Trump’s agenda for the U.S. is not looking too good for anyone.
The people who voted for him simply to receive lower grocery prices most likely aren’t getting those prices any time soon. But one thing that will make a huge difference in millions of Americans’ lives is the fact that he is influencing major companies to cut the entire Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) program within their policies and workplace environments.
Now, what does this mean? Well, DEI is specifically a part within the government that promotes fair treatment to everyone and gives out the same opportunities to all people, especially ones who were very underrepresented not too long ago in America. DEI has been around since the ‘60s, which means it is still fairly recent considering the historical events that have happened to minority groups. It has ultimately aimed to promote a fair workplace environment for everyone where no one is discriminated against for their genders, races, ethnicities, religions, ages, sexual orientations, disabilities, and classes.
Clearly, DEI is a very important asset to the majority of Americans who may not have easy access to the same opportunities and events as privileged citizens. Those citizens being white counterparts who have better chances of finding employment with the exact same set of skills. But with Trump’s victory in winning the presidency, many people acknowledged what was coming with his plans for America.
Trump is what is known as a populist politician, which means he appeals to many people with his words and charisma. With his tone, he has recently influenced numerous companies to join in on the cutting of DEI. These companies include Pepsi, Amazon, Target, Meta, McDonald’s, Walmart, Ford, and Lowe’s. The main reason as to why all these companies decided to join in on dropping DEI from their platforms in case of possible “legal attacks and conservative backlash.” A major influencer of this move is Robby Starbuck, a conservative activist against DEI, who has been protesting heavily against “so-called wokeness” within the workplace environment and continued his own online criticism, such as influencing companies to start corporate rollbacks on DEI policies that eventually impacted many companies’ final decision.
Not even a week ago, Target has received backlash and have had people confront the company with legal action against their cut of DEI. The case being the City of Riviera Beach Police Pension Fund filed a class-action lawsuit against Target Corporation which said Target failed to disclose the risks that could come along with their removal of DEI within the company. The main legal action behind this case is that they say Target did not communicate properly to employees about the potential backlash many employees will face without the DEI programs. The final outcome of this case is still ongoing, but we can also see many other major, national companies following in the same footsteps with the eviction of DEI.
The obliteration of DEI by President Trump has already caused consequences and major issues for employees and corporate culture in general. For example, employees from the Department of Education have already been placed on a paid leave due to Trump’s execution of the program which he believes many of that department belong to. Since the termination of DEI, nationally, countless people from minority groups, especially women of color, are already facing job insecurity and financial instability. Eventually, workplace diversity and conduct will deteriorate with less outlook on employees within the companies. This leaves many employees unsupported and unmotivated to live in America without the benefits they need to survive, leaving many considering and pursuing a move outside of America.
Not only do all of these companies listed continue to follow down the same path and choose to remove a program that supports the majority of employees throughout America, the future for corporations is still uncertain. And it is not just something that is technical within corporate culture; it is a societal shift. Without DEI, the long lasting fights that were fought to actually create this sense of connection for everyone to feel like they belong now could be considered useless with Trump’s sudden and cruel removal of all the hard work done. As companies continue to exterminate any sort of DEI program within their facilities, here’s the real question: will America become a place where you’re supposed to accept the fact you won’t receive the same chance as someone else?
