The United States Is Crumbling. Bring the ‘DEIs’ Back

When President Donald Trump declared, “We ended DEI” during his State of the Union address, two things became clear: his administration aimed to elevate white supremacy, and everyone who supported this regime shares the blame.  

“White people were very badly treated,” Trump told the New York Times earlier this year when discussing the foundation of his administration’s racist policies, as he mentioned civil rights as a form of “reverse racism.”

Earlier this week, the president proved just how much he and his collaborators are in over their heads when he spoke about his latest self-inflicted wound, which is driving headlines. “Any deal they (Democrats) make, I’m pretty much not happy with it,” he said in reference to numerous proposed bipartisan bills to fund TSA that he refuses to support. 

As the partial government shutdown continues, it has caused a national nightmare at airports, as wait times at major hubs are five to six hours. According to the Department of Homeland Security, more than 450 TSA officers have quit as they haven’t been paid in weeks. An already bad situation was escalated when Trump poured gasoline on a fire by ordering ICE to occupy 13 airports recently. According to former Trump official Steve Bannon, ICE’s presence at airports is a “test run” for placing them at the polls for upcoming elections.

If you hadn’t noticed, this country ran much more smoothly, and Americans slept a lot better, when the DEIs were in power. In case you forgot, one of the first things Trump did when he got back in office was to drop a plan that the Biden/Harris administration created that would require airlines to compensate travelers for disrupted flights.

So, for all the people who love to claim that they “don’t do politics,” who have been stuck in line for hours, remember that politics will always find a way to do you.

When I refer to DEIs, I’m primarily talking about Black people, given that diversity, equity, and inclusion were hijacked in the same vein as “urban,” “woke,” and “affirmative action” to be used as coded language to call us the N-word in a politically correct way. 

However, I’m also referring to other minorities and people of color — and all the others who understand our value and what we bring to democracy — who have been targeted, laid off, fired, overlooked, belittled, penalized, and disenfranchised by this administration for voting against a twice-impeached felon because simply existing would place us in his crosshairs.

Trump’s first term in office was a nightmare, and the fact that he and his people governed during a global pandemic that forever changed world history highlighted just how inept and incapable they were at crisis management and running a country for the betterment of their citizens. 

Six years later, things are worse than expected. However, what you look like and who you voted for play a huge role in how jarring this second term has been for many. Given that white people still do not have a clue how white people operate, despite living in a country that operates in whiteness, Caucasians on both sides of the aisle have been dismayed by what’s occurred before we’ve even reached the halfway point of Trump’s second term. You could make the point that for the first time in America’s history, large pockets of white people are experiencing a small taste of what it feels like to be a target, as their privilege has not provided protection.

For Black Americans, our ability to utilize survival tactics passed down through generations, along with instinctual resilience, has allowed us to endure like palm trees in a storm: we bend but do not break despite the chaotic winds around us. 

“We negotiate with bombs,” Trump’s Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said recently while trying to explain why the president started a war with Iran that no one can explain. The man who has a history of alcohol abuse and misconduct allegations, and who once texted war plans to a journalist, is the executive director of the armed forces. 

Hegseth serves as an example of why America needs to bring the DEIs back, given that it was under the Obama administration that the Iran Deal was completed, which limited the country’s nuclear program.

The people whom this administration and their supporters believe are unqualified and have “low IQs” are the ones who didn’t have to arbitrate with threats of violence because they were busy securing global peace. It’s like forever First Lady Michelle Obama once said, “I have been at probably every powerful table that you can think of. I have worked at nonprofits. I have been at foundations. I have worked in corporations, served on corporate boards. I have been at G-summits, I have sat in at the U.N.: They are not that smart.”

Between the issues with the TSA and ICE at airports and the ongoing pointless war, we find ourselves at a point where the culmination of Trump’s presidency has made it almost impossible to empathize with those who regret their voting decisions.

While extending grace is a humane act, we cannot ignore the need for accountability and consequences.

If Kamala Harris were president, we’d be living in peace and traveling and flying on planes without fear. Foreign presidents would not have been kidnapped, gas prices would be reasonable, SNAP benefits wouldn’t come with unnecessary stipulations, ICE wouldn’t have free rein to murder people, and student loans would probably be on the verge of being erased.

Earlier this month, a government agency used ChatGPT to determine and cancel a six-figure grant for a museum in North Carolina because the system flagged it as DEI. It was another example of how even artificial intelligence can be racist, as white ineptitude and white supremacy are not only taught, but programmed, as they too often serve as instances of white inferiority.

If Donald Trump and his supporters truly wanted to “Make America Great Again,” they would bring the DEIs back. Besides, we’re the ones who built this country and are also stewards of democracy.

Carron J. Phillips is an award-winning journalist who writes on race, culture, social issues, politics, and sports. He hails from Saginaw, Michigan, and is a graduate of Morehouse College and Syracuse University. Follow his Substack to keep up with more of his work.

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