Dear Colleague,
Each of us has devoted our careers to higher education. We disagree on significant issues, from the war in Gaza, to the effectiveness of diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. Yet we continue to work together, side by side.
One of us has worked in social justice and inclusion at a Big Ten university—talking to everyone from custodial staff to academic scholars about DEI. Two of us run higher education programming at a nonprofit organization. All three of us have served as campus faculty.
We have all noticed the same troubling pattern: DEI has become politically charged, publicly contested, and, in some places, dismantled.
The backlash against DEI reveals what happens when people retreat into their corners and stop engaging with one another. We are living through a profound moment of fragmentation: “I’m right; you’re wrong” culture.
We have all lost the plot.
