On DMEO
Dear Editor,
After reading last week’s “Diversity Means Equal Opportunity” (DMEO) Letter to the Editor, I had to go to Merriam-Webster to see what the author meant.
M-W’s definitions: Diversity: “the condition of having or being composed of differing elements;” Means: “to have in the mind as a purpose;” Equal: “of the same measure, quantity, amount, or number as another;” Opportunity: “a favorable juncture of circumstances.” I also looked up: Equity: “fairness or justice in the way people are treated.” Inclusion: “the act of including the state of being included.”
DMEO changes Equity to Equals, which makes numbers more important than fairness or justice. That has been the problem. Inpracticen, the government has forced DMEO policy on corporations and the bureaucracy under the guise of Equity being the E in DEI.
Sex and race have been used as the primary reasons for hiring in many large corporations and our governments rather than merit hiring, like in the movie, “Hidden Figures.”
The three ladies had special talents important to the purpose of NASA and were moved to the sections, which could best use their talents. Yes, there existed race and sex discrimination, and it still exists. But the boss began to understand equity was part of his job and finally did it. Equal had nothing to do with it.
Any organization is stupid not to search everywhere for and utilize needed talent from any source and to treat all employees equitably. But, and this is the big BUT, companies and the government should not force unqualified people into the Good Old Boys Club just to make the numbers equate to the population numbers of race, sex, etc.
That is where DMEO (under the label DEI) failed, as exhibited in the current FAA problem and in major corporations.
My main difference in opinion is this: We are all different, so diversity and discrimination are facts of life. (And useful, if used wisely.) But we cannot force people to be wise. We cannot force people to stop discriminating against each other (D), to treat others fairly (E), or to include all others (I).
There are Good Old Boys Clubs (based on sex, race, etc.) in every organization, including churches. Forcing a DEI policy equals forcing a stop-sinning policy. Force policy like DMEO doesn’t work.
“Diversity Means Equal Opportunity” is a waste of money.
L. O. Cox, Jr., Greshamville