ways, including personal hardships, natural disasters, the impact of COVID-19, and the challenges of mental health. Many people find themselves slipping down the economic ladder due to circumstances beyond their control. DEI practitioners must develop strategies to assist those who have faced setbacks and help them regain their foothold in the American middle and upper class. By incorporating the concept of “affirmative anchoring,” where strategies do not pit one identity against another but rather recognize and value the struggles faced by all marginalized groups, we can foster solidarity and find collective solutions to uplift those in need.
Consider this hypothetical example: Consider Sarah, a hardworking individual who experienced a series of setbacks that significantly impacted her life. Sarah, a dedicated employee in the manufacturing industry, suddenly lost her job due to company-wide downsizing. This unexpected unemployment left Sarah facing financial instability and struggling to meet her basic needs.
As Sarah navigated through the challenges of unemployment, she also faced personal hardships. She found herself dealing with a sudden illness that required extensive medical treatment and hospitalization. The burden of medical bills and the inability to work further exacerbated her financial strain.
In addition to her health struggles, Sarah experienced the devastating effects of a natural disaster that ravaged her community. Her home was severely damaged, leaving her and her family temporarily displaced and without a safe place to live. The emotional toll of these events took a significant toll on Sarah’s overall well-being.
Despite the series of setbacks she encountered, Sarah displayed remarkable resilience. She sought assistance from community organizations that provided support for job hunting, financial counseling, and access to affordable housing resources. Through their guidance and her own determination, Sarah was able to secure a new job, gradually restore her financial stability, and rebuild her life.
Sarah’s story is a testament to the numerous individuals who face similar adversities in their lives. It underscores the importance for DEI practitioners to address the various dimensions of adversity such as unemployment, health challenges, and the impact of natural disasters. By providing comprehensive support systems, empowering individuals with resources, and advocating for policies that foster resilience, DEI practitioners can help many people like Sarah regain their footing, restore their lives, and thrive once again.
Affirmative Anchoring
Affirmative anchoring is a concept that emphasizes the importance of developing strategies within the realm of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) that do not pit one identity against another. Instead, it encourages the recognition and value of the unique challenges faced by all marginalized groups collectively.
The term “affirmative anchoring” implies anchoring efforts and initiatives in a framework of affirmation, support, and solidarity across various intersecting identities. It emphasizes the need to avoid divisive approaches that prioritize one identity or group over another, and instead fosters an inclusive mindset that acknowledges the shared struggles and aspirations of marginalized communities.
Consider this hypothetical example: In a large corporation, an HR team noticed a significant disparity in the promotion rates between employees from different racial backgrounds. While white employees were consistently advancing to higher-level positions, employees of color, particularly Black and Latinx employees, faced barriers and stagnation in their career progression.
The HR team recognized the need for affirmative anchoring, an approach that acknowledges the unique challenges faced by different marginalized groups and seeks to address them collectively. They initiated a comprehensive examination of the company’s promotion policies, performance evaluation processes, and leadership development programs through a DEI lens.
During this evaluation, they discovered that subjective performance evaluations had unintentional biases that disadvantaged employees of color. The evaluators often relied on subjective criteria that favored cultural norms and perspectives prevalent among white employees. This created a disparate impact, as employees of color were less likely to receive favorable evaluations and, subsequently, promotions.
To address this issue, the HR team implemented several strategies. First, they provided implicit bias training to evaluators to raise awareness of potential biases and encourage fair and equitable evaluations. They also introduced clear and objective performance metrics to minimize subjective biases in the evaluation process.
Furthermore, the company established mentorship programs specifically focused on supporting the career development of employees of color. This provided them with access to guidance, networking opportunities, and exposure to senior leaders within the organization. These mentorship programs helped create a more inclusive culture that acknowledged and valued the unique experiences and perspectives of POC employees.
Through these affirmative anchoring strategies, the company successfully challenged practices that had a disparate impact on employees of color. Over time, the promotion rates for POC employees improved, reflecting a more equitable distribution of opportunities within the organization.
This example demonstrates how affirmative anchoring can be employed to address systemic biases and disparities in the workplace. By recognizing and valuing the experiences and challenges faced by POC, organizations can implement targeted strategies that promote fairness, equal opportunities, and inclusive career advancement. Through these efforts, disparate impacts can be mitigated, creating a more equitable and diverse work environment for all employees.
Systemic Approach
Addressing Structural and Systemic Practices: To counter the structural barriers perpetuated by reversity, DEI practitioners must actively address and dismantle systemic practices that hinder progress toward equity and inclusion. This includes advocating for fair immigration policies, protecting voting rights, challenging voter suppression efforts, and fighting against attempts to limit DEI education. By exposing these barriers and actively working towards their removal, DEI practitioners can pave the way for more inclusive and equitable systems.
Consider this hypothetical example: In a city with a diverse population, the local government recognized that communities of color were disproportionately affected by limited access to affordable housing. They acknowledged that systemic barriers perpetuated these disparities, leading to housing inequities and further exacerbating socioeconomic gaps.
To address this issue, the local government adopted an affirmative anchoring approach to tackle systemic barriers in housing. They formed a task force comprising representatives from various community organizations, advocacy groups, and city officials to collectively develop strategies for promoting equitable housing opportunities.
The task force conducted extensive research and engaged in community dialogues to understand the specific challenges faced by communities of color. They identified several systemic barriers contributing to housing disparities, such as discriminatory lending practices, exclusionary zoning policies, and inadequate affordable housing stock.
To address these barriers, the task force proposed comprehensive initiatives. First, they worked to revise lending policies and regulations, ensuring that financial institutions adhered to fair lending practices and did not discriminate against individuals based on their race or ethnicity.
Additionally, the task force advocated for changes to zoning policies, promoting mixed-income neighborhoods and reducing concentrated poverty. They collaborated with city planners to create incentives for developers to include affordable housing units in new developments, ensuring a more balanced distribution of housing options throughout the city.
Furthermore, the task force partnered with nonprofit organizations and housing agencies to expand affordable housing programs and rental assistance initiatives specifically targeted at communities of color. They allocated resources to improve housing conditions, increase homeownership opportunities, and provide support for individuals facing eviction or homelessness.
Through their collective efforts, the task force successfully addressed systemic barriers outside of HR, leading to tangible improvements in housing equity. Communities of color gained increased access to affordable housing options, breaking the cycle of housing inequities and promoting socioeconomic stability.
This example illustrates how an affirmative anchoring approach, applied beyond HR, can help identify and dismantle systemic barriers. By actively engaging with community stakeholders, partnering with organizations, and implementing policy changes, systemic issues such as housing disparities can be tackled to promote greater equity and inclusion for marginalized communities.
Systems Change Competence
Building Competency in Systems and Organizational Change: DEI practitioners must build competency in systems and organizational change, using DEI as a lens to examine and transform practices, behaviors, and systems that perpetuate inequity. This requires evaluating all aspects of an organization, such as products and services, human capital, customers and clients, supply chain partnerships, community relations, and stakeholder relationships. Measures, metrics, and clear accountability should be established based on desired long-term outcomes to introduce high-impact actions and monitor progress with the full support of governance bodies and senior leadership.
Consider this hypothetical example: Consider an organization that publicly commits to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. The leadership team recognizes the importance of addressing systemic barriers and wants to bring about meaningful change. They appoint a DEI practitioner to lead the efforts and drive transformative change within the organization.
The DEI practitioner, possessing strong system change competence, understands that performative actions alone are insufficient to dismantle deeply ingrained inequities. They recognize that transformative change requires a holistic approach that examines and challenges the underlying structures, policies, and practices that perpetuate inequality.
To illustrate the importance of system change competence, let’s focus on the organization’s recruitment and hiring processes. The DEI practitioner realizes that these processes inadvertently favor candidates from privileged backgrounds, perpetuating the lack of diversity within the organization.
Instead of simply implementing cosmetic changes like posting diverse job advertisements or conducting unconscious bias training, the DEI practitioner leads a comprehensive system change. They analyze the entire recruitment and hiring system, including job descriptions, selection criteria, interview processes, and decision-making procedures.
Through this analysis, the DEI practitioner identifies systemic barriers and biases present in the current system. They propose and implement changes such as revising job descriptions to reduce bias, broadening the recruitment channels to reach a more diverse pool of candidates, implementing blind resume screening, and incorporating diverse interview panels.
Furthermore, the DEI practitioner advocates for changes in the organization’s culture to ensure that diversity and inclusion are valued throughout the hiring process. They work with hiring managers to challenge their biases and cultivate inclusive decision-making practices.
Over time, these system-level changes lead to transformative outcomes. The organization starts attracting a more diverse pool of candidates and successfully hires individuals from underrepresented backgrounds. The newly recruited employees feel included and supported, leading to increased engagement and retention rates.
This example highlights the significance of system change competence for DEI practitioners. It underscores the need to go beyond performative actions and tackle systemic barriers that hinder equitable outcomes. By addressing the root causes of inequity through comprehensive system change, DEI practitioners can drive transformative change within organizations, fostering a more inclusive and equitable environment for all.
Conclusion
By incorporating the narratives of social mobility, adversity, addressing structural and systemic practices, and building competency in systems and organizational change, DEI practitioners can fortify their strategies post the Supreme Court decision. By recognizing the conservative movement’s strategy of “reversity” and countering it with inclusive narratives, we can challenge exclusion and work towards a more equitable society.
Let us foster open dialogue, overcome communication barriers and cultural differences, and advocate for comprehensive DEI initiatives that touch all aspects of our organizations. Through collective action and ongoing commitment, we can create a future where diversity, equity, and inclusion are central to our shared identity and lasting change is achieved.
Effenus Henderson
