The Trouble with Diversity

1. Diversity obscures economic inequality

The commitment to diversity has redefined the opposition to discrimination as the appreciation (rather than the elimination) of difference.

Diversity distracts from inequality. By focusing on celebrating cultural and racial differences, we ignore the more pressing issue of economic disparity. This shift in focus allows society to feel progressive without addressing the fundamental problems of wealth distribution.

Neoliberalism benefits from diversity. The emphasis on diversity serves the interests of neoliberal capitalism by:

• Redirecting attention from class struggles to identity politics
• Making inequality seem fair as long as it's not based on race or gender
• Allowing corporations to appear socially responsible without changing their economic practices

2. Race is a social construct, not a biological reality

"Races," as the molecular anthropologist Jonathan Marks recently put it, are "like angels. Many people believe in them, devoutly. They can even tell you what properties they have. But the closer you try to examine them to discover their real nature, the more elusive they become."

Scientific consensus rejects biological race. Modern genetics has shown that there is more genetic variation within racial groups than between them. This undermines the idea of distinct biological races.

Race persists as a social category. Despite lacking scientific basis, race continues to shape social experiences and identities. This persistence is due to:

• Historical legacies of racism and discrimination
• Cultural associations and stereotypes
• Institutional practices that categorize people by race
• Individual and group identities formed around racial categories

3. Anti-racism has become a conservative force in American politics

Redistributing wealth is one thing; making sure that the women of the upper class are paid just as well as the men of the upper class is another.

Anti-racism focuses on representation, not redistribution. Modern anti-racism often emphasizes:

• Diversifying elite institutions
• Promoting minority representation in high-paying professions
• Celebrating cultural differences

Economic inequality remains unaddressed. This approach leaves fundamental economic structures intact:

• The wealth gap between rich and poor continues to grow
• Class mobility remains limited
• Low-wage workers, regardless of race, struggle to make ends meet

4. Universities perpetuate inequality while championing diversity

The point is not that we should be nicer to the homeless; it's that no one should be homeless.

Universities as microcosms of inequality. Elite universities:

• Celebrate racial and cultural diversity
• Overlook vast economic disparities among students
• Serve as sorting mechanisms for future economic success

Affirmative action's limitations. While aiming to address historical injustices:

• It primarily benefits middle and upper-class minorities
• Does little to help poor students of any race
• Legitimizes the idea that elite education is a fair path to success

5. The trouble with cultural identity and heritage

We like diversity and we like programs such as affirmative action because they tell us that racism is the problem we need to solve and that solving it requires us just to give up our prejudices.

Cultural identity as a distraction. Emphasizing cultural identity:

• Turns political and economic issues into matters of personal heritage
• Encourages people to see themselves as victims of historical injustice rather than current economic systems
• Promotes a false sense of equality between cultures while ignoring economic inequalities

The limits of cultural preservation. Efforts to preserve cultural practices often:

• Ignore the evolving nature of culture
• Romanticize past traditions, some of which may be oppressive
• Divert attention from more pressing economic and social issues

6. Reparations and the limits of addressing historical injustice

If you support reparations not just to the victims of the Nazis but also to their heirs, there are no coherent grounds for opposing reparations to the heirs of slavery's victims.

The complexities of reparations. While addressing historical injustices:

• Reparations struggle to define who deserves compensation and how much
• They risk perpetuating racial categories they aim to overcome
• They may not address ongoing systemic inequalities

Limitations of compensatory justice. Focusing on past wrongs can:

• Ignore current economic disparities not directly linked to historical injustices
• Fail to address the root causes of ongoing inequality
• Create new divisions based on who is deemed eligible for compensation

7. Religion in politics: Beliefs matter more than identities

Prejudice involves the unjustified assumption that your identity is somehow better than someone else's identity; disagreement involves the absolutely justified—indeed unavoidable—assumption that your belief is better than someone else's belief.

Belief vs. identity in political discourse. Religious beliefs:

• Are fundamentally about truth claims, not personal identities
• Cannot be treated as equally valid in the way cultural identities are
• Have real consequences for public policy and social norms

The importance of religious debate. Treating religion as a matter of identity:

• Stifles necessary political and ethical debates
• Ignores the real-world implications of religious beliefs
• Misunderstands the nature of religious conviction

8. Education and diversity fail to address systemic inequality

Making equality of opportunity real would diversify both the bosses and the workers but it wouldn't reduce the gap between them.

The limits of equal opportunity. Even with perfect equality of opportunity:

• A small minority would still get good jobs
• The majority would still be in low-paying positions
• The overall economic structure would remain unchanged

Education as a sorting mechanism. Higher education often:

• Reproduces existing class structures
• Provides a veneer of meritocracy to an unequal system
• Fails to create significant economic mobility for most students

9. The decline of labor unions correlates with rising income inequality

What the show presents is both a vision of the world in which the truly talented will succeed (the American dream!) and a vision of the high level of self-deception—I'm talented! I will succeed!—required to live happily in that world (the American delusion).

Union decline and inequality. As union membership has fallen:

• Income inequality has risen sharply
• Worker protections have weakened
• The share of national income going to labor has decreased

The importance of collective bargaining. Strong unions historically:

• Negotiated better wages and working conditions
• Provided a counterbalance to corporate power
• Helped maintain a strong middle class

10. Capitalism, not discrimination, is the root cause of economic disparity

The biggest trouble with diversity is that it keeps us from talking about the trouble with capitalism.

Capitalism's role in inequality. The capitalist system:

• Inherently creates winners and losers
• Concentrates wealth in the hands of a few
• Exploits labor for profit, regardless of workers' race or gender

The limits of anti-discrimination. While important, fighting discrimination:

• Does not address the fundamental economic structures that create poverty
• Can be co-opted by corporations to appear progressive while maintaining exploitative practices
• Diverts attention from class-based critiques of capitalism

Last updated: July 23, 2024